Day 8 of Trump New York hush money trial

Gary Farro is the prosecution’s next witness.

Farro is currently a private client adviser at Flagstar Bank and was previously a senior managing director at First Republic Bank, where he worked when Michael Cohen was trying to set up the payment to Stormy Daniels. 

He is the third witness to testify in this case. 

Trump is back in the courtroom. He no longer has the stack of documents he held in his hands as he walked out.

The jury is also returning to courtroom.

Prosecutors have re-entered the courtroom after a short break.

Trump stood and moved toward Graff as she walked out of the courtroom. It wasn’t clear if they exchanged words as she left the stand.

Trump is walking out with a stern expression, clutching his stack of documents, as he continues to scan both sides of the courtroom.

In its cross-examination of Donald Trump’s long-time assistant, the defense is looking for another opportunity to humanize the former president, according to CNN anchor and chief legal analyst Laura Coates.

Rhona Graff testified that she worked for Trump for 34 years at the Trump Organization, sitting outside his office on the 26th floor of Trump Tower.

“This is not a time to, as a cross-examiner, to attack her as if she is out to get Donald Trump. You’re going to see a softer touch for this particular witness,” Coates said.

That’s compared to the cross-examination of the last witness, former tabloid publisher David Pecker, who testified about the National Enquirer’s efforts to suppress negative stories that could have harmed Trump’s 2016 campaign.

Still, the defense ended the questioning of Pecker with a question also aimed at humanizing the former president. Defense attorney Emil Bove asked Pecker if he believed Trump cares about his family. He replied, “Of course I do.”

Graff is another opportunity for the defense to continue to tell that story about Trump to the jury, Coates said.

Judge Juan Merchan is excusing the jury for an afternoon recess.

The break will last 15 minutes.

Graff is now off the witness stand. Lawyers are having a sidebar before the next witness.

Both the prosecution and the defense questioned Trump’s former assistant for less than 20 minutes each. She was on the stand for about half an hour.

The district attorney’s office has not said who the next witness will be.

CNN’s Elizabeth Hartfield contributed reporting to this post.

Necheles asked Graff if the only reason why she’s in the courtroom is because she worked at the Trump Organization, then added, “You don’t want to be here?”

Graff said, “Correct,” turning toward the jury when she said that.

Necheles noted that Graff is under subpoena.

Necheles shows Graff an April 2017 email in which Madeline Westerhout had requested a FedEx label. Necheles asks if this was for sending checks down to the White House.

“I don’t know why she requested it,” Graff says.

When asked who is Madeline, Graff turned her face to look at Trump and said, “She was Mr. Trump, President Trump’s executive assistant at the White House.”

Necheles confirms with Graff that Trump often had to sign checks and it wasn’t unusual for him to sign checks while he was on the phone or had people in his office.

Graff says she was not involved with sending checks to the White House once Trump became president.

Graff says she was under the impression a Trump Tower visit from adult film star Stormy Daniels had to do with Trump’s interest in her as a potential cast member for “The Apprentice.”

“You understood she was there to discuss being cast for ‘The Apprentice’?” Necheles asked.

“I assumed that,” Graff says.

Daniels said in her recent documentary that she had conversations with Trump about potentially appearing on “Celebrity Apprentice.”

This post has been updated with additional information from Stormy Daniels’ documentary.

After a series of questions about Trump’s interest in the casting of “Celebrity Apprentice,” prosecutors object. Lawyers are at the bench.

Necheles next brought up Graff’s mention of seeing Stormy Daniels at Trump Tower.

Trump’s attorney went into a line of questioning about how Trump was very involved in finding contestants for the “Celebrity Apprentice,” confirming with Graff that Trump looked for “colorful” or “interesting” candidates to cast.

“He would vocalize” sometimes people Trump was interested in having as “Apprentice” contestants to members of his staff, she said.

Trump is smiling and watching Graff speak as his attorneys begin to ask questions of his former longtime assistant.

“I never had the same day twice in all that time,” Graff says, as she describes her time at the Trump organization. “It was a very stimulating, exciting, fascinating place to be.”

