Trump trial: 1st week of testimony ends with testimony from Michael Cohen's former banker
Banker Gary Farro testified in Donald Trump's hush money trial in New York.
Former President Donald Trump is on trial in New York City, where he is facing felony charges related to a 2016 hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. It marks the first time in history that a former U.S. president has been tried on criminal charges.
Trump last April pleaded not guilty to a 34-count indictment charging him with falsifying business records to hide the reimbursement of a hush money payment his then-attorney Michael Cohen made to Daniels in order to boost his electoral prospects in the 2016 presidential election.
Top headlines:
- Banker says he set up LLC, which Cohen used to pay Daniels
- 'Thank you for handling' McDougal, Pecker says Trump told him
- 'This story is true,' Pecker recounts being told of Stormy Daniels
- Pecker describes $150,000 negotiations for McDougal's story
- Secret Service has plans if Trump is confined for contempt: Sources
What to know about the hush money case
READ MORE: Here's what you need to know about the historic case.
'Access Hollywood' tape was 'explosive,' prosecutors claim
Prosecutor Matthew Colangelo read aloud part of the transcript of the infamous "Access Hollywood" tape to jurors.
"You can do anything," Colangelo slowly read to the jurors, quoting Trump from the tape. "Grab them by the p----. You can do anything."
According to Colangelo, the October 2016 release of the tape had an "immediate and explosive" impact on Donald Trump's presidential campaign.
"Seeing and hearing a candidate in his own words, in his own voice, with his own body language ... has a much greater impact on voters than words on paper," Colangelo said. "The campaign went on immediate damage control mode to blunt the impact of the tape."
The campaign was concerned about the impact it might have on Trump voters or even the possibility that Trump could lose the Republican nomination one month out from the election, according to Colangelo.
"The Republican National Committee even considered whether it was too late to replace their own nominee," Colangelo said.
Trump, listening to openings, shakes his head
Former President Trump, sitting at the defense table, softly shook his head "no" when prosecutor Matthew Colangelo told the jurors that Trump formed a "conspiracy" with Michael Cohen and David Pecker to "help him get elected."
It was one of the most notable reactions from Trump as he sits and listens to prosecutors lay out their story of the case.
Colangelo then brought up the "Access Hollywood" tape and said it showed Trump "bragging about sexual assault," Trump shook his head no again, pursing his lips. He did not react when Colangelo, quoting Trump on the tape, said, "grab them by the p----."
Earlier, as Colangelo brought up a former Trump doorman who was he said was paid off as part of the alleged catch-and-kill scheme, Trump -- looking annoyed -- leaned over and tapped his lawyer Todd Blanche. When Colangelo said the doorman was paid $30,000 to bury his story, Trump raised his eyebrows and grabbed onto a pen.
The former president has been passing notes and sliding papers between Blanche and attorney Emil Bove, and leaning side-to-side, whispering to them. Blanche at one point pulled out his own sticky note and slid a note back to Trump.
At other times he has hardly seemed engaged at all, slumping in his red leather chair looking straight forward with no facial expression, or fidgeting with his head tilting back and forth. At one point during jury instructions he let out a yawn.
Prosecutor alleges 3-prong conspiracy
"It starts with that August 2015 meeting in Trump Tower," prosecutor Matthew Colangelo told jurors about the alleged conspiracy, in his opening statement.
Following a meeting between Donald Trump, his then-lawyer Michael Cohen, and AMI executive David Pecker, the three engaged in a three-prong conspiracy to help influence the 2016 election, according to Colangelo.
First, the National Enquirer would run "headline after headline that extolled the defendant's virtues," according to Colangelo.
"Pecker had the ultimate say over publication decisions," Colangelo said, adding that Trump edited, killed, and suggested the cover of the magazine.
Second, the National Enquirer would run negative stories attacking Trump's opponents in the 2016 Republican primary, such as attacks on Ben Carson or Marco Rubio.
Third, the "core of the conspiracy" was killing negative stories about Trump -- evolving into the catch-and kill scheme, Colangelo said.
"The National Enquirer ran these stories as part of the conspiracy launched after the Trump Tower meeting," he said.
'This case is about a criminal conspiracy,' prosecutor says
"This case is about a criminal conspiracy," prosecutor Matthew Colangelo began his opening statement in Donald Trump's criminal trial in New York.
"The defendant, Donald Trump, orchestrated a criminal scheme to corrupt the 2016 presidential election," the prosecutor said.
The utterance represents the first time a prosecutor has sought to implicate a former president in a crime at his trial.
Colangelo said Trump schemed with his attorney Michael Cohen and National Enquirer publisher David Pecker "to influence the presidential election by concealing negative information about former President Trump."
Trump slouched in his seat at the defense table, listening.
"The defendant said in his business records that he was paying Cohen for legal services pursuant to a retainer agreement. But those were lies," Colangelo said. "The defendant was paying him back for an illegal payment to Stormy Daniels on the eve of the election."
Pecker describes $150,000 negotiations for McDougal's story
With Donald Trump following along from the defense table, head cocked slightly to the side, David Pecker described the negotiations conducted with Karen McDougal to purchase the exclusive rights to her story about an alleged year-long relationship with Trump.
Pecker said that Trump's attorney Michael Cohen authorized negotiations to begin, then during those negotiations, "Michael was very agitated," constantly asking "Why is this taking so long?"
"To purchase the lifetime rights to Karen McDougal was going to cost $150,000. Plus Karen wanted to restart her career. She wanted to write for the celebrity magazines. She wanted to be on the cover of the life and fitness titles. She had a major problem when her breast implants were removed and she wanted to write about that," Pecker testified.
Pecker said he asked Cohen, "Who is going to reimburse me for this?" He said Cohen responded "Don't worry about it, I'm your friend the boss will take care of it.'"
When prosecutor Josh Steinglass asked Pecker who "the boss" was, Pecker answered "The boss would have been Donald Trump"
Prosecutors then displayed for the jury the contract with McDougal, dated August 5, 2016. It awarded AMI, the Enquirer's parent company, the rights to her story of a relationship she had "with any then-married man." Pecker said "she was referring to Donald Trump."
Pecker testified he needed to "validate" the amount of money AMI was going to pay, so the contract included other provisions, like having McDougal write monthly columns on aging and fitness.
"With respect to campaign laws, I wanted to have the contract be a record that stipulates the services she was going to perform for American Media had a basis for it, the $150,000," Pecker said.
"Was it your primary purpose to buy the life rights?" Steinglass asked. "Yes it was," Pecker responded.
"Were the other provisions to disguise the true nature of this contract?" Steinglass asked. "Yes," Pecker replied, letting out a sigh.