Trump’s Trial Features Fierce Debate Over What He Can Say: 5 Takeaways

 

Trump’s Trial Features Fierce Debate Over What He Can Say: 5 Takeaways

 

Donald J. Trump’s lawyer was harshly questioned as he tried to avoid a contempt citation. And a publisher testified about how he put The National Enquirer to work for Mr. Trump’s campaign.

 

Jesse McKinley Kate Christobek

By Jesse McKinley and Kate Christobek

April 23, 2024

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/23/nyregion/trump-trial-takeaways-pecker-gag-order.html

 

Tuesday’s session of Donald J. Trump’s criminal trial began with a heated clash between Justice Juan M. Merchan and Mr. Trump’s lead lawyer over a gag order. It ended with an insider’s look into a tabloid newspaper practice known as “catch and kill.”

 

Prosecutors said that Mr. Trump had “willfully and blatantly” violated a gag order barring him from attacking jurors and witnesses, among others. They said he had done so in comments outside the courtroom and online and should be found in contempt of court.

 

Mr. Trump’s top lawyer said in response that Mr. Trump was simply defending himself from political attacks. Justice Merchan did not rule, but he scolded the lawyer, Todd Blanche, saying, “you’re losing all credibility with the court.”

 

A former ally of Mr. Trump, David Pecker, the ex-publisher of The National Enquirer, later testified to buying and burying unflattering stories about Mr. Trump during his 2016 run for president, an arrangement he called “highly, highly confidential.”

 

Mr. Trump, 77, faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to hide a payment to a porn star, Stormy Daniels, made to cover up a sex scandal that threatened to derail his campaign. Ms. Daniels, who may testify, has said that she and Mr. Trump had a brief sexual encounter in 2006, something the former president denies.

 

Mr. Trump has pleaded not guilty. If convicted, the former president — and presumptive Republican nominee — could face probation or up to four years in prison.

 

A historic trial begins. Donald Trump, who faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the first degree to cover up a sex scandal, is on trial in Manhattan. He is the first former U.S. president to be criminally prosecuted. Here are answers to some key questions about the case:

 

What is Trump accused of? The charges trace back to a $130,000 hush-money payment that Trump’s fixer, Michael Cohen, made to the porn actress Stormy Daniels in 2016 to suppress her story of a sexual liaison with Trump in 2006. While serving as president, Trump reimbursed Cohen, and how he did so constituted fraud, prosecutors say.

 

Why did prosecutors cite other hush-money payments? Although the charges relate to the payment to Daniels, Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney, is expected to highlight two other hush-money deals. Prosecutors say that the deals show that Trump had orchestrated a wide-ranging scheme to influence the 2016 presidential election.

 

Who will the key witnesses be? Cohen is expected to be a crucial witness for prosecutors. Bragg is also expected to call David Pecker, the former publisher of The National Enquirer, as well as Hope Hicks, a former Trump aide, to shed light on the tumultuous period surrounding the payments. Trump said he plans to testify in his own defense.

 

Who is the judge? Juan Merchan, the judge, is a veteran of the bench known as a no-nonsense, drama-averse jurist. During the trial, Justice Merchan will be in charge of keeping order in the courtroom and ruling on objections made by prosecutors and Trump’s lawyers. The jury will decide whether Trump is guilty.

 

What happens if Trump is convicted? The charges against Trump are all Class E felonies, the least severe felony category in New York. If convicted, Trump faces a prison sentence of four years or less, or he could receive probation.

 

How is The New York Times covering the trial? The Times will provide comprehensive coverage of the trial, which is set to last six to eight weeks. Expect live updates from the courtroom in Manhattan, daily takeaways, explainers and analysis from our reporting team.

 

Here are five takeaways from Mr. Trump’s sixth day on trial:

 

Pecker describes “catch-and-kill.”

Taking the stand for a second day, Mr. Pecker outlined a decades-old friendship with Mr. Trump, a relationship that he said deepened in 2015.

