Trump 'hush money' trial: Key takeaways from week one

Pecker’s testimony detailed an unsavory world of checkbook journalism at the Enquirer, which paid sources for stories, leveraged dirt on celebrities and willingly served as an extension of the Trump campaign.

Jurors heard that Trump was a favorite of Enquirer readers. Beyond paying for stories, the Enquirer would send draft articles about Trump to Cohen for his comments.

It also attacked Trump’s campaign rivals in 2016 with headlines like “Shocking Claims: Pervy Ted Cruz Caught Cheating — With 5 Secret Mistresses!” and “Senator Marco Rubio’s Cocaine Connection!”

Pecker said AMI paid $30,000 to buy a story from a former Trump Tower doorman claiming that Trump had fathered a child with a housekeeper. The Enquirer concluded the story was false, but said if it was true the tabloid could have sold more copies than one about the death of Elvis Presley in 1977.

‘Nice Girl’ Silenced

Much of Pecker’s testimony focused on the AMI deal with McDougal, who said she had an affair with Trump that spanned nearly a year after meeting him in 2006.

Pecker said he first heard about McDougal’s story in June 2016 from an Enquirer editor, and he alerted Cohen. Pecker said he believed McDougal’s account and that he talked to Trump before agreeing to pay $130,000 to buy her silence. Trump praised her as a “nice girl.” After his election, Trump invited Pecker to the White House, where he also asked about McDougal’s well being.

Beyond agreeing not to publish her account, AMI said it would run 96 columns written by a ghostwriter for her over two years, and ended up publishing 65, Pecker said. Trump’s lawyer suggested the August 2016 contract was an innocent effort to “recharge” her career.

Stormy Daniels

After AMI paid for the McDougal and doorman stories without getting reimbursed, as he was promised, Pecker had no more appetite to pay for stories involving women and Trump, he testified. So Pecker resisted pressure by Cohen to buy the Daniels story after the release of the now famous Access Hollywood tape in which Trump bragged about sexually assaulting women.

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