Donald Trump trial live updates: Defense lawyers demand a mistrial over ‘prejudicial’ Stormy Daniels ‘spanking’ allegations and claims Donald didn’t wear a condom during sex

Judge Juan Merchan gave a brutal dressing down of Donald Trump’s protection lawyers in entrance of the previous president as he denied their movement for a mistrial within the hush cash case Thursday afternoon.

It was the second movement for a mistrial from the protection this week after scandalous testimony from porn star Stormy Daniels about her alleged sexual encounter with Trump.

In his name for a mistrial, lawyer Todd Blanche known as Stormy Daniels’ testimony ‘extraordinarily prejudicial’ and noted that even the judge had agreed some of the testimony was ‘unnecessary.’

‘It almost defies belief that we’re right here about a data case and the federal government is asking about an incident that occurred in 2006,’ Blanche argued referring to Daniels’ testimony on Tuesday about rolling up a journal and spanking Trump with it practically 20 years in the past.

Donald Trump once more known as the choose within the hush cash trial ‘corrupt’ as he left court docket following Stormy Daniels’ explosive testimony.

The former president railed in opposition to the gag order and stated: ‘I don’t think we have to do any extra explaining, I’m not allowed to anyway because this judge is corrupt.’

‘He’s a corrupt judge.Everybody saw what happened today.

‘He’s a corrupt judge, and he’s totally conflicted.’

Again he bemoaned not being on the marketing campaign path and stated ‘every’ authorized analyst he has learn has criticized the case.

It adopted the tip of Daniels’ six-hour look on the stand, the place she detailed the alleged sexual encounter they’d in a resort room in 2006.

She went into lurid element along with her allegations in opposition to Trump. He was 60 on the time they first met and she was 27.

The protection lawyers deployed a high-risk technique of utilizing her profession in grownup movies to undermine her credibility.

Donald Trump‘s former govt assistant has revealed that Melania Trump was ‘positively the one in cost’ in her marriage to Donald Trump.

In dramatic testimony to Trump’s hush cash trial Madeleine Westerhout stated the previous first couple had a ‘particular relationship’ based on ‘mutual respect’.

When he was president Trump would name his spouse from the Oval Office and ask her to look down from a window within the White House residence.

And when he was leaving on a helicopter he would name her to ‘verify in’.

Donald Trump‘s protection lawyer’s technique was clear as she cross-examined grownup film actor and director Stormy Daniels on Thursday: Paint the witness as a money-grabbing huckster who made a profession out of inventing sex scenes.

Lawyers name it a ‘nuts and sluts’ protection.

It was a tussle that Daniels—all shrugs and steely outrage—was up for.

Read extra beneath from Senior Political Reporter Rob Crilly inside court docket:

Judge Merchan denies movement for a mistrial.

Court will resume on Friday at 9:30am ET.

Judge Juan Merchan says on Tuesday he pulled out his earlier determination to reject a mistrial and checked out transcript from Tuesday’s proceedings and went again to verify nobody violated tips. He says he got here away glad.

Merchan additionally says going again to opening statements, lawyer Todd Blanche denied there ever was a sexual encounter between Trump and Daniels and that denial put jury in place to have to decide on who they might imagine.

He says the extra Daniels may present specifics concerning the encounter, the extra they will weigh whether or not to credit score her.

Merchan does say he agrees some particulars didn’t want to return out together with concerning the condom. He questions ‘why on earth’ Susan Necheles didn’t object to the testimony.

He additionally stated he doesn’t perceive why the protection went over the Daniels claims she was not drugged or drunk and different particulars ‘at nauseum’ over and over once more during cross-examination.

He additionally disagrees with protection that there’s any new account in Daniels’ testimony.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass says Todd Blanche’s argument for a mistrial is ‘flat out’ not true.

He says the main points of Stormy Daniels’ story had been properly documented and rejects the declare that the protection was ambushed.

Steinglass additionally says declare that Daniels modified her story is ‘extraordinarily untrue.’

Steinglass says to the extent there have been inconsistencies, Necheles ‘probed them’ in her ‘thorough’ cross-examination.

