cnn
—

Former American Media Inc. Chairman David Pecker explained to jurors in Donald Trump’s hush money case how he paid for Karen McDougal’s story to keep her quiet about her alleged affair with Trump, and how his decision not to pay for the Stormy Daniels story led to Michael Cohen finally paying for it.

On Thursday, prosecutors concluded their direct testimony with Pecker, who was on the stand for three days describing in detail how he worked with Trump and Cohen to buy damaging stories about Trump throughout the 2016 campaign. His testimony laid the groundwork for the rest of the Manhattan DA’s case against Trump that centers on the payment to Daniels.

The former president, who denied having relations with McDougal and Daniels and has pleaded not guilty in the case, did not want to be in the courtroom in midtown Manhattan on Thursday. But last week Judge Juan Merchán rejected his request to be in Washington for Supreme Court arguments on presidential immunity, so Trump went to a campaign rally in New York on Thursday morning and attacked the case when he left the courtroom at the end of the day. , while he described the testimony as “impressive and surprising.”

On Thursday, Merchan did not rule on whether Trump violated the judge’s gag order. But prosecutors provided the judge with four more examples of alleged violations, including one when he commented on Pecker Thursday morning before coming to court.

Trump’s lawyers began their cross-examination of Pecker on Thursday afternoon and will continue on Friday.

Here are Thursday’s takeaways from the secret money test:

Pecker’s testimony included the nuts and bolts of how AMI paid McDougal on Trump’s behalf, Pecker’s private conversations with Trump about the catch-and-kill deal, and the fallout when his story became public.

Pecker’s testimony before prosecutors lasted more than seven hours over three days. He described how he provided the money for a catch-and-kill scheme to suppress the McDougal story, and it was Pecker’s refusal to pay for the Daniels story that led Michael Cohen, Trump’s then fixer, to dole out $130,000 himself. Dollars.

Pecker also testified that he and his senior editor initially alerted Trump and Cohen to the fact that Daniels was buying their story, and that he rebuffed Cohen’s efforts to have him buy Daniels’ story as well.

After Trump’s election, Pecker testified that Trump asked him at least twice how McDougal was doing, including at what Pecker described as a “thank you dinner” at the White House in 2017.

“When we were leaving, President Trump asked me, ‘How’s Karen? ‘How’s Karen?’ So I said, ‘She’s fine, she’s calm, everything’s fine,’” Pecker said.

Pecker also described how Trump became angry when McDougal’s story became public. Trump called him on November 5, 2016 – three days before Election Day – when the Wall Street Journal published a story about the MAI deal.

Pecker said Trump was very upset when they spoke and said, “How could this happen? “I thought you had this under control.”

Pecker also received a call from Trump after McDougal was interviewed by CNN’s Anderson Cooper in March 2018.

Pecker told Trump on the call that he had modified McDougal’s agreement about speaking to other media outlets. Trump was angry, Pecker testified.

“I was very upset, I couldn’t understand why I did it,” Pecker said.

Merchan had He spent Tuesday morning listening to arguments about Trump’s alleged violation of the gag order, which limits the former president from speaking publicly about witnesses, the jury, the district attorney’s staff or Merchan’s family, but did not issued a ruling Thursday when the court returned to session. .

Instead, prosecutors filed another motion to hold Trump in contempt for additional violations of the gag order over the past three days, including comments he made Thursday morning.

Prosecutor Chris Conroy cited Trump’s comments at his New York City event where he talked about Pecker and said he was “nice.”

“This is a message to Pecker. Be good. “It’s a message to others,” Conroy said.

Merchan announced late in the day that he would hold a hearing on that motion next Wednesday, the day the court is supposed to go dark for Trump’s trial.

A Wednesday hearing would mean Trump would spend his day off in a downtown Manhattan courtroom, rather than having a full day to leave New York to campaign or play golf, as Trump did Wednesday at his club in Bedminster, CNN’s Kristen Holmes said. she reported. Trump has two campaign events scheduled for next Wednesday.

If Merchan finds Trump in contempt for violating the gag order, he can fine Trump $1,000 per violation, the maximum under state law, or could jail him for up to 30 days. Forcing him to appear in court one more day seemed to have been another way for Merchan to take action against the former president’s transgressions of the silence order, but by the evening, the hearing had been moved to next Thursday, May 2 at 9 :30. I am instead.

Trump’s lawyers had asked that his Thursday appearance be waived so he could attend Supreme Court arguments on presidential immunity. The judge denied that request.

In Washington on Thursday, the Supreme Court appeared ready to reject Trump’s claims of broad immunity and the sweeping protections he has sought to close his federal election subversion case, but the justices also appeared ready to accept an outcome that could jeopardize the ability to hold a trial in that case before the November elections.

Leaving the Manhattan courthouse on Thursday, Trump also commented on the Supreme Court case.

“I was forced to be here and I’m glad I was because in some ways it was a very interesting day,” Trump said. “But the United States Supreme Court held a monumental hearing on immunity and immunity that has to do with presidential immunity. I think it was clear, I hope it was clear, that the president has to have immunity, or you will not have a president, or at most you could say that he would be a ceremonial president.”

Pecker agrees on cross-examination that suppressing stories was “standard operating procedure”

Trump’s lawyer Emil Bove questioned Pecker for about an hour Thursday.

By grilling Pecker with rapid-fire, leading questions, Bove got the witness to confirm to the jury that Trump’s symbiotic relationship with Pecker and his tabloids was not unusual and long predated Trump’s run for president.

Pecker confirmed source deals like those used to suppress stories about McDougal and the former Trump Tower doorman. Dino Sajudin are “standard operating procedure” for AMI to give the company control over how information can be disclosed, if at all.

Pecker also acknowledged that Trump was understood to be a top seller of AMI’s publications.

Especially around the time of “The Celebrity Apprentice,” the company’s research showed that Trump could generate the most sales for the National Enquirer.

“So, you published articles about President Trump because he was good for business?” Bove asked.

“That’s right,” Pecker said.

Pecker also confirmed that he had a regular practice of not publishing negative stories about Trump since the 1990s.

“Because it wasn’t good for business?” Bove asked.

“Yes,” Pecker said.

Bove confirmed with Pecker that “many politicians work with the media to promote their image” and “even sometimes to win elections.”

Bove’s cross-examination of Pecker elicited testimony about other celebrities about whom Pecker had bought stories from publication, offering a fascinating insight into the world of celebrity tabloids while he was editor-in-chief of the National Enquirer.

Trump’s lawyer attempted to establish with Pecker that AMI used “checkbook journalism” to control narratives in the press and fostered mutually beneficial relationships with various celebrities, not just Trump.

Bove reviewed Pecker’s earlier testimony to prosecutors about a catch-and-kill deal with Arnold Schwarzenegger shortly before he announced his candidacy for governor of California. Bove claimed that 30 or 40 women ended up coming to AMI with stories about Schwarzenegger, and Pecker confirmed the claim.

Pecker also said he helped agent Ari Emanuel control a story about actor Mark Wahlberg, as well as suppress a negative story about allegations involving his brother, Rahm Emanuel, the former mayor of Chicago and current U.S. ambassador to Japan.

Bove also had Pecker confirm that his company purchased photographs of golfer Tiger Woods “to leverage against Woods and publish it in the magazine.”

CNN requested comments from Schwarzenegger, Rahm Emanuel, Ari Emanuel, Wahlberg and Woods.

This story has been updated with additional news.