Closing summary
David Pecker, the former National Enquirer publisher and chief executive of American Media Inc (AMI), returned to the stand on Thursday for a third day of testimony. He will resume his testimony on Friday.
Pecker told the court he agreed to buy a story from the Playboy model, Karen McDougal, specifically to bury it so that it did not “embarrass or hurt the [Trump] campaign”. He said a $150,000 payment he agreed to make to McDougal in August 2016 was so his publication could “kill” McDougal’s story about a 10-month affair she says she had with Trump a decade earlier. The jury was shown records of the $150,000 payment, including an invoice from McDougal’s lawyer.
Pecker said Trump called him for advice after he became a presidential candidate, telling him “Karen is a nice girl”, and that he was worried news of the affair would hurt his campaign. “I think you should buy the story and take it off the market,” Pecker recalled telling Trump.
Pecker said he worked with the former National Enquirer editor-in-chief, Dylan Howard, and Trump’s lawyer Michael Cohen to facilitate the payment. Pecker admitted that AMI’s goal was to try to prevent the story from interfering with the Trump campaign, and that he was nervous about whether the payment would violate campaign contribution laws.
Pecker said he expressed to Cohen nervousness about the amount AMI was paying to McDougal. “Don’t worry, I’m your friend. The boss [Trump] will take care of it,” Pecker recalled Cohen telling him.
But Pecker said things turned sour when he ultimately backed out of the agreement after talking with lawyers. Pecker confirmed AMI consulted with an election law attorney when they were considering paying McDougal for her story. Cohen was “very, very angry, screaming basically”, Pecker said. He recalled Cohen saying, “I can’t believe it, I’m a lawyer, I’m your friend, I don’t understand why you’re concerned.”
Pecker said he received a frantic call from Howard in early October 2016 who said Stormy Daniels was trying to sell a story about her sexual relationship with Trump. Pecker told jurors Howard said Daniels wanted $120,000 for the story. Pecker said he did not want to be involved with a porn star, and that Cohen told him “the boss will be very angry with you.”
Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass repeatedly tied Trump’s motive for quashing the story to protecting his presidential campaign, presenting it as interference in the 2016 election that Trump won. “I made the assumption that his concern was the campaign,” Pecker said when asked if Trump ever expressed any concern for his wife and children.
Trump attorney Emil Bove began cross-examination of Pecker, grilling him on his recollection of specific dates and meetings to underscore the difficulty of recalling details relevant to the years-old allegations against Trump. Pecker insisted his testimony was based on his “best recollection of the time”.
Bove traced Pecker’s long relationship with Trump, showing how he helped his friend long before the presidential election. Pecker spoke about how he gave Trump a heads up about a negative story about Trump’s then-wife, Marla Maples.
Donald Trump addressed the media as he left the courtroom on Thursday afternoon, describing Pecker’s testimony as “breathtaking and amazing”. “This is a trial that should’ve never happened, this is a case that should’ve never been filed and it was really an incredible, an incredible day,” the former president told reporters.
Trump says Pecker's testimony was 'breathtaking, amazing' after 'incredible day'
Donald Trump left the courtroom and briefly addressed the media after court adjourned for the day. Per pool, he said:
Today was breathtaking … breathtaking and amazing testimony. This is a trial that should’ve never happened, this is a case that should’ve never been filed and it was really an incredible, an incredible day.
The former president also spoke about the student protests against Israel’s war in Gaza in US college campuses, condemning them as" “horrible” and blaming them on Joe Biden.
Trump appeared optimistic about the outcome of the supreme court hearing into his claim of presidential immunity, saying:
I think it was made clear, I hope it was made clear, that a president has to have immunity.
He did not respond to shouted questions from reporters.
