Michael Cohen Testimony Ties Trump to Hush Money Payment
- Cohen said Trump agreed to payment for Daniels, coverup plan
- Trump’s ex-fixer is the star prosecution witness at the trial
Michael Cohen directly connected Donald Trump to the hush-money payment to adult-film actress Stormy Daniels to keep their alleged sexual encounter out of the news ahead of the 2016 election.
Taking the witness stand in the Manhattan criminal trial Monday, Trump’s former lawyer and fixer recalled an October 2016 conversation in which the former president said that public disclosure of Daniels’ story would spell “disaster” for his White House bid. Trump expressed frustration that Daniels was trying to shop her story to the media and told Cohen to pay her $130,000 to buy her silence.