Asked if Trump respected her intelligence, Graff says she wouldn’t have worked there for 34 years if he didn’t. Trump laughed at the comment.

Asked if Trump was a good boss, Graff says, “I think that he was fair, and, what’s the word I’m looking for, respectful boss to me.”

“Sometimes he would peek his head in and say, ‘Go home to your family,’ which I thought was very thoughtful of him,” Graff testifies.

Graff says Trump invited her to the inauguration and she got to sit up close. She says it was a “unique” experience to sit on the platform with her husband.

She testified that “The Apprentice” elevated Trump to “rock star status.”

The prosecutor has wrapped her direct examination of Graff.

Trump attorney Susan Necheles is now beginning her cross examination.

Hoffinger shows calendar entries for Trump from January 16 to January 19, 2017, from the Trump Organization appointment calendar, including an entry for a “teleprompter practice session” on the 25th floor of Trump Tower on January 16, 2017.

Another entry shows Trump had an appointment with Ainsley Earhardt from Fox and Friends on January 17, 2017.

On the same day, he also had an appointment for a photo shoot for Mike Allen for the Washington Post.

Graff confirms that the entries show Trump was working at Trump Tower at that time.

According to the calendar, Trump was expected to be wheels up from LaGuardia Airport to Reagan National Airport on January 19, 2017, the day before the inauguration.

Former President Donald Trump on Friday continued to falsely claim he cannot “comment on” or “answer questions” about his New York criminal hush money trial as he railed against the gag order from Judge Juan Merchan. 

Speaking in the third person, Trump posted on Truth Social, “45th President Donald J. Trump is again the Republican Nominee for President of the United States, and is currently dominating in the Polls. However, he is being inundated by the Media with questions because of this Rigged Biden Trial, which President Trump is not allowed to comment on, or answer, because of Judge Juan Merchan’s UNPRECEDENTED AND UNCONSTITUTIONAL Gag Order.”

Merchan has scheduled another hearing on the gag order for next Thursday.

Graff recalls seeing Stormy Daniels in the reception area at Trump Tower before Trump ran for president.

Graff confirms that two contacts she maintained at the Trump Organization were for Karen McDougal and Stormy Daniels.

Partially redacted exhibits in court show a contact entry in the organization’s system for Karen McDougal, with a phone number, email address and two addresses.

Graff confirms she believes she created the contact for Trump.

The next contact Hoffinger shows in the Trump Org system is listed as “Stormy.” It just lists a cell phone number.

Graff confirms that the Stormy contact was Stormy Daniels.

Prosecutors have called Rhona Graff, Donald Trump’s former longtime assistant, to the witness stand.

Former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker in his testimony Tuesday described sitting in Trump’s office Graff walked in and gave him invoices and checks to sign.

CNN previously reported in 2022 that Graff was subpoenaed as part of the separate New York attorney general’s investigation into the Trump Organization’s finances.

CNN analyst Gloria Borger said that Graff was very close to Trump.

Graff can also reveal how the Trump organization worked, Borger said, and even provide a glimpse into Trump’s life and speak on the relationships between Trump and his children.

Assistants also make powerful witnesses because they can see who is coming in out of the office.

Prosecutors asked Graff to verify several exhibits that are emails she exchanged with Madeleine Westerhout, who worked in the Trump White House.

As we get into the minutiae of emails sent between Trump’s White House and Trump Organization assistants, Trump has sat back in his chair and closed his eyes again.

Some background: Graff trained Westerhout for her role. She sat outside the Oval Office and observed almost every coming and going over more than two and a half years.

Under direct examination, Graff said that Trump never used email to communicate as far as she can remember.

A court security officer also handed Graff a thumb drive.

Rhona Graff, Trump’s former longtime assistant, is testifying pursuant to a subpoena.

The assistant district attorney started her questions for Graff by asking her about her time with the Trump organization.