He argues that the prosecution additionally tried very onerous to honor the choose’s needs and pull again Daniels’ testimony.

Trump’s protection legal professional Todd Blanche is arguing for a mistrial.

He known as Stormy Daniels’ testimony ‘extraordinarily prejudicial.’

Blanche notes the choose even stated the diploma of element in her testimony ‘is unnecessary’ and to maneuver alongside.

He blasts the prosecution saying ‘the government said ok and they did not do that.’

Blanche is studying from the transcript of Daniels’ testimony about having sex with Trump in 2006.

At one level Blanche says asking Daniels concerning the porn firm she labored for requiring condoms for all its performers, however Trump not carrying one was a ‘canine whistle for rape.’

Judge Juan Merchan denies protection’s movement for the gag order to be modified.

He says he’s involved with defending the proceedings as a complete and how witnesses will probably be handled by Todd Blanche’s consumer Donald Trump.

‘My concern is not just protecting Ms. Daniels,’ he says. ‘My concern is protecting the integrity of these proceedings as a whole.’

He points out that everyone sees what happens and how witnesses who have testified ‘are going to be treated.’

‘I can’t take your phrase for it that this isn’t going to be an assault. That’s simply not the monitor report,’ Merchan says.

Merchan notes previous vitriol, and he says the consumer’s monitor report ‘speaks for itself.’

Trump’s lawyer Todd Blanche is urgent again on the gag order proscribing Donald Trump from talking about witness Stormy Daniels in mild of her testimony.

‘He wants a chance to answer the American folks,’ Blanche says.

Blanche argues Daniels is not a witness.

The different aspect can say issues, Blanche argues, however Trump cannot.

‘It can’t be that he can’t reply to that… now that she’s off the stand,’ Blanche says.

He claims Daniels’ story has modified, so Trump ought to be capable of reply.

Prosecutor Chris Conroy argues there are folks making the case for Trump publicly, and he can reply in court docket.

He claims modifying the gag order now would sign to witnesses that they’re in danger as properly.

Defense legal professional Todd Blanche says he was knowledgeable by prosecutors they do not plan to name the previous Playboy playmate.

From Sarah Ewall-Wice, Senior U.S. Political Reporter in court docket:

Madeleine Westehrout’s testimony has wrapped up for the day.

She appeared to smile in Donald Trump’s route as she left the witness stand.

Madeleine Westerhout is being cross-examined by Susan Necheles.

She is giving a glowing evaluate of working for Donald Trump on the White House, calling him a actually good boss and that she discovered him ‘fulfilling to work for.’

Madeleine Westerhout broke down in tears on the witness stand when she was requested about her exit from the White House.

She dabs her eyes with tissues and is requested if she must take a second, however they hold going.

She recollects she went to a dinner she thought was off the report and ‘stated some issues I mustn’t have stated.’ She recollects it ‘finally’ price her the job and she is ‘very regretful of my youthful indiscretion.’

Westerhout wrote a whole e-book about her exit from the White House.

She says she wrote it as a result of she needed to share with the American folks concerning the ‘man I obtained to know.’

‘I do not suppose he is handled pretty and I needed to inform that story,’ she says.

She spoke to Trump at a fundraiser as soon as after she left the White House.

Westerhout is requested about her interactions with Melania Trump. She says she did work together along with her.

She recollects Trump was very upset by the Stormy Daniels story and that Trump spoke to Michael Cohen round that point.

Westerhout describes the Trumps’ relationship as certainly one of ‘mutual respect.’

‘I do know he cares a lot about her opinion,’ she recollects.

She describes Melania because the one who may put Trump in his place and stated their relationship was ‘particular.’

She additionally says the couple ‘laughed a lot when she got here into the workplace.’

‘I just really respected their relationship,’ Westerhout says.

Did something change about their relationship after Stormy Daniels story got here out?

‘Not that I saw,’ she says.

In one instance proven to the jury, Rhona Graff despatched be aware about golf membership and whether or not to pay private dues.

Because the be aware was despatched all the way down to White House, Westerhout says she handed it on to the president.

