The fourth day of testimony in the New York hush money trial against former US President Donald Trump has ended, and former National Enquirer editor David Pecker faces several hours of cross-examination by Trump’s legal team.
Pecker answered more questions Friday about what he said was a “catch-and-kill” plan to suppress damaging information about Trump in the run-up to the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
The former president is accused of 34 felony counts of falsifying business documents in connection with payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels.
Trump, the presumptive 2024 Republican nominee, is accused of mischaracterizing refunds to his former lawyer Michael Cohen, who paid Daniels $130,000 in exchange for her silence about an alleged affair. Trump has denied that the affair took place.
But prosecutors said the ex-president’s alleged misconduct was part of a larger criminal plan to influence the 2016 vote, in which Trump won against Hillary Clinton.
Friday’s hearing began with Trump’s lawyer, Emil Bove, continuing to cross-examine Pecker, one of the prosecution’s key witnesses. Two other witnesses also took the stand.
Here are six takeaways from the day in court.
Pecker explained the editorial process at the 2015 meeting
Bove, Trump’s lawyer, questioned the former National Enquirer editor on Friday about a 2015 meeting he previously testified about.
Pecker had previously said that there was discussion at that meeting about publishing articles about Bill and Hillary Clinton and Trump’s opponents in the Republican presidential primary.
Pecker said the moves were good for the tabloid’s business. He added that the Enquirer ran negative stories about the Clintons before it began coordinating with the Trump campaign because those stories performed well.
Bove also wanted to show that much of the Enquirer’s negative coverage of Trump’s political opponents – which prosecutors viewed as evidence that they were in cahoots – simply summarized news from other media outlets.
Pecker said recycling information from other outlets is cost-effective and makes economic sense.
Bove also later said that the National Enquirer’s parent company — not Trump or Cohen, his lawyer at the time — paid a former Trump Tower doorman $30,000 in 2015 for the rights to a baseless claim that Trump was involved with an employee fathered a child.
Pecker previously testified that the Enquirer assumed the story would become a major tabloid story if true, but ultimately concluded that the story was “1,000% untrue” and never published it . Both Trump and the woman concerned have denied the allegations.
Bove asked if he would tell the story if it were true. Pecker replied, “Yes.”
The term “catch-and-kill” was not used in the 2015 session
Pecker also previously testified that he hatched a plan with Trump and Cohen in August 2015 for the National Enquirer to help Trump’s presidential campaign.
However, under questioning by Trump’s lawyer on Friday, Pecker acknowledged that the meeting did not mention the term “catch-and-kill,” which describes the practice of tabloids purchasing the rights to a story so that it never sees the light see the world.
There was also no discussion at the meeting about any “financial dimension,” such as the National Enquirer paying people for the rights to their stories on behalf of Trump, Pecker said.
Karen McDougal deal
The defense’s questioning then turned to a deal between the National Enquirer’s parent company, American Media Inc., and former Playboy model Karen McDougal.
Bove tried to figure out what McDougal and the Enquirer’s goals really were when they reached a $150,000 agreement in 2016.
The deal gave American Media — where Pecker was CEO from 1999 to 2020 — exclusive rights to McDougal’s report on any relationship with “any then-married man,” a clause Pecker testified referred specifically to Trump. She claims they had an affair in 2006 and 2007; Trump denies it.
The contract also called for McDougal to pose for magazine covers and, with the help of a ghostwriter, to produce columns and other content on fitness and aging for various American media titles.
Earlier this week, Pecker testified that the content delivery was essentially a pact that was really about preventing McDougal’s story from becoming public and potentially affecting Trump’s chances for the presidency could.
But on Friday, the ex-publisher said that McDougal wanted to restart her career and that American Media presented itself in a video conference as a place that could help her. The company actually ended up publishing more than 65 stories on her behalf, he said.
When American Media signed the agreement with her: “You believed it had a legitimate business purpose, right?” Bove asked Pecker.
“I did,” said the former publisher.
Rhona Graff, who began working for Trump in 1987 and left the Trump Organization in April 2021, was the next witness to testify after Pecker. She has been described as Trump’s gatekeeper and right-hand woman.
Graff testified Friday that she once saw Daniels at Trump Tower before he ran for president. She said she heard Trump say he was interested in casting her on The Apprentice, the reality TV show he hosted.
Graff also said that Daniels and McDougal’s contact information was stored in the Trump Organization’s Outlook computer system.
“I never had the same day twice. It was a very stimulating, exciting and fascinating place,” she said of her 34 years at the Trump Organization. Graff also described Trump as a “fair” and “respectful” boss.
The trial hears the third witness
Gary Farro, who works as a retail banking advisor at Flagstar Bank and previously worked at First Republic Bank, which was hired by Cohen, was the third witness in the trial.
Farro testified Friday that Cohen had several personal accounts at First Republic when Farro took over the client relationship in 2015. According to US media reports of his statement, he also explained the banking agreement he had with Cohen.
“I was told I was chosen because of my knowledge and ability to deal with people who might be a little challenging,” Farro said.
“To be honest, I didn’t find it that difficult,” he added.
Hearing on the silence order next week
Meanwhile, Judge Juan Merchan, who is overseeing the New York case, said he plans to hold a hearing next Thursday on allegations that Trump violated a confidentiality agreement in the case.
Prosecutors have called for Trump to be punished for allegedly violating the order that bars the ex-president from publicly criticizing witnesses, some court officials and their relatives.
Trump could be fined $1,000 or jailed for each violation, although prosecutors say they are not seeking incarceration at this time.
The trial will continue on Tuesday next week.