Graff said she worked for Trump for 34 years at the Trump Organization, sitting outside his office on the 26th floor of Trump Tower. She was largely in control of his calendar and in charge of maintaining Trump’s contacts at the organization, she testifies.

Assistant District Attorney Susan Hoffinger is handling the direct examination of Rhona Graff.

Prosecutors have called witness Rhona Graff to the stand.

Graff is Trump’s former longtime assistant. She was also a senior vice president at the Trump organization.

As she entered the courtroom, Trump looked over at her. She did not appear to glance at his table on her walk to the witness stand.

The first witness for the prosecution, David Pecker, is off the stand.

Pecker testified for a little over 10 hours across four days.

Bove concludes by asking Pecker whether he believes Donald Trump cares about people? “I do,” Pecker says.

Pecker testified previously that Trump cares about his family.

Asked by Steinglass if he believes that, Pecker said, “Of course I do.”

Bove asks Pecker whether McDougal met the definition of a celebrity. “Did she meet the celebrity category at the time? No,” Pecker responds.

Bove asks Pecker whether there was a “real value” to her brand, as a former Playboy playmate and the first woman on the cover of a men’s fitness magazine.

Steinglass just wrapped up his questioning. Emil Bove is back at the lectern and is starting his line of questioning.

Steinglass read more records from Pecker’s testimony to a federal grand jury in 2018 in which the publisher also relayed the story of that January 2017 meeting at Trump Tower.

Per the transcript, Pecker told the grand jury at the time that during that conversation with Trump, Trump said that “Karen is a good girl,” a reference to Karen McDougal.

Pecker also confirmed that in his 2018 grand jury testimony, he testified that Trump told him the McDougal and doorman stories could have been damaging.

Pecker said that Trump thought they “would be very damaging to his campaign and his election.”

Steinglass is now shifting to Pecker’s 2018 FBI interview, where Pecker earlier disputed the FBI notes saying that Trump didn’t thank him during a January 2017 meeting.

He asked Pecker about a subsequent interview with the FBI one week after the meeting Bove highlighted.

Steinglass is quoting from notes from that meeting that say, “At that time Trump told Pecker in sum and susbstance that he, Trump, wanted to thank him, Pecker, for handling the Karen and doorman stories because they would have been very damaging to him.”

The notes from that interview confirm that Pecker told the FBI that when he visited Trump at Trump Tower in January 2017, Trump thanked Pecker for handling the doorman and McDougal stories.

Steinglass asked Pecker if he told the FBI that Trump thanked him.

“Yes I did,” Pecker testified.

Pecker testified again that he called Michael Cohen with then-editor-in-chief Dylan Howard encouraging him to buy Stormy Daniels’ story.

On the call, Pecker says he told Cohen that if the story gets out through another media outlet:

Prosecutors are pressing former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker on whether he likely learned the term “catch and kill” in the press after he said yesterday during cross examination that he first learned of it from federal prosecutors.

What is “catch and kill”? It is the practice of buying exclusive rights to a story for the express purpose of never publishing the information. The tactic gained widespread notoriety during the 2016 presidential election.

Steinglass is setting up Pecker to testify again that he told then-National Enquirer editor-in-chief Dylan Howard that he “didn’t want anything to do with a porn star” when he first learned about the Stormy Daniels story.

When it came to purchasing Daniels’ story, Pecker testified, “I said to Michael Cohen that after paying for the doorman story and the Karen McDougal story, I wasn’t going to pay anything further and I wasn’t a bank.”

Pecker says of the Stormy story that he wasn’t going to, “Print it or buy it or be associated with it.”

But he was still going to tell Michael Cohen about it to fulfill his obligation to the agreement he reached with Trump and Cohen in 2015.

Some context: This served as a quick rehash of Pecker’s direct testimony, as Steinglass winds back up for further questioning of a key witness for the prosecution.

Steinglass has gone back to the Wall Street Journal article published on November 4, 2016.

The purpose was to have Pecker explain that he likely learned the term “catch and kill” in the press.

Yesterday during cross-examination, Pecker said he learned of it from federal prosecutors.