The jury is proven the be aware despatched by Graff along with her be aware concerning the membership dues.

On the be aware beneath what Graff had written, Trump wrote in his personal hand: ‘Pay –’

When requested about Trump’s private financials, Westerhout recollects ‘it was my understanding they were handled by checks.’

She says she would bring them in for Trump to sign. At first checks were sent to Keith Schiller and eventually to her.

Westerhout would open the envelopes and bring them in for the president to sign. She says there were sometimes invoices attached.

She says she doesn’t recall the frequency of checks but says it was ‘consistent’ ‘maybe twice a month.’

Despite the boring subject, the jury seems to be listening to the main points of her testimony.

She describes the connection between Trump and Cohen on the time as shut.

Did he go to the White House?

‘I believe so,’ she says.

The jury is proven an e-mail between Cohen and Westerhout confirming his go to and asking Cohen for info to get by means of.

The jury is proven a record of contacts offered by Graff to Westerhout.

She recollects it was a record of individuals Trump reached out to typically or would possibly wish to converse to.

The record included the then-president’s household together with daughter Tiffany, Allen Weisselberg, and David Pecker who Westerhout described as a ‘tabloid person.’

Michael Cohen can also be listed.

When she obtained record she entered all of the contacts into her contacts, Westerhout recollects.

If a title appeared on the record, she says ‘yes’ she was extra prone to patch them by means of to the then-president.

Madeleine Westerhout testifies that her essential level of contact at Trump Organization was Rhona Graff, his Trump Organization govt assistant.

When Trump had questions for Trump Organization staff, she recollects she would cross these alongside.

She says she would converse to Graff weekly if not day by day early within the job however that tapered off because the work continued.

The first emails proven invovled an change about Westerhout getting contacts from Graff.

Madeleine Westerhout goes by means of some particulars of Donald Trump’s work habits within the White House.

At one poine she says she felt responsible she would go to mattress typically earlier than Trump completed taking calls at evening.

When requested if Trump used a laptop or have an e-mail account, she responds to every ‘to not my data.’

Did Trump wish to learn? ‘Yes,’ she says.

She describes how he moved his working area into a room off the aspect of the oval workplace finally. She recall she needed to maintain the oval workplace ‘pristine.’

She additionally discusses his signature habits. He prefered to signal issues himself.

‘He preferred to make use of sharpies,’ she says. She additionally mentions a felt-

The prosecution is working to determine how intently Madeleine Westerhout labored close to Donald Trump within the White House.

The jury is being proven a floorplan of the White House with the Oval Office listed in addition to surrounding places of work.

Prosecutor asks: ‘Did anybody work nearer to Trump than you probably did?’

‘Not in the first few months,’ she says.

Westerhout was known as ‘greeter girl’ at Trump Tower after Trump gained the election and earlier than he took workplace. She got here as much as New York to assist with scheduling.

She is requested about Michael Cohen and identifies him as Trump’s lawyer.

She describes him as ‘around’ at Trump Tower during that point.

Westerhout was on the RNC when the Access Hollywood tape of Trump was launched during the 2016 election.

She is requested the affect the tape had.

Westerhout says it was ‘rattling’ to RNC management.

She recollects there have been conversations about how it might be potential to switch Donald Trump because the candidate if it got here to that.

Trump remained the candidate.

Madeleine Westerhout is the subsequent query known as by the prosecution.

She works in consulting however she labored as Donald Trump’s govt assistant within the White House. Before the 2016 election she labored for the Republican National Committee.

When requested if she’s nervous to testify, she says ‘I’m now.’

Witness from HarperCollins has left the witness stand.

Trump’s lawyer Todd Blanche is questioning the witness, Tracey Menzies.

Tracey Menzies is being requested to learn excerpts from Trump’s e-book ‘Think Big.’

One chapter she reads from is titled ‘Do Not Trust Anyone.’

Another excerpt she is studying is about loyalty. For somebody he describes within the e-book as disloyal, Trump writes he goes out of his approach to make her life depressing.

Tracey Menzies is the subsequent witness. She has labored for HarperCollins for the previous 25 years.

