Picking holes in his story: Defiant National Enquirer boss fires back at Trump lawyer’s claim that he isn’t ‘truthful’ after revealing how little he was paid to silence Arnold Schwarzenegger’s accusers
Former National Enquirer chief David Pecker fired back after Donald Trump’s lawyers questioned whether he was honest during his sensational hush-money trial.
During a tense cross-examination on Friday, the tabloid publisher, who is the first witness in the case, said he was “truthful.”
Trump attorney Emil Bove was confrontational because he was tired of showing the jury that hush-money deals were common practice in the tabloids, and of poking holes in Pecker’s story.
Bove had been especially cordial to Pecker during his two-day cross-examination.
But he then questioned whether Pecker had an obligation to cooperate with prosecutors because of a non-prosecution agreement he made with investigators.
Pecker responded, “I’ve been honest, as far as I can remember.”
David Pecker is questioned by prosecutor Joshua Steinglass during former US President Donald Trump’s criminal trial on charges that he falsified business records to hide money paid to silence porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016, in Manhattan District Court in New York City, USA, April 26, 2024 in this courtroom sketch
Former US President Donald Trump (L) sits in court during his hush money trial at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York, US, April 26, 2024
He stood by the account he gave in court, adding: “I know what the truth is.”
Pecker’s testimony has given jurors a stunning glimpse into the supermarket tabloid’s catch-and-kill practice of buying the rights to stories so they never see the light of day.
It’s a crucial building block for prosecutors’ theory that Trump tried to illegally influence the 2016 race by suppressing negative stories about his personal life.
Trump has denied 34 charges of falsifying company records to cover up a $130,000 payment by his “fixer” Michael Cohen to porn star Stormy Daniels
Daniels claimed to have had an affair with Trump, which Trump denied.
Under questioning by Bove, Pecker acknowledged that there was no mention of the term “catch-and-kill” during the key meeting with Trump.
Also, there was no discussion during the meeting about any “financial dimension,” such as the National Enquirer paying people on Trump’s behalf for the rights to their stories, Pecker said.
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s lawyer, Emil Bove, appears before the State Supreme Court in Manhattan, New York, USA, April 25, 2024
Arnold Schwarzenegger speaks during the 2024 10X Growth Conference at The Diplomat Beach Resort on April 4, 2024 in Hollywood, Florida
Lawyers for former President Donald Trump Alina Habba speak in Manhattan Criminal Court during Trump’s trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments related to extramarital affairs in New York on April 22, 2024
Bove also confronted Pecker about statements he made to federal prosecutors in 2018 that the lawyer said were “contrary” to the former publisher’s testimony.
Pecker told jurors that during a 2017 visit to the White House, Trump thanked him for helping bury two stories.
But according to notes Bove read in court, Pecker told federal authorities that Trump did not express any gratitude to him during the meeting.
“Was that another mistake?” Bove asked Pecker. But Pecker stood by the story he gave in court.
Earlier. Prosecutor Josh Steinglass questioned Pecker about the catch and kill practice at the National Enquirer.
He said, “After Arnold Schwarzenegger announced his candidacy for governor (of California), 30 or 40 women came forward?”
David Pecker, chairman and CEO of American Media, speaks at the Shape and Men’s Fitness Super Bowl Party in New York City, USA, January 31, 2014
Adult film actress Stephanie Clifford, also known as Stormy Daniels, speaks as she leaves the federal courthouse in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, USA, April 16, 2018
Pecker confirmed the number and that he had “paid hundreds of thousands to kill those stories.”
He said the largest payment was $20,000 and the others “rang from $500 to $2,000.”
Meanwhile, Alina Habba, another Trump lawyer, told Fox News that the lawsuit only shows that the former president did “absolutely nothing wrong.”
Habba added that if convicted, it would be “100 percent” overturned on appeal.
“We have judges who are rejecting evidence that should be allowed,” she said. “All of those transcripts are being scrutinized by the appeals court.”
This is a “long trial,” Habba said.