Donald Trump’s former top aide Hope Hicks testified Friday that he told her in the final days of the 2016 presidential election. Today we will discuss about Hope Hicks: Trump New York criminal trial,Strong witness.
Hope Hicks: Trump New York criminal trial,Strong witness
On the stand: Hope Hicks, once considered one of Donald Trump’s closest confidants and most trusted aides, is being questioned by prosecutor Matthew Colangelo in the New York hush money trial against the former president.
Hicks is testifying about her role as Trump’s press secretary during the 2016 campaign and following the “Access Hollywood” tape release.
He said the campaign viewed the tape as a “crisis” and that Trump was concerned that sexual misconduct claims would damage his standing with voters.
Prosecutors accused Trump of participating in an illegal conspiracy to undermine the integrity of the 2016 election and an illegal scheme to suppress negative information, which included a hush money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels. , which prosecutors say was followed by the release of the “Access Hollywood” tape.
Trump has been charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records. The former president has pleaded innocent and denied any association with Daniels.
Prosecutors have resumed their questions to key witness Hope Hicks, raising a series of questions around a 2016 article in the Wall Street Journal about Karen McDougal and Stormy Daniels.
Hicks testified, “I believe I heard Mr. Trump talking to Mr. Cohen shortly after the story was published.”
Hicks, who has said she was nervous during the testimony, appeared to be wringing her hands as she spoke.
“There was nothing memorable about the call,” he said.
During today’s questioning of Hope Hicks, prosecutors asked the former Donald Trump aide how she and those close to her reacted to the release of the “Access Hollywood” tape in October 2016.
It’s one of several key moments central to the hush money case against Trump that Hicks was asked about today. Read CNN’s timeline of events below:
August 2015: Prosecutors say Trump met with then-American Media Inc. CEO David Pecker at Trump Tower, where.
Trump New York criminal trial
Before the lunch, Hope Hicks had said that she thought she had spoken to Donald Trump after receiving an inquiry from the Wall Street Journal, but that it was a “very vague” recollection.
He said of Trump’s response:
He wanted to know the context and he wanted to make sure that any kind of relationship was ruled out.
He expressed confusion as to why he would want to do this.
Hope Hicks: Trump New York criminal trial,Strong witness
The gist of the story seemed to me to be that the National Enquirer paid a woman for her story and never published it.
Updated at 19.23 BST
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Court is in session and prosecutor Matthew Colangelo is back in the lecture hall.
They are once again talking about an email he received from a Wall Street Journal reporter in early November 2016 regarding the purchase of Karen McDougal and Stormy Daniels stories by American Media Inc. despite not publishing these accounts. Was working on the story.
Updated at 19.22 BST
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And we’re almost back. Donald Trump walks into court after lunch break. He is talking to one of his lawyers, Emile Bove. When Trump speaks, his hair doesn’t move much.
Hope Hicks walked into the courtroom and returned to her seat on the stand. A court officer placed a cup of water in front of him. He just took a sip.
Judge Juan Merchan addresses the court regarding Donald Trump’s false claim that he was not allowed to testify. “The order barring extrajudicial statements does not in any way prevent you from testifying,” Merchan said.
Prosecutors played a video statement made by Trump in response to the Access Hollywood tape. In the video, Trump said he “never said I’m a perfect person, nor pretended to be something I’m not.” He added, “I said and did things that I regret.”
The prosecution also called Hope Hicks as one of its witnesses today. Trump did not smile once during Hicks’ testimony, even when he spoke admiringly of her being a hard worker.
Strong witness
Hope Hicks said she had worked with Michael Cohen on a statement to send in response to The Wall Street Journal’s upcoming story about Karen McDougal and the National Enquirer.
Hicks initially wrote things like, “We deny each and every allegation,” but Cohen urged a different approach.
Cohen wrote back to him, “These allegations are completely false and are the latest despicable effort by the liberal media and the Clinton machine to distract the public from the FBI’s ongoing criminal investigation against Secretary Clinton and her close associates.” Email text shown in court.
Hicks recalled a conversation with Trump, who wanted to understand what David Pecker had told Hicks earlier. koi had input on the statement that Hicks and Cohen were drafting, which became a denial of the allegations and said that he knew nothing about the agreement between McDougal and the Enquirer.
When asked how he knew Stormy Daniels would be included in the story, he said the reporter told him over the phone. He mentioned this to Trump, who wanted to know the context and make sure any relationship was ruled out.
Hicks, a former Trump aide, testified when she learned that the Wall Street Journal was planning to publish a story about Karen McDougal, including details that McDougal had a story the Enquirer had with Trump. About their relationship which was never published.
Hicks testified that she took the story to Ivanka Trump’s husband Kushner, hoping he could contact Journal executives to delay publication.
Hicks was asked if she had heard of Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal, and she recalled hearing about McDougal on November 4, 2016, after a Wall Street Journal reporter inquired about the former Playboy model and National Enquirer. It was revealed after.
Daniels was mentioned in the same story, he said, adding that he first heard about the adult film actress a year earlier.