She is being requested concerning the Trump e-book ‘Think Big: Make it Happen in Business and Life.’

The cowl of the e-book is being proven in court docket.

Trump protection lawyer Susan Necheles is cross inspecting Rebecca Manochio.

Manochio was Allen Weisselberg’s govt assistant on the Trump Organization.

Manochio testifies that Ivanka Trump was additionally having her checks despatched all the way down to Washington whereas she was working on the White House.

Stormy Daniels’ lawyer Clark Brewster praised his consumer as she left the witness stand following six hours of testimony within the Manhattan trial.

He posted a photograph of him smiling with the grownup movie star who was grilled on her grownup movie profession during the brutal cross-examination by Trump’s protection attorneys.

The jury was proven an e-mail from John McEntee, who labored for Trump as a private aide on the White House to Rhona Graff in September 2017.

McEntee requested to be put in contact with Rebecca Manochio as Trump’s aide Keith Schiller was leaving his job.

McEntree wrote: ‘I will need the bosses personal checks mailed to me.’

In a follow up email to Manochio, McEntee said ‘we are all very sad to see [Schiller] go.’

McEntee gave her a personal email address so could give Manochio the best address to send the checks to.

Subsequent invoices from FedEx reflected that the checks were sent to McEntee – the jury were shown one from November.

Rebecca Manochio is testifying about mailing Donald Trump’s checks unsigned down to Washington. They would come back signed.

She says she would FedEx the checks about once a week.

Manochio recalls sending a few checks at a time but has remembered one.

She would put unsigned checks in an envelope. Returned checks were also sent to her at the Trump Organization with his signature.

Prosecutors allege that Trump signed nine checks for more than $300,000 to repay Michael Cohen while he was President of the United States.

When it was addressed that Trump got a new job as president, Trump smiled.

Rebecca Manochio is the next witness to testify.

She is a junior book keeper at the Trump Organization.

She is testifying about previously being an executive assistant to Allen Weisselberg, former chief financial officer, for eight years.

Stormy Daniels has left the witness stand.

She testified for more than six hours and delivered by far the most intense and salacious evidence.

Daniels is photographed departing the courthouse:

From Sarah Ewall-Wice, Senior U.S. Political Reporter in court:

After firing of some zingers during cross-examination, Stormy Daniels is much more subdued during the redirect and follow-up questions from the defense.

She is speaking much more softly, slowly and giving some one-word answers.

Daniels has been viewing a series of nasty social media posts.

In redirect, prosecutor Susan Hoffinger asks ‘have you been telling lies about Mr. Trump or the truth about Mr. Trump?’

‘The truth,’ Daniels says.

She is asked about the costs of telling her story. She mentions hiring security and having to move. She also notes attorney fees after losing judgement.

‘Has publicly telling the truth been net positive or net negative?’ Hoffinger asks.

‘Negative,’ says Daniels.

Prosecutor asks Stormy Daniels about a tweet the place somebody calls her a prostitute and says ‘good luck strolling down the road.’

It is certainly one of a number of posts Daniels is requested to view.

Daniels says those she is being proven are ‘tame’ by comparability to some others.

Florida Senator Rick Scott spoke to reporters stationed exterior of the Trump trial courthouse.

‘The lead prosecutor was the quantity three individual on the Biden Justice Department,’ he stated referring to prosecutor Michael Colangelo.

‘The choose’s daughter is a political operative who raises cash for Democrats, this has to cease. We know that President Biden cannot win this election honest and sq.,’ Scott acknowledged.

He additionally appeared on Fox News whereas Stormy’s testimony was ongoing, calling the case ‘political persecution.’

‘It is a crime to make use of the courts for political persecution. If we do not cease this each American is in danger. I’m going to go help this president as a result of that is flawed what’s occurring to this man.’

Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger is poking holes within the cross-examination of Stormy Daniels.

As one instance of a number of, she pulls up a line from an article that notes Daniels’ interview had been ‘edited’ and says Susan Necheles ‘didn’t ask you about that?’

Daniels confirms she didn’t.

Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger is asking Stormy Daniels questions.

Susan Necheles is asking Stormy Daniels about her data of the indictment in opposition to Trump.

‘There are a lot of indictments,’ Daniels says. She smiles.

It got here as Necheles had been asking Daniels concerning the cost on the heart of the case.

Daniels stated she was paid by her lawyer. She by no means negotiated immediately with Donald Trump.

Trump’s former White House communications director Mike Dubke, in a uncommon look on CNN, says voters will not be swayed by Stormy Daniels’ testimony.

Dubke served over 100 days – or as he put it ’10 Scaramuccis’ – as Trump’s communications chief.

I feel all of what is being mentioned proper now could be is a identified amount to the American folks…all of those particulars, I imply, I feel it is baked in on what the American folks will settle for from Donald Trump.

There’s two juries right here that we’re speaking about. If we’re solely speaking concerning the jury in that New York City courtroom, they need to have been over at 9.45am. But there’s the jury of the American folks. We are actually witnessing a presidential marketing campaign being run out of a courtroom. It is a excessive wire act. He’s a very completed performer on the excessive wire.

Trump’s lawyer submits social media posts by Stormy Daniels of the fliers to her tour into proof.

The posts are proven within the courtroom.

Daniels had testified she didn’t just like the title of the tour. She says she reposted to advertise for her job.

From Rob Crilly, Senior Political Reporter inside court docket:

As the jury left for a brief morning break, Trump tapped his protection lawyer Susan Necheles on the left elbow as if to thank her for her work cross-examing Daniels.

Once the jury and witness had left, Trump then exited the court docket and pointed at Newsmax host Greg Kelly within the public gallery.

He clearly thinks he had a good morning.

From Rob Crilly, Senior Political Reporter inside court docket:

This is a high-risk technique by the protection, utilizing Stormy Daniels’ historical past within the grownup film in opposition to her.

Susan Necheles, the one girl on the protection staff, has already identified that Daniels has made a profession out of inventing sex scenes, suggesting that the Trump encounter is simply one other figment of her creativeness.

And now she is asking how it’s that somebody who has acted in 200 films may presumably be shocked by the sight of a man in boxer shorts sitting on a mattress.

One of the ladies within the jury is sitting ahead now, her head snapping again and forth to comply with questions and solutions.

‘Your story has completely changed hasn’t it?’ Susan Necheles says.

‘No, not at all,’ Daniels says she shot again that the lawyer is attempting to make her say it has modified ‘but it hasn’t modified.’

At one other level Necheles says ‘you made all this up proper?’

Susan Necheles is concentrated on Stormy Daniels’ earlier retelling of the story the place she got here out of the toilet and Trump was in his underwear on the mattress.

She asks a collection of questions on Daniels’ shock about Trump being on the mattress and her feeling faint.

She asks after all of the porn Daniels has completed, seeing a man sitting on the mattress in his boxers and t-shirt was so upsetting she obtained mild headed and nearly fainted?

Daniels counters: ‘Yes, when you’re not anticipating to see a man twice your age.’

Daniels responds ‘absolutely.’ She goes on that ‘if I came out of the bathroom and saw an older man I wasn’t anticipating to see there.

Necheles factors out earlier Daniels claims she spanked him. Daniels says that was ‘in jest.’

At one other level, Necheles notes that she stated in her e-book ‘you’d made him your b***ch?’

‘I had earlier, sure,’ Daniels says.

‘Because you might be highly effective proper?’

‘I used to suppose so,’ Daniels says.

Trump’s lawyer is making an attempt to poke holes in Stormy Daniels’ story about Trump in 2006 the place he had invited her over for dinner.

This is the alleged encounter the place Daniels and Trump had sex.

Susan Necheles brings up Daniels’ interview in 2018 through which she says she went for dinner.

There is a again and forth over what dinner meant.

‘I went to dinner and didn’t get dinner,’ Daniels says.

Necheles additionally says it was a large deal you didn’t get dinner?

‘It was dinnertime, I used to be hungry,’ Daniels says.

Daniels says they spent time for supper within the room, however they by no means truly ate.

