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Donald Trump’s New York hush money trial will resume once more at Manhattan Criminal Court on Friday following another day of fiery testimony from porn star Stormy Daniels, who returned to the witness stand to face more cross-examination from the defendant’s lawyers on Thursday.
Ms Daniels sparred with defense attorney Susan Necheles over alleged inconsistencies in her various tellings of the sexual encounter she alleges she had with Mr Trump in 2006 but remained calm and firm in her account of what she says took place.
Taking the stand later in the day was Madeleine Westerhout, Mr Trump’s “gatekeeper” and former director of Oval Office operations during his presidential administration, who cried as she fondly recalled her time working for him.
Ms Westerhout will return to the stand on Friday morning, with ex-Trump “fixer” Michael Cohen yet to appear.
Also on Thursday, Judge Juan Merchan rejected a further mistrial motion from the defense and denied a request that the gag order imposed on Mr Trump be lifted to allow him to respond to Ms Daniels.
Alex Woodward is covering Mr Trump’s trial in Manhattan and will be providing regular updates on proceedings.
Serena Williams unexpectedly dragged into Trump trial
Kelly Rissman and Alex Woodward report:
Tennis superstar Serena Williams joined a growing list of celebrities dragged into Donald Trump’s so-called hush money trial after a former aide to the ex-president revealed she was on a list of names who he “frequently spoke to” in early 2017.
Madeleine Westerhout, Trump’s former executive assistant at the White House, took the stand to testify in Manhattan criminal court on Wednesday.
On January 24 2017, four days after Mr Trump was inaugurated, Ms Westerhout emailed Ms Graff, asking: “Could you have the girls put together a list for me of people that he frequently spoke to? I don’t want to have to bug you all the time – even though I will still call often :)”
Oliver O’Connell10 May 2024 06:45
Watch: Hillary Clinton compares Trump to 1930s ‘determined demagogue’
Oliver O’Connell10 May 2024 04:45
Trump turns to oil industry for $1bn towards campaign as they draft executive orders for him to sign
Graeme Massie10 May 2024 04:17
Ann Coulter tells Ramaswamy she would never vote for him ‘because you’re Indian’
Graig Graziosi has the story:
Oliver O’Connell10 May 2024 03:45
Conservative plan calls for Trump to kill everyone on federal death row in second term
Graeme Massie10 May 2024 03:19
Stormy Daniels’ tweets, Make America Horny Again, a failed mistrial bid: Takeaways from Trump trial day 14
Graeme Massie10 May 2024 02:28
Hyper-online red-pill Republicans are causing headaches for Mitch McConnell
Mitch McConnell may be retiring, but he’s hammering home the “candidate quality” argument one more time. Meanwhile, Republican candidates in races across the country are taking a turn for the weird, sharing AI-generated pictures and referring to the entire Democratic Party as “terrorist sympathizers”.
John Bowden has the story:
Oliver O’Connell10 May 2024 01:45
Ex-White House ‘gatekeeper’ cries on stand as she testifies about Trump firing her
Graeme Massie10 May 2024 01:31
Feature: Roy Cohn — the ruthless McCarthy lieutenant-turned-Trump mentor
He was a lawyer with a two-syllable name, a colourfully complicated personal life and a Rasputin-like grip on United States politics – especially in New York.
The very mention of Roy Cohn during his four decades of headline ubiquity could spark anything from anger to hatred to fear; his shadowy legend persists nearly 40 years after the death of a man dubbed a “new strain of sonofabitch” – by his own autobiography co-author, no less.
Roy Cohn, the ‘evil’ McCarthy lieutenant who got Trump elected
Decades before Trump erected his Tower, an insidiously well-connected New York power-player was cutting a ruthless path through US society, politics and courtroom battles. A new film debuting at Cannes charts Roy Cohn’s outsized influences on America and the 45th president, writes Sheila Flynn
Oliver O’Connell10 May 2024 00:45
