The hush money payments Donald Trump has been accused of making involve not only adult film star Stormy Daniels, who has dominated headlines in recent months, but also Karen McDougal, a former Playboy model.
In 2018, McDougal told CNN she had an extramarital affair with the former president that began in 2006, which Trump denies. He has been married to his third wife, Melania Trump, since 2005.
According to McDougal, the affair involved having sex with Trump “many dozens of times” and occurred in multiple locations including at a golf tournament in Lake Tahoe, California, and at his private golf club in New Jersey, as well as in Trump Tower in New York City, where she was allegedly brought in through the back entrance.
Despite Trump’s denials that an extramarital affair with McDougal ever occurred, the New York prosecution team has cited evidence of payments made to McDougal by Trump.
Born in Indiana, McDougal is a 52-year old actress and former Playboy model. According to her website, she began her career in her 20s as a fitness model for various health and fitness publications. In 1997, McDougal became a Playboy “playmate” and made “playmate of the year” in 1998.
In 1999, McDougal appeared on the cover of Men’s Fitness magazine.
Since then, McDougal made various appearances as a sports radio personality and was cast in the 2001 direct-to-video film The Arena by Russian-Kazakh director Timur Bekmambetov. In The Arena, McDougal plays an Amazon slave who is forced to become a gladiator in Rome.
According to her website, McDougal is a national advocate for breast implant illness and is an active member in various support groups, following her implant removal in 2017. Her activism work also includes raising awareness on deep vein thrombosis and animal rights.
In 2018, the New Yorker published a letter written by McDougal about her alleged experiences with Trump during their first date at the Beverly Hills Hotel. In the letter, McDougal wrote: “We talked for a couple hours – then, it was ‘ON’! We got naked + had sex. After we got dressed (to leave), he offered me money. I looked at him (+ felt sad) and said, ‘No thanks – I’m not ‘that girl.’ I slept w/you because I like you – NOT for money’ – He told me ‘you are special.’”
That same year, McDougal publicly apologized to Melania Trump for the alleged affair, saying on CNN: “I’m sorry, I wouldn’t want it done to me … When I look back, where I was back then, I know it’s wrong … I’m really sorry for that. I know it’s a wrong thing to do.”