Necheles goes by means of actual wording in Daniels’ earlier retelling of the story and argues there have been inconsistencies.

Donald Trump’s lawyer is asking Stormy Daniels about making porn movies.

‘You have a lot of expertise of constructing phony tales about sex seem like actual?’ Necheles says.

Daniels counters ‘wow, that is not how I’d put it.’

She says ‘the sex within the movies could be very a lot actual.’ She provides ‘similar to what occurred to me in that room’ referencing her alleged encounter with Trump in 2006.

Daniels is requested about a supposedly faux story about having sex with Trump.

She responds: ‘if that story was unfaithful, I’d have written it to be a lot higher.’

Trump’s lawyer is working to indicate Stormy Daniels continues to be making a living off her story.

Susan Necheles calls up proof together with merchandise that’s bought on Stormy Daniels’ retailer.

Before pulling up the proof, Necheles asks Stormy Daniels about taking credit score for the Trump indictment.

‘You’re bragging about how you bought President Trump indicted,’ Necheles says.

‘I got President Trump indicted?’ Daniels responds by gesturing to herself.

Necheles pulls up a picture of 1 merchandise: ‘Stormy Saint of Indictments Candle.’

She asks Daniels about promoting it off the indictment.

‘No, I think it’s humorous a retailer made these for me to promote, so I put them on my website,’ she says.

Necheles asks if she’s making $40 off them, Daniels says no, she’s making $7.

Trump’s protection lawyer Susan Necheles is asking Stormy Daniels about her attempting to take Donald Trump down.

She exhibits a March 27 tweet from Daniels through which she retweets a publish that calls her a bathroom.

Daniels wrote: ‘Exactly! Making me the very best individual to flush the orange turd down.’

Daniels notes the individual she retweeted was calling her a human bathroom ‘so I capitalized on the joke.’

She tells Necheles she put phrases in her mouth about being ‘instrumental or jail.’

‘You weren’t saying you had been going to be instrumental in inflicting him to be convicted of a crime?’ Necheles asks.

‘No,’ Daniels says. She says ‘somebody calls me a bathroom, I’m fairly positive I can say I can flush anyone.’

Necheles asks her if she is aware of what she meant when she stated ‘orange turd.’

Daniels responds that she is making her personal assumption as to who it’s. The court docket laughs.

Eventually, Daniels says ‘I completely meant Mr. Trump.’

She claims she responds to tons of of tweets that assault her.

Stormy Daniels instructed the court docket she hated the title of her strip membership tour: ‘Make America Horny Again’.

Necheles is asking Daniels concerning the promoting for the tour, particularly with a photograph of Daniels and Trump from the golf course assembly.

Daniels claimed she fought ‘tooth and nail’ to vary the title as Necheles prompt she was attempting to capitalize on the affair story.

From Sarah Ewall-Wice, Senior U.S. Political Reporter in court docket:

Stormy Daniels seems a lot much less nervous in court docket right now.

She is talking calmly and extra slowly than she had been talking on Tuesday.

Her tone is measured and she is taking pauses at occasions earlier than responding to questions in cross-examination.

It comes after she was requested to decelerate quite a few occasions in court docket on Tuesday.

Legal consultants instructed DailyMail.com that a nervous witness might be a problem for lawyers to query as a result of they both don’t converse in any respect or share far more than what’s requested. Neither is good.

Trump legal professional Susan Necheles, who’s cross-examining Stormy Daniels, asks her if she needed to publicly announce she had sex with Trump.

‘No. Nobody would ever wish to publicly say that. I needed to publicly defend myself,’ Daniels stated

While discussing cost for her story, Trump’s protection performs audio of Stormy Daniels’ former lawyer Keith Davidson talking about promoting Daniels story.

It’s audio of Davidson talking to Michael Cohen on his podcast.

In the audio, Davidson recollects Daniels telling him in 2016 if Trump loses ‘we lose all our leverage.’

He claims she instructed him ‘settle this f***ing case.’

Davidson says he was ‘bullied and pushed’ into settling the case.

