A report published Friday by The Wall Street Journal provides new details into the alleged hush money payments made to two women who claimed to have had affairs with President Donald Trump.
The payments to Playboy model Karen McDougal and adult film star Stormy Daniels were made in the lead up to the 2016 presidential election, according to news reports. The payment to McDougal was allegedly made by American Media Inc., the parent company of the National Enquirer. AMI’s chief executive, David Pecker, is a longtime friend of Trump.
Trump’s personal attorney, Michael Cohen, admitted to making the payment to Stormy Daniels. According to the Journal, Cohen was later reimbursed by Trump for the $130,000 payment.
The key part of the WSJ’s story is that Trump “was involved in or briefed on nearly every step of the agreements. He directed deals in phone calls and meetings with his self-described fixer, Michael Cohen, and others.” The Journal also reports that the U.S. Attorney’s office in Manhattan has gathered evidence of the role Trump played in the arrangements.
Cohen pleaded guilty in August to campaign finance crimes, making false statements to a bank and tax evasion. In the courtroom, Cohen admitted that he worked at the “direction of a candidate” to pay off the women to influence the 2016 election in violation of campaign finance laws.
Trump’s lawyer, Jay Sekulow, declined to comment to the Journal. In an interview on Oct. 23, Trump was asked by the Journal if he ever discussed the payments with Cohen.
“Nobody cares about that,” Trump told the Journal. He also described Mr. Cohen to the Journal as a “public-relations person” who “represented me on very small things.”
Read the full story at The Wall Street Journal.
Photo by Markus Schreiber/Associated Press
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