Trump’s eyes are closed and he’s leaning back in his chair as Steinglass continues his redirect.

Testimony is resuming in Donald Trump’s criminal hush money trial, with prosecutor Joshua Steinglass picking back up with his questions for ex-National Enquirer publisher David Pecker.

“Good afternoon, jurors,” the judge says, as the panel files back into the room.

Before entering the courtroom, Trump waved to cameras.

You could see Trump’s valet Walt Nauta in the background behind the double doors.

He and Stephen Miller and Boris Epshteyn have been around today with Trump.

The former president did not answer questions.

The former publisher of the National Enquirer has returned to the witness stand.

Judge Merchan reminded Pecker that he is still under oath.

We’re waiting for the jury.

Judge Juan Merchan is back on the bench and the court is back in session after taking a lunch break.

The former president is back in the courtroom.

Witness David Pecker has now been on the stand for just under 10 hours over the course of four court days, according to CNN’s courtroom team calculations.

Prosecutors said they had less than a half hour left of redirect, which is set to continue after the lunch break. The defense team said they would then do some re-cross. 

On re-direct prosecutors were trying to re-establish David Pecker’s credibility after the defense exposed small inconsistencies in the tabloid king’s statements.

Here’s what happened:

CNN’s Kristina Sgueglia contributed reporting to this post.

While it is unclear who prosecutors will call next to the witness stand, CNN’s chief legal affairs correspondent Paula Reid offers some possibilities:

Karen McDougal: While the case focuses on the payment made to adult film star Stormy Daniels, prosecutors have repeatedly brought up a similar deal made with former Playboy model Karen McDougal to establish a pattern and Judge Juan Merchan has allowed McDougal to testify. However, Reid says, she might not be the best witness as she’s not relevant to the heart of the charges as they relate to Daniels.

Kellyanne Conway: Former Trump campaign head Kellyanne Conway’s testimony would be significant because she could talk about the Access Hollywood tape, the impact it had on the campaign and the pressure they were under to maybe suppress stories about Trump’s sex life, Reid says.

Hope Hicks: Former Trump campaign press secretary Hope Hicks was involved in conversations with David Pecker and Michael Cohen about hush money payments.

Donald Trump has been accused of taking part in an illegal conspiracy to undermine the integrity of the 2016 election and an unlawful plan to suppress negative information, which included a hush money payment made to an adult film star to hide an affair. Trump has denied the affair.

Prosecutors allege that Trump allegedly disguised the transaction as a legal payment and falsified business records numerous times to “promote his candidacy.” Trump faces 34 counts of falsifying business records. He has pleaded not guilty.

David Pecker, the ex-publisher of the National Enquirer, is the prosecution’s first witness.

Read up on the other key people in the Trump hush money criminal trial:

Defense attorney Emil Bove spent much of his cross-examination trying to dismantle former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker’s credibility by using small inconsistencies in Pecker’s statements to prosecutors over the years in comparison to his trial testimony.

Here are some key highlights:

CNN’s Laura Dolan contributed reporting to this post.

We are now breaking for lunch, and the judge is instructing the jury to not discuss the case.

Steinglass says he has less than a half hour left, and Bove says he will ask another round of questions. Pecker is off the stand.

Court will resume at 2:15 p.m. ET.

Steinglass spent a portion of his redirect questioning Pecker on the potential impacts of publishing a story like Karen McDougal’s.

Here’s how that went:

During another round of questions from the prosecution, Steinglass is having his key witness David Pecker outline his takeaways from a 2015 meeting at Trump Tower.

“It was my understanding that I would use the company’s sources geared for any information that would be coming out on Mr. Trump or the campaign, related to specifically women who would be selling their stories,” Pecker said.

Steinglass asked Pecker whether he had ever shared positive stories about a candidate ahead of time or shared negative stories about a candidate’s opponents prior to the arrangement with Trump.

Pecker said he had not previously.

Steinglass confirmed Pecker’s earlier testimony that because he was friends with Trump, he didn’t run negative stories about him even before the campaign.

