Trump's silent trial: tabloid editor David Pecker continues his testimony

NEW YORK (AP) The former publisher of the National Enquirer testified Thursday at Donald Trump's secret trial that he went to great lengths to help protect his old friend from potentially damaging stories by using a capture-and-report system. The killing, prosecutors said, amounted to interference in the 2016 presidential campaign.

At the same time, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in another criminal case involving Trump, who argued he should be shielded from prosecution for his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss to to Joe Biden.

What you need to know about Trump's secret trial:

Trump asked to skip his criminal proceedings in New York for the day so he could attend the special session of the high court, where the justices appeared likely to reject his request. But it seemed possible that Trump could still benefit from a lengthy trial delay, perhaps beyond the November election.

His request to go to Washington was denied by Judge Juan M. Merchan, who is overseeing Trump's trial on 34 counts of falsifying business records in connection with secret payments.

Former President Donald Trump sits at the defense table as David Pecker, shown on the video screen, testifies about Karen McDougal in Manhattan Criminal Court, Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in New York. (Elizabeth Williams via AP)

“I think the Supreme Court is faced with a very important argument today,” Trump said outside the courtroom. I should be there.

In addition to the former president's legal troubles, his former lawyers and associates were indicted Wednesday in connection with a scheme related to the 2020 election in Arizona. And a New York judge denied a request for a new trial in a defamation case that found Trump liable for $83.3 million in damages. The financial secrecy case also includes a looming decision on whether he violated a silence order.

Trump has maintained that he is not guilty of any of the charges against him. In New York, he says the stories that were bought and suppressed were false.

There is no case here. This is just a political witch hunt, he said outside court in brief comments to reporters.

Jurors heard from David Pecker, the tabloid's longtime director, who described paying hundreds of thousands of dollars to buy the rights to articles potentially damaging to Trump, some in secret measures intended to avoid the scrutiny from colleagues.

Trump watched intently as his friend spoke from the witness stand.

Pecker explained how he and his publication turned rumors into splashy stories that defamed Trump's opponents and, just as crucially, exploited his connections to suppress sordid stories about Trump, including a claim of a porn actor doing status of an extramarital sexual relationship years earlier.

His testimony formed a key part of the prosecution's theory that the partnership was a means to illegally influence the election. Prosecutors are seeking to heighten the gravity of the historic first trial of a former U.S. president and the first of four criminal cases against Trump to go before a jury.

While Pecker testified in a calm, cooperative tone about risky stories and secret deals, the atmosphere in the utilitarian 1940s courtroom was one of quiet attentiveness. Court officers warned members of the public not to speak or make noise.

He also testified that he zeroed in on additional payments after the magazine lost $180,000 on Trump-related transactions. The publication bought a sordid story about a New York doorman and bought accusations of an extramarital affair with a former Playboy model to prevent the allegations from spreading elsewhere.

The breaking point for Pecker came with Stormy Daniels, the porn actor who was ultimately paid by Cohen to remain silent about his allegations of a sexual relationship with Trump in 2006. The ex-president denies that it happened product.

Pecker reminded the jury that he was having dinner with his wife, the night after the public learned of the infamous 2005 Access Hollywood tape in which Trump talked about grabbing women sexually without asking permission, when the editor then-chief Dylan Howard called him with an urgent matter.

Howard said he heard Daniels' representatives say she was trying to sell her story and that the tabloid could acquire it for $120,000 if it decided to do so immediately, Pecker told jurors.

Pecker was wiretapped and later told Cohen.

I'm not paying for this story. I didn't want to be involved in this from the start, he told Cohen.

At the same time, Pecker advised someone other than himself to do something to prevent the story from becoming public. I said to Michael: My suggestion is that you buy the story and take it off the market because if you don't and it gets out, I think the boss will be very angry with you.

The panel of 12 watched intently, some appearing to take notes. Pecker also recalled receiving a phone call from Trump during the tabloids' pursuit of former Playboy model Karen McDougal's allegations of an extramarital affair with Trump.

In other developments, prosecutors also argued Thursday that Trump again violated an order of silence. Merchan was already considering finding Trump in contempt and fining him for what prosecutors say are 10 different violations of the order that barred the GOP leader from making public statements about witnesses, jurors and others connected to the case. Then, the prosecution identified new cases of alleged breaches.

Assistant Prosecutor Christopher Conroy highlighted additional remarks Trump made about Cohen, a key prosecution witness, when he spoke to reporters outside the courtroom and during other interviews. He also noted a comment from Trump that the jury was, among other things, 95 percent Democrats.

Trump has been dismissive of the impending decision. When reporters asked him if he would pay the $1,000 fine for each of the 10 posts if ordered, he responded, “Oh, I have no idea.” He then said: “They immediately took my Constitution with a gag order.

A jury conviction in the hush money investigation would not prevent Trump from becoming president again, but because it is a state matter, he would not be able to pardon himself if he were found guilty. The charge carries a sentence of up to four years in prison, but it is unclear whether the judge will seek to put him behind bars.

In Washington, the Supreme Court is moving more quickly than usual in considering the Trump case, but not as quickly as special counsel Jack Smith wanted. The pace of the courts has raised questions about whether there would be enough time to hold a trial before the November election, if the justices agree with lower courts that Trump can be prosecuted.

Although these cases are entirely separate, the proceedings have been blended into a grand legal and political puzzle that has had implications not only for the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, but for the American presidency as a whole.

In both cases, Trump is trying to extricate himself from legal danger by making a new bid for the White House. But the outcome of the Supreme Court trial will have lasting implications for future presidents, as the justices will answer the never-before-asked question of whether and to what extent a former president enjoys immunity from prosecution for alleged conduct involve official acts. during his mandate.

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Long reported in Washington. Associated Press writer Michelle L. Price contributed to this report.

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