There are conversations about the moment
Steinglass knew about the Donald Trump negotiations with Daniels, but did not disclose them – the case against Trump on the Manhattan manslaught
Joshua Steinglass of the prosecution team knew he was taking a risk by “trading brevity for thoroughness” in his closing argument in the Donald Trump felony trial in Manhattan; besides being exhausted after an 11-hour day, jurors might conclude “the people” (the formal name for the prosecution) were not sure enough about their case to avoid piling on.
Prosecutors claim that Trump knew about the negotiations with Daniels which led to a $130,000 settlement and that he directed Cohen to make the payment to her. Prosecutors argue that the falsified business records, in part labeled as “legal retainers,” are a paper trail for Cohen.
Steinglass gave up and said, “Sorry if I did not do a good job.” Then he pointed out that Cohen had briefed Trump 20 times in the month of October about his dealings with Daniels, which helped to save the campaign.
On the stand, Cohen described a repayment scheme that formed the basis of the 34 counts of falsified business records: 11 falsified invoices, 12 falsified ledger entries and 11 checks falsely recording the repayment as legal “retainers.” Nine of the checks were signed by Trump, himself.
Steinglass also proved that “Michael Cohen is no rogue actor” and that in 2018 Trump, Rudy Giuliani and the lawyer Robert Costello treated Cohen like a mob rat as part of the cover-up. This was La Casa Blanca meets La Cosa Nostra.
Steinglass told the jury that they would have to disregard several witnesses testimony, including that of Jeffrey McConney and handwritten bank statements, if they were to acquit Trump.
The judge allowed most of it until the prosecutor overreached by urging jurors not to let Trump get away with shooting someone on Fifth Avenue, evoking his famous line about what he could get away with.
Just after the objection to that was sustained by the judge, Steinglass finally stood down, and we all dragged off to bed. The case finally goes to the jury on Wednesday.
Tying this to the Daniels’ payment, Steinglass reminded jurors of the timing — how the deal to have Daniels sign a nondisclosure agreement came after the Access Hollywood tape became public.
“This is buying a story that you do not intend to print, so that no one else can print it,” Steinglass said, referencing Blanche’s argument that tabloids often purchase stories and then choose not to run them.
The First Criminal Trial of a Former U.S. President Donald Trump on a Charge of Falsifying Business Records: The Tabloid Correspondence with Mark Zuckerman
The deal with the tabloid was related to the alleged encounter that occurred 10 years before, and he explained that Trump’s concern was not his family, but the election.
The prosecutor claimed that it all started with a meeting in Trump Tower with the National Enquirer publisher. Steinglass said that a federal election law violation happens when money starts changing hands.
Steinglass focused on the concerns he said Trump had about how the story of the alleged affair with an adult film star could hurt his 2016 presidential run. He argued that Trump himself told Pecker and Cohen to handle quashing negative media — specifically allegations from women about Trump in the leadup to 2016.
The defense claimed that they were for legal work, and now they are trying to make an argument that this was for legal retainer.
There were two documents that showed handwritten notes from Trump’s chief financial officer and his comptroller that clearly lay out the reimbursement scheme: 130 times two, to cover taxes, plus another expense, plus a bonus, for a total of $420,000. Steinglass said that they were the smoking guns.
Steinglass went back to the paragraphs from the books to make sure that the jury understood that Trump was also described as frugal.
Steinglass once again went through the specific checks and invoices in question and how Deborah Tarasoff, the accounts payable supervisor at the Trump Organization, packaged them together to send to Trump even after he went to the White House.
Steinglass mentioned witnesses who testified before the court, including employees of Trump’s business and administration. He also referred to the witnesses who work for companies that published Trump’s books about his business philosophy.
The jury in the case of former President Donald Trump began deliberations. They will decide if Trump will be convicted or acquitted of 34 felony counts of falsified business records. This is the first criminal trial against a former or sitting U.S. president.
After listening to 22 witnesses and six hours of arguing, a 12- person jury will begin deliberations Wednesday. The decision might be days or weeks before it’s made. A unanimous jury is needed to either convict or acquit Trump.
Since the trial is in New York he has to attend every day the court is in session, meaning that he can’t campaign as much. He has also accused the judge of being biased.
The court was filled with more family members than usual. Children Donald Jr., Eric and Tiffany were present in the courtroom, as well as son-in-law Michael Boulos and daughter-in-law and RNC co-chair Lara Trump.
The Biden-Harris campaign held an event outside of the courthouse in Manhattan featuring actor Robert DeNiro and U.S Capitol police officers, as Todd Blanche began his closing arguments.
The defense spent time pointing out potential witnesses the jury did not hear from — specifically Allen Weisselberg, Don Jr. or Eric Trump, who were Trump Organization executives at the time; Dylan Howard, a former editor of the National Enquirer; Gina Rodriguez, who managed Stormy Daniels; or Trump bodyguard Keith Schiller.
Some of the felony counts were caused by Trump’s sons signing two checks. And he also told the jury that Cohen was the one who generated the 11 invoices that make up 11 of the felony counts on Trump.