In court docket, Daniels responds to the audio that she by no means ‘railed at Keith Davidson on the telephone.’

‘This says Gina’s boyfriend was going to inform the story. That was a risk from Keith Davidson,’ Daniels says.

Susan Necheles is strolling by means of a assertion Stormy Daniels signed in January 2018 denying they ever had an affair.

It occurred across the similar time the Wall Street Journal article was popping out.

Susan Necheles is asking Stormy Daniels a collection of questions on attempting to promote her story earlier than the 2016 election.

‘I never asked for money from anyone in particular, I asked for money to tell my story,’ Daniels says.

She claims she was ‘asking to sell my story to publications to get the truth out.’

Necheles suggests she may have completed it with a press convention.

‘I could have,’ Daniels says. She provides that she ‘chose to be safe.’

‘You chose to make money?’ Necheles says.

Daniels says she selected to take a nondisclosure settlement.

Necheles has introduced up conversations Daniels had with a Slate reporter who tried to persuade her to let him publish her story.

Daniels says it was backup if the nondisclosure settlement fell by means of.

Daniels additionally says the nondisclosure settlement was a ‘better alternative.’

She claims it might have protected her story with a paper path.

Necheles says if the story got here on the market would have been a paper path.

Daniels says it might have ‘with a target on my back and my family’s.’

She known as the nondisclosure settlement a ‘perfect solution.’

Necheles asks if the motivation to go public additionally was to harm Trump politically for his ‘newfound’ opposition to abortion and homosexual marriage saying she needed cash or would harm him?

From Rob Crilly, Senior U.S. Political Reporter within the courtroom:

Donald Trump arrived within the courtroom at 9:25 a.m. ET with a larger retinue than some other day.

Florida Senator Rick Scott took a seat within the row behind the defendant, with Trump’s legal professional Alina Habba.

Natalie Harp is in her typical seat within the second row subsequent to the aisle.

As Trump entered, Newsmax host Greg Kelly stood up within the public gallery, wished him luck and flashed a thumbs up. He was shortly ordered to take a seat down.

Real property investor Steve Witkoff can also be in Trump’s small group of supporters.

Donald Trump’s protection lawyer Susan Necheles is questioning the witness.

She has pulled up communications about Daniels making an attempt to promote her story in 2016.

Prosecutors ask the choose to dam an arrest of Stormy Daniels from being submitted into proof.

The arrest didn’t lead to costs nor a conviction for assault. Therefore, Judge Merchan says it can’t be introduced up.

Trump’s protection lawyer Susan Necheles says she wish to ask about Daniels’ husband accusing her of assault and the prosecutors object that anybody could make an accusation.

The choose rejects it being introduced up.

He says it was ‘not probative of something’ because the case went nowhere and Daniels was not convicted.

Ted Cruz has issued an uncommon protection of Donald Trump amid Stormy Daniels’ salacious testimony.

The Republican Texas senator stated folks shouldn’t be shocked that Donald Trump has not been ‘celibate’.

By the way in which, the testimony of Stormy Daniels that was salacious – that was the purpose of it! Listen there isn’t any individual on planet Earth that believes Donald Trump has been celibate all his life. That shouldn’t be information.

But they wish to drag him by means of the gutter as a result of that is a political smear job. It’s not concerning the rule of regulation. It’s tragic what’s occurring as a result of the rule of regulation is essential. It protects all of us. This is what banana republics do.”

Donald Trump spoke to reporters before entering the courtroom on Thursday morning.

The ex-president blasted the case against him.

He was joined by lawyer Todd Blanche.

Also with Trump in court today is Florida Senator Rick Scott, adviser Boris Epshteyn and lawyer Alina Habba.

A court officer told photographers in the hallway that Judge Merchan is no longer allowing photography in the courtroom for the rest of the trial.

Photographers had been allowed to take photos of Donald Trump at the start of the day from the front of the courtroom but from nowhere else.

Someone reportedly violated the order by taking a photograph from the aisle while walking to the front of the court.

Photographers are limited to taking photographs from the hallway only when Trump enters and exits.