“Prior to the August 2015 meeting at Trump Tower, did AMI ever agree to publish stories attacking Mr. Trump’s political opponents?” Steinglass asks. “No,” Pecker says.

Steinglass asked, “Did you ever specifically use the term catch and kill in that meeting?”

“No I did not,” Pecker said.

Steinglass is now seeking to tie Michael Cohen to Trump’s campaign.

Pecker confirms that Cohen was known to work his media contacts for the campaign. Cohen went on television to talk campaign talking points and invited Pecker to a campaign fundraiser.

“When you formulated the agreement” to help the campaign in 2015, Steinglass asks if Cohen was part of the agreement. “Yes he was,” Pecker says.

Steinglass asked, “In this case did you suppress stories to help a presidential candidate?”

“Yes,” Pecker said with regards to 2015 agreements.

Steinglass has returned to the National Enquirer’s agreement with Dino Sajudin, the Trump Tower doorman who claimed to have a story about Trump fathering a child.

The prosecution is now picking at Trump attorney Emil Bove’s efforts to have Pecker describe the arrangement as a standard source agreement.

Steinglass brings up an amendment to the agreement, which changed the length of the contract from 90 days to “in perpetuity.” Pecker says that change was made after his conversation with then-Trump attorney Michael Cohen.

Steinglass asks if it is “standard operating procedure” for American Media Inc., the Enquirer’s parent company, to consult a lawyer for a presidential candidate about a source agreement. Pecker says, “No.”

Pecker also confirms that adding a clause that would require Sajudin to pay AMI $1 million if he breached the agreement was not standard operating procedure.

That, too, was made at Cohen’s request, Pecker says.

Steinglass is revisiting the Karen McDougal agreement and that Pecker only agreed to enter into it because Michael Cohen promised to reimburse him.

They had drawn up a transfer agreement and “you went so far as to sign the document?” Steinglass asks. “Yes,” Pecker replies.

But Pecker says after speaking with the general counsel, “I called up Michael Cohen and told him that the deal was off and to rip up the agreement.”

As he reviewed records on the stand, Pecker said the retained election law attorney billed American Media Inc. for 30 minutes of work to review the contract with Karen McDougal.

Steinglass went through the contract, asking if it mentions anything about Trump reimbursing him, Michael Cohen’s name, the discussion at Trump Tower, or the word campaign.

Pecker repeatedly said “no.”

“Does the contract even mention the word campaign?” Steinglass asked.

“No,” Pecker said.

Steinglass noted that the contract that the outside counsel reviewed had none of these details.

Every juror is watching Steinglass as he’s asking the question.

Remember: The McDougal contract is separate from the Stormy Daniels’ contract at the center of the hush money case. Prosecutors have used the payoffs as evidence that the schemes were aimed at protecting Trump’s electoral chances. Trump has denied affairs with both women.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass had former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker reconfirm “that the purposes of the contract with (former Playboy model Karen) McDougal was to acquire her life rights and to suppress her story to influence the election,” CNN’s Dana Bash said.

That is “what the prosecution wants the jury to take out of the David Pecker’s testimony – that this was an intentional effort to buy stories, to bury them for the campaign,” added CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig;

The prosecution is having Pecker re-confirm that the purpose of the National Enquirer’s contract with former Playboy model Karen McDougal was to suppress her potentially damaging story about Donald Trump and help influence the 2016 election.

Additional items about writing articles and appearing on covers were extraneous, Pecker confirmed, in response to prosecutor Joshua Steinglass, who is bringing things back to his team’s central argument about the agreement.

Pecker testifies he never told his company’s general counsel that the true purpose of the deal was to influence the election. He also never told the attorney that he planned to transfer the rights to Michael Cohen, who pledged to reimburse him.

Steinglass is starting his redirect by revisiting Bove’s questions to Pecker. Here are some of the things that are coming up right now:

More on this: Steinglass is seeking to infer to the jury that the election law attorney reviewed the McDougal agreement without the underlying context of Pecker’s secret agreement to benefit Trump’s campaign.

