During his second day on the stand, Pecker, the former publisher of the National Enquirer, told jurors he and Trump went back as far as the late 1980s when they first met at Mar-a-Lago and then worked to fatten each other’s wallets.

Around 2003, 2004, when Trump starred on TV’s “The Apprentice,” the reality show was “tremendous help also for my magazines,” Pecker said, and the show propelled his friend to be nationally known “as the boss.”

Assistant District Attorney Joshua Steinglass asked Pecker to describe Trump.

“I would describe Mr. Trump as very knowledgeable. I would describe him as very detail oriented. I would describe him almost as a micromanager,” he said.

“I thought that his approach to money — he was very cautious and very frugal.”

Pecker told a crowded courtroom how he worked to shape the public’s perception of his friend as far back as 2007, when he said Trump first told him that “if there (were) any rumors in the marketplace,” he should “call Michael Cohen directly.”

Prosecutors zeroed in on the August 2015 meeting during which they allege the hush money scheme to hide damaging information about Trump from the voters was born at Trump Tower. Pecker said he, Trump and Cohen were present, with former White House aide Hope Hicks popping in and out of the meeting.

“Donald Trump and Michael, they asked me what can I do and what my magazines could do to help the campaign,” Pecker testified.

Pecker told them he would publish positive stories about Trump and negative stories about his opponents.

Prosecutors displayed several examples to the jury of stories in Pecker’s publications boosting Trump and slamming GOP rivals like Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio early in the race.

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