Here is an example from May 7 of the photography that previously had been permitted:

Donald Trump departed Trump Tower to head to the Manhattan criminal court.

The ex-president waved before heading to his motorcade.

President Joe Biden is watching the news coverage of Donald Trump’s hush-money trial.

‘Only on the evening news,’ he told CNN’s Erin Burnett in an interview that aired on Wednesday night.

He also used one of his favorite phrases to indicate he’s praying for his Republican rival.

‘God love him,’ Biden stated.

Biden has been hitting the marketing campaign path whereas Trump has been caught in a New York City courtroom 4 days a week.

Stormy Daniels walked into the Manhattan Criminal Court early on Thursday morning to prepare to take the stand in the hush money trial for the second time.

She was surrounded by law enforcement and had her glasses on her head as was guided into the court complex.

From Emily Goodin, Senior Political Reporter:

Melania Trump is believed to be in Mar-a-Lago as Stormy Daniels took the stand in the Donald Trump hush money trial.

As Daniels was describing her sexual encounter with the former president, the former first lady has remained behind closed doors of the Trumps’ private club in Palm Beach.

She is preparing for the couple’s son Barron to graduate from high school on Friday, May 17th. And she’s been selling a gold flower pendant in honor of Mother’s Day that can be customized with a person’s initials.

Barron attends a high school in Palm Beach, which is the main residence of his parents. The Trumps have not announced where he will go to college.

Melania hasn’t been seen by Donald Trump’s side in 31 days, since she joined him at a fundraiser for his presidential campaign on April 6th.

She was last seen when she hosted a fundraiser for Log Cabin Republicans at Mar-a-Lago on April 20th.

The event was closed to press coverage but former Trump administration official Richard Grenell, who is openly gay, posted photos on social media of him and the former first lady hosting the gathering.

Melania is reported to be reading coverage of the New York trial even though she is said to consider it her husband’s problem.

When the news of Donald Trump’s affair with Daniels – which he denies – originally broke in 2017, the then-first lady was said to be blindsided and furious with her husband.

Tuesday’s Trump trial began with salacious claims by Stormy Daniels about spanking and bedding the future president in a Lake Tahoe hotel room – but ended with demands for a mistrial and claims she was fabricating sex claims out of greed and spite.

The porn star revealed new details about the alleged 2006 hookup while speaking under oath during a criminal trial with Trump seated just feet from the witness stand, including repeating her claim about swatting the future 45th president’s behind.

It was a dramatic performance where she shared intimate details about their banter inside a a Nevada hotel suite, even as judge Juan Merchan yielded to defense lawyers’ request that she keep sexual details to a minimum. (Her mention of the word ‘missionary’ drew an immediate objection).

Hundreds of people lined up at the Manhattan Criminal Court on Thursday morning to see the second act of the Stormy Daniels show.

Cops closed the gate to the park as hordes showed up hoping to get a space to watch her testimony continue.

When Stormy Daniels took the stand in Donald Trump’s hush money case, her salacious testimony was a lewd story of unwanted, unprotected, blackout missionary sex nearly 20 years ago with a married celebrity who would go on to run for and become President of the United States.

Trump, now the  2024 presumptive Republican presidential nominee, is facing 34 criminal charges for falsifying business records for allegedly trying to hide the payment to Daniels before the 2016 election.

Legal experts believe Stormy Daniels’ detailed testimony should not have been allowed and actually damaged the prosecution case despite her being an important witness in supporting their theory that there was an effort to violate election law.

The atmosphere inside courtroom 1530 was already electric. A brooding Donald Trump glared out at the ranks of press as if to gauge the size of his audience before prosecutors and defense lawyers haggled over how much of the mechanics of his alleged affair could be brought up before the jury.

Only no-one had reckoned with the way in which porn star Stormy Daniels would develop into a runaway witness as she described their 2006 resort encounter.

‘I had my clothes and my shoes off. I believe my bra however was still on. We were in the missionary position,’ Daniels said.

Read the full account of Daniels’ testimony below.

Her allegations and claims against Trump, which he has furiously denied, led to the defense asking for multiple objections and demanding a mistrial.