What you missed on Day 14 of the hush money trial: More Stormy Daniels testimony, new witnesses and Trump's office habits

Attorneys for erstwhile President Donald Trump sought to pierce Stormy Daniels' credibility and motive connected Thursday, casting nan big movie character arsenic personification whose retelling of their alleged intersexual brushwood was rife pinch inconsistencies and driven by a desire to harm him.

While connected nan stand, Daniels was asked by defense lawyer Susan Necheles astir making “a batch of money” from her communicative complete nan years, striking deals worthy a cardinal dollars aliases more. Trump's lawyer besides needled Daniels complete nan different ways she's described nan brushwood successful mag and primetime interviews, arsenic good arsenic successful nan courtroom.

But Daniels pushed back, saying that while she made a surviving speaking retired against Trump, “I was not trading myself to anyone.”

Daniels’ communicative is a cardinal component of nan prosecution's hush money lawsuit against Trump. The bid to soundlessness her successful nan waning days of nan 2016 statesmanlike title came arsenic Trump’s run feared he could not withstand further harm aft a signaling of him talking astir inappropriately “grabbing” women threatened to derail his candidacy.

Trump has been charged pinch 34 counts related to falsifying business records, which prosecutors opportunity were utilized to obscure nan payments to Daniels. Trump has pleaded not blameworthy to each charges. He has besides denied having had an matter pinch Daniels.

Here's what you missed connected Day 14 of nan criminal trial.

Defense casts Daniels’ relationship arsenic fiction

Necheles pressed Daniels connected varying specifications successful her retelling of nan 2006 brushwood pinch Trump, specified arsenic saying that she felt light-headed, which Daniels did not see successful media interviews.

On Thursday, Trump's lawyer asked Daniels much than 2 twelve times astir her account, casting it arsenic a fabrication utilized to extort money astatine a delicate clip for Trump. Necheles said Daniels “wanted to make money” from nan attention, and that she had moreover made it nan “centerpiece” of her 2018 book.

“You were threatening that you would effort to wounded President Trump politically by telling this communicative if he didn’t springiness you money, right?” Necheles asked.

She besides pointed to merchandise marketed by Daniels online, including a $40 “Stormy Saint of Indictments” candle, and a “Stormy Daniels Political Power” comic book. Necheles further noted that Daniels appeared to observe Trump’s indictment successful nan lawsuit by tweeting that aforesaid time astir popping champagne. “That was maine doing my job,” Daniels said successful response.

The defense besides suggested that prosecutors had worked to style Daniels’ grounds earlier she took nan guidelines for nan first clip connected Tuesday. She was asked by Necheles whether she was expected to see definite specifications astatine their urging, and from her book.

Trump’s attorneys person sought passim nan proceedings to represent definite witnesses arsenic selectively highlighting facts to thief nan Manhattan territory attorney’s case.

“There’s thing incorrect pinch detail,” Daniels said connected Thursday.

“My communicative ne'er changed,” she added later.

Trump lawyer Todd Blanche cited Daniels' lurid grounds of nan alleged brushwood pinch Trump arsenic he renewed a bid for a mistrial, arguing it was prejudicial really Daniels described “an imbalance of power” betwixt herself and Trump, moreover arsenic she said she did not consciousness physically threatened, and really she recalled a “spanking” by a rolled up magazine.

“None of that is accusation that goes to motive,” Blanche said.

The judge rejected nan mistrial motion. He besides dismissed a petition by nan defense to loosen nan rules connected nan gag bid against Trump.

Three caller witnesses

Two caller witnesses who worked for Trump appeared took nan guidelines Thursday nether subpoena: a Trump Organization worker and Trump’s erstwhile executive adjunct successful nan White House.

Both gave compelling grounds astir Trump’s micro-management of his affairs, specified arsenic signing disconnected connected $6,000 yearly dues to a play nine wherever he wrote "PAY ASAP OK" connected nan invoice.

Madeleine Westerhout, nan erstwhile White House assistant, described Trump's habits, including really he liked to support his Oval Office table pristine for meetings and utilized nan eating room arsenic his “working office.” There, he would beryllium “working, reading, going complete documents,” she said, noting that while he kept things organized, he did person a batch of papers.

“I recovered that he ever knew wherever things were,” Westerhout said. She said he “liked hardcopy documents” and, to her knowledge, did not person an email address.

Westerhout departed nan White House aft she said disparagingly of Trump’s family during a gathering pinch reporters that she believed was off-the-record; her comments were reported publicly. In opposition to Daniels, Westerhout said warmly of Trump, coating a image of a family man who cared profoundly astir his woman Melania Trump.

Rebecca Manochio, nan Trump Organization worker who took nan guidelines Thursday, told nan tribunal successful her grounds astir really checks were handled some earlier and during Trump's clip successful office. She described putting together checks pinch their invoices for Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg to sign, which he continued to do aft Trump took office. Certain checks required Trump’s signature, Manochio said, and she recalled astatine slightest 1 juncture wherever she sent conscionable one.

During her testimony, Trump took notes and gazed up arsenic nan inferior book keeper told nan tribunal really astir erstwhile a week she would nonstop checks via FedEx for Trump to motion astatine nan White House. Manochio past mailed nan checks that Westerhout would grip astatine nan White House.

A 3rd caller witnesser for nan time — Tracey Menzies, an executive astatine Harper Collins —testified to nan accuracy of definite excerpts from a book authored by Trump and published by her company, “Think Big: Make It Happen successful Business and successful Life.”

One excerpt that was introduced into nan tribunal grounds focused connected Trump’s urging to “value loyalty supra everything” astatine nan Trump Organization, and really he claimed to “go retired of my way” to make “miserable” nan life of a women he said “was very disloyal.”

Tweets, insubstantial trails and record-keeping

Westerhout described Trump’s process for utilizing Twitter, now X, erstwhile he was successful nan White House. She said that too Trump, only lawman main of unit Dan Scavino had entree to nan president's relationship successful 2017, and that Trump had a chopped style.

“There were definite words that he liked to capitalize … and he liked to usage exclamation points,” Westerhout said. “It’s my knowing that he liked to usage nan Oxford comma.”

She besides recalled really Michael Cohen met pinch Trump astatine nan White House, but did not specifically retrieve seeing him there. The gathering is simply a cardinal arena successful nan prosecution's communicative of an predetermination interference plot.

Westerhout described Trump arsenic detail-oriented, and that he preferred to motion documents himself utilizing a Sharpie aliases Pentel felt-tip. She recounted really Trump would motion each cheque by manus successful his office, and would return them to her successful a folder.

Trump signed a batch of material, Westerhout said while being questioned by Necheles.

She besides talked astir a matter connection she sent to Hope Hicks, a apical adjutant to Trump, asking, “Hey — the president wants to cognize if you called David Pecker again?”

Pecker, a erstwhile patient of nan National Enquirer, antecedently testified astir his domiciled successful a strategy to “catch and kill” stories perchance damaging to Trump during nan 2016 statesmanlike campaign, including an relationship by Karen McDougal, a erstwhile Playboy exemplary who said she had a monthslong narration pinch Trump starting astir a decade earlier nan election.

After nan assemblage near nan courtroom connected Thursday, Trump lawyer Blanche mentioned that nan DA's agency informed him that McDougal will nary longer beryllium called by prosecutors to testify.