Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Trump Called Out For Accidentally Admitting To Major Part Of Hush Money Scheme

Donald Trump and attorney Todd Blanche outside courtroom
Steven Hirsch-Pool/Getty Images

During a rant outside the courtroom about the Stormy Daniels NDA, Donald Trump may have accidentally admitted to a major claim of the prosecution.

Former President Donald Trump was called out after he appeared to accidentally admit to a major part of the hush money scheme at the center of his ongoing election interference trial.

The criminal trial in New York revolves around accusations that Trump falsified business records in an attempt to conceal hush money payments made to adult film performer Stormy Daniels in exchange for a non-disclosure agreement to silence her ahead of the 2016 general election.


During a rant outside the courtroom, Trump pointed to recent remarks made by legal analyst Jonathan Turley and an article by Andrew McCarthy, a former prosecutor in the Southern District of New York, concluding that NDAs are legal for everyone—except Trump himself.

Turley claimed that the cross-examination of Daniels "shattered her laughable claim that she had not really been seeking money in shaking Trump down for a non-disclosure agreement." And in asserting that "NDAs are legal and common," McCarthy said the trial is "the most farcical episode of lawfare, the effort to chain one presidential candidate to courtrooms while his opponent campaigns to his heart’s content."

With this in mind, Trump said:

"From Jonathan Turley and Andrew McCarthy: 'NDAs are legal and common, yet Trump's is illegal.'"
"I have the only illegal NDA."

You can hear what Trump said in the video below.

It was that last line, delivered sarcastically, that has raised eyebrows.

Though Trump has often branded Daniels a liar and called the case against him a "witch hunt," his actions and the evidence nonetheless demonstrate that he was at the center of the scheme, including the NDA with Daniels.

The name "David Dennison" was used as a pseudonym for Trump by Cohen in the NDA with Daniels, who was identified in the NDA as "Peggy Peterson." Daniels' lawyer, Keith Davidson, testified that he drafted the agreement in which Daniels is referred to as Peggy Peterson, using "P" for Plaintiff, and Trump is referred to as David Dennison, using "D" for Defendant.

Additionally, in a prior case in California where Daniels successfully sued to be released from her non-disclosure agreement with Trump, he admitted to reimbursing the hush money payments used to cover up the affair. Trump submitted a brief in that case acknowledging that he had reimbursed Michael Cohen for these payments.

But he has never publicly acknowledged his connection to Daniels' NDA. Until Thursday.

His latest admission exposed him to significant criticism from people who said he'd blown up his own defense.



During Cohen's cross-examination by Trump's legal team Thursday, attorney Todd Blanche repeatedly accused Cohen of lying on the stand.

Blanche spent hours grilling Cohen, focusing both on Cohen's past misdeeds and the specific allegations of the case, attempting to undermine Cohen’s pivotal testimony against Trump.

The prosecution is widely seen to have presented such a tight substantive case, it's questionable whether Blanche's dramatic gambit on Thursday will be effective at undermining the case against Trump in jurors' minds. But without a compelling counter-narrative to explain Trump's fingerprints all over the illegal scheme, Blanche has little choice but to try to tear the prosecution's star witness down.

Court is adjourned until Monday at which point Michael Cohen is expected to go back on the stand for final cross-examination and possibly a redirect by the prosecution. Judge Merchan told counsel to prepare closing arguments for Tuesday.

More from People/donald-trump

Kid Rock
Todd Kirkland/Getty Images

Kid Rock Dragged After Donning A Truly Over-The-Top Outfit For His White House Visit

Singer Kid Rock was slammed for wearing a loud patriotic costume inside the Oval Office as Republican President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday against ticket scalping.

The rocker's outfit consisted of a red, white, and blue jacket emblazoned with two eagles facing each other above the American flag with the number 250, a nod to America's upcoming 250th anniversary, and white stars on his sleeves.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Bill Cassidy
CNBC

MAGA Senator Just Said The Quiet Part Out Loud With Epic Freudian Slip About Medicare

Louisiana Republican Senator Bill Cassidy was widely mocked following his inconvenient slip of the tongue during a CNBC interview as he mused about finding ways to "cut" Medicare before quickly correcting himself.

The exchange occurred after host Rebecca Quick pressed Louisiana Republican and former physician Bill Cassidy on how his party intended to fund the “trillion-dollar tax cuts” sought by President Donald Trump.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Tim Sheehy
CNN

GOP Senator Gets Blunt Reality Check After Comparing Trump Tariff 'Pain' To Home Renovation

Montana Republican Senator Tim Sheehy was criticized after he tried to compare the "short-term pain" of President Donald Trump's tariffs to home renovation, a claim so ridiculous that CNN's Kaitlan Collins quickly pushed back on the analogy.

Trump has repeatedly referred to April 2 as “Liberation Day,” pledging to impose tariffs—taxes on imports—to reduce U.S. reliance on foreign goods. He has framed these tariffs as “reciprocal,” aiming to match the duties other nations place on American exports.

Keep ReadingShow less
Susan Crawford; Elon Musk
Scott Olson/Getty Images (left and right)

Liberal Wisconsin Judge Calls Out Elon Musk In Victory Speech—And It's Everything

Liberal judge Susan Crawford called out billionaire Elon Musk in her victory speech after winning a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, basking in successfully beating her Republican opponent Brad Schimel and ensuring that the nonpartisan court’s narrow 4-3 liberal majority remains intact despite Musk's efforts to sway the race.

Musk fueled the high-stakes race, having poured more than $20 million into supporting Schimel, according to state campaign records. That includes $3 million to the state Republican Party—$2 million of which was donated just last week. Due to state election laws, large contributions must be funneled through political parties before reaching candidates.

Keep ReadingShow less

People Describe The Worst 'Bonus' They've Ever Gotten At Work

Most of us have worked at one problematic workplace, with reasons ranging from toxic coworkers to terrible bosses to unlivable pay. Sometimes, it feels like a joke that the employees are even being paid at all!

But the biggest joke of all might be the end-of-year bonus, or lack thereof. They're at times so laughable, they take the cake for horrible work conditions, or are quite literally, a slice of cake.

Keep ReadingShow less