 

It was then, Mr. Pecker said, that he, Mr. Trump and Michael D. Cohen, Mr. Trump’s former lawyer and fixer, met at Trump Tower in Manhattan to hatch a plan to write promotional stories about Mr. Trump and negative stories about his political opponents.

 

Mr. Pecker said he acted as the campaign’s “eyes and ears,” notifying Mr. Cohen about possible scandals, particularly regarding women in Mr. Trump’s life.

 

Mr. Pecker on Tuesday walked through one of the “catch-and-kill” deals. He said that The National Enquirer learned that a doorman who had worked at a Trump building was looking to sell a story about Mr. Trump fathering a child out of wedlock. The tabloid discovered that the story was apparently false, but paid $30,000 anyway, “because of the potential embarrassment” it could have caused Mr. Trump, Mr. Pecker said.

 

 

Who Are Key Players in the Trump Manhattan Criminal Trial?

The first criminal trial of former President Donald J. Trump is underway. Take a closer look at central figures related to the case.

 

Pecker paints a portrait of a bygone era.

Mr. Pecker’s testimony depicted an anachronistic New York, with landlines, powerful supermarket tabloids and must-see network television, including “The Apprentice,” which made Mr. Trump nationally famous.

 

It also shed light on Mr. Pecker’s editorial tactics, including getting tips from Mr. Trump about who was getting kicked off “The Apprentice,” in line with Mr. Trump’s penchant for feeding dirt to tabloids.

 

Mr. Pecker said that he called Mr. Trump “Donald,” and that they had “a great relationship,” adding that he went so far as to start a magazine called Trump Style. When he proposed the magazine, Mr. Pecker said, Mr. Trump’s biggest question was, “Who’s going to pay for it?”

 

Trump’s short leash could get shorter.

Christopher Conroy, a prosecutor with the Manhattan district attorney’s office, argued that Mr. Trump had repeatedly violated the gag order that the court imposed on him. One alleged violation included a nine-minute diatribe outside the courtroom on Monday during which he attacked Michael Cohen, his former fixer and a key witness against him.

 

“He did it right here,” Mr. Conroy said.

 

But Mr. Blanche said that the former president was “facing a barrage of political attacks” from several potential witnesses and needed to strike back.

 

“He’s running for president,” Mr. Blanche said. “He has to be able to respond to that.”

 

Justice Merchan has chastised Trump once so far, for muttering in front of a prospective juror. If he holds him in criminal contempt, it will mark a serious escalation. For their part, prosecutors said they were not seeking to jail Mr. Trump, but wanted him to be fined.

 

A frustrated Trump

Mr. Trump sat stoically while prosecutors argued that he violated the gag order. But he grew animated during the interplay between Mr. Blanche and Justice Merchan. On several occasions, the former president sharply turned to his other lawyers and whispered.

 

When Mr. Blanche finished his argument, Mr. Trump immediately beckoned him over before he snatched a piece of paper off the defense table.

 

Mr. Trump posted on Truth Social right after the hearing, accusing Justice Merchan of taking away his “right to free speech” and claiming that he was “not allowed to defend myself.”

 

Thursday will be a big day for Trump in two courts.

Court is not in session on Wednesday, but prosecutors will continue their direct examination of Mr. Pecker on Thursday.

 

While Mr. Trump is expected to be in court in Manhattan that day, he may be a little preoccupied: In Washington, some of his other lawyers will be arguing in front of the Supreme Court that Mr. Trump should receive presidential immunity from prosecution in a federal election interference case.

 

Mr. Trump had sought to take a day away from his New York case to watch those arguments, but Justice Merchan denied his request.

 

Jesse McKinley is a Times reporter covering upstate New York, courts and politics. More about Jesse McKinley

 

Kate Christobek is a reporter covering the civil and criminal cases against former president Donald J. Trump for The Times. More about Kate Christobek