He maintained that the allegedly false retainer was a legitimate retainer of services — especially because Cohen billed himself as Trump’s personal lawyer.
He also spent time casting doubt on the secret recording Cohen made of a conversation with Trump that allegedly confirms knowledge of the payment and settlement to former Playboy model Karen McDougal.
“All Campaigns are a Cosmic Campaign to Promote a Candidate,” said Blanche in an interview with the National Enquirer
One of the points that he made in openings was that if there was a conspiracy to try and affect the election, then it doesn’t matter. “Every campaign is a conspiracy to promote a candidacy,” Blanche said.
According to Blanche, celebrities and candidates work with tabloids to promote themselves and their campaigns.
“There is nothing wrong with President Trump wanting to get positive news stories,” said Blanche. The idea that positive stories in the National Enquirer could influence the election is ludicrous, according to him.
Starting with, “Hey, Keith, how’s it going?” Steinglass was talking on the phone and asked the boss if he could talk to him. Steinglass had a small talk about taking care of that thing.
The fact of the payments isn’t in dispute. What prosecutors needed to prove is that Trump made them in order to cover up other crimes, such as violating campaign finance law and mischaracterizing the payments for tax purposes.
The jury’s role in the prosecution of the Donald Trump-Chern-York alleged affair with Daniels and Donald Trump on Celebrity Apprentice
The verdict must be unanimous. The jury will be hung if all 12 can’t agree, and the judge will declare a mistrial. The district attorney will have to make a decision about whether to try the case again.
The jury was reminded to be impartial by a New York judge on Wednesday. The instructions he gave the jury were lengthy, reminding them that evidence like former Trump attorney Michael Cohen’s guilty plea to violating campaign finance laws was used to establish the credibility of other witnesses.
The jury should define the law by the intent to defraud and forge business records, according to Merchan. He said that prosecutors argued that Trump had intended to hide a violation of New York election law.
In order to determine this, the jury may look at three of the prosecution’s theories: Federal Election Campaign Act violation, falsification of other business records or violation of tax laws.
The National Enquirer publisher met with Donald Trump and his lawyer Michael Cohen in August 2015 two months after Trump announced he was running for president.
The plan, as Pecker outlined it, was that he would suppress these stories, and at the same time publish negative stories about Trump’s opponents. The stories were sent to Cohen and Trump before they were published.
Over the next year, Pecker said he carried out this role. Daniels’ testimony was supported by an attorney who was involved in both Daniels and Karen McDougal. McDougal considered going public in June of 2016 about her relationship with Trump. But Pecker bought the rights to that story, with the expectation that he would be reimbursed by Trump. That never happened.
TheAccessHollywood tape, where Trump bragged about being a star, was the biggest blow to the Trump campaign according to the testimony of former communications aide Hope Matthews. You have the ability to do anything. Grab them by the p*sy.
According to her testimony, Daniels had felt like she needed to have sex with Trump when she found him in the hotel room.
She testified that Trump had dangled a possible role on his TV show Celebrity Apprentice. This detail — that the sex wasn’t entirely wanted — caused the defense to request a mistrial, which was denied. It also provided a motive for Trump to suppress the story. Prosecutors said, “Trump knew what happened in that hotel room” and didn’t want it to come out. The testimony of the adult film actor and some of the intimate details about her alleged encounter with another person were not required by the defense.
As October drew to a close, Cohen testified, he frantically opened bank accounts and tried to come up with a way to pay the $130,000 to keep Daniels quiet. Cohen said that Trump wanted to delay the payment because he didn’t think it mattered if Daniels was paid.
A number of other witnesses said that Trump was paying to influence the election by keeping women voters on board. The story came out in 2018, she was told by Hicks, who said it was better than 2016’s.
The testimony of the Trump Organization’s former comptroller, Jeff Mccronney, is important to the case as he gave handwritten notes and documents relating to what transpired after the election.
The payments would be described as pursuant to a “legal retainer.” Weisselberg is serving a jail sentence for perjury and did not testify in the trial.
Cohen said he and Weisselberg met and discussed the agreement with Trump shortly before he left for Washington, on or about Jan. 17, 2020. Cohen said Trump approved the deal, saying at the end of the meeting that “it was going to be one heck of a ride,” in Washington. Cohen said he and Trump talked about it again in the Oval Office. Photos and White House records corroborate that the two met in the Oval Office at the time.
Source: Jury begins deliberations in Trump’s hush money case
The New York jurors for Donald J. Trump’s case involving Merchan’s ruling in the New York City magistrates’ case
If Trump is convicted, Merchan would later issue the sentence, which may or may not include prison time; some legal experts believe imprisonment for a former president is unlikely. A conviction does not stop Trump from being the GOP nominee. His legal team has been to New York for civil trials before and is likely to appeal the decision.
The jurors range from all over Manhattan, including Harlem, Hell’s Kitchen, Murray Hill and the Upper West Side. They’re also investment bankers, teachers and physical therapists. They like hiking, fly fishing and exploring New York City. There are seven men and 5 women.
The jury is anonymous due to safety concerns. Jurors are identified by numbers, are not allowed to be photographed or recorded, and only lawyers have access to their names.