The Trump attorney’s cross-examination of Pecker has now ended.

“I’ve been truthful to the best of my recollection,” Pecker says to Bove.

In closing cross-examination, Bove confirms that ultimately the district attorney’s office will determine whether Pecker’s held up his end of the immunity agreement.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass is now back up for a redirect.

Bove is pressing Pecker about some boxes of information held at the National Enquirer that then-Trump attorney Michael Cohen tried to get his hands on.

Pecker says he had someone review the boxes.

Bove presses him if he is suggesting there is a trove of information about Trump.

Pecker says, “There was nothing in those boxes. They were worthless.”

Some context: Pecker testified Thursday that he met with Cohen at Trump Tower after the election, and that Cohen was still asking about some boxes of information about Trump. Pecker said he was not going to let Cohen go through the boxes.

Pecker assured Cohen there was nothing damaging to be worried about in the boxes, he testified.

The defense is trying to poke holes in David Pecker’s truthfulness and, combined with a non-prosecution agreement Pecker reached with federal investigators in 2018, undermine his motivations, CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig said.

When law enforcement approached Pecker, he was about to sell his company, and thus he “had to tell them whatever they wanted to hear you had to do whatever they wanted,” Honig said.

And Pecker then got to walk away without getting criminally prosecuted.

Bove moved his questioning onto American Media Inc’s conciliation agreement with the Federal Election Commission in May 2021.

Pecker was not CEO at that point, but read the agreement at the time because he still had equity in the company.

Pecker said he was still consulting for AMI, and Bove asked what work he did. Pecker said he answered questions from the AMI president on “celebrity magazines and just the magazine industry.”

Pecker previously testified that the conciliation agreement acknowledged that AMI committed a campaign violation.

Bove asked Pecker on cross-examination to confirm that is not true.

Bove read from the agreement, “With no admission as to merit of the commission’s legal conclusions.”

“That’s different from an admission, right?” Bove asked. Pecker agreed.

Bove noted that Pecker was also accused of a campaign finance violation. “You certainly did not admit to a campaign finance violation?” Bove asked. “No,” Pecker said.

Bove noted that Pecker was not part of the AMI conciliation agreement with the FEC, as Pecker no longer worked at the company. Bove also noted that Pecker provided a signed declaration that stated he sought legal advice related to the Karen McDougal agreement.

“Your lawyers relied on that sworn declaration to argue to the FEC there wasn’t a violation?” Bove asked. “Yes,” Pecker said.

Bove is now turning to a letter from the Federal Election Commission and Michael Cohen’s response that they didn’t need to worry about it because Trump had former Attorney General Jeff Sessions in his pocket.

“Based on your experience Michael Cohen was prone to exaggeration?” Pecker agreed.

Bove continued: “Could not trust anything he said?” Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass objected to the question and Judge Juan Merchan sustained it.

Bove is focusing on a portion of the statement of facts in a non-prosecution agreement Pecker reached with federal investigators in 2018.

It relates to an August 2015 meeting at Trump Tower.

Bove is asking Pecker about his statements about that meeting during his October 2019 interview with the district attorney’s office.

He asks Pecker whether he recalls that his lawyer said at the 2019 meeting that a section of the statement of facts, paragraph three, was “wrong and inaccurate.” Pecker says he does not recall this.

Trump is leaning forward and staring at the screen as Pecker reviews the record from the October 2019 meeting.

“I think that may be inaccurate. I think that came up with the feds. I have never heard Pecker say that,” is captured in notes from the meeting, which Bove read aloud.

Pecker says there was a dispute over a single word: “Selling and purchasing is the same thing. Someone has to buy them.”

Key context: The defense is working to poke holes in Pecker’s claims and raise doubt about his recollection of events regarding the National Enquirer’s relationship with Trump, as he is serving as a key witness for the prosecution.

Bove has spent much of the cross-examination trying to dismantle Pecker’s credibility, highlighting small inconsistencies in Pecker’s statements to prosecutors over the years in comparison to his trial testimony.

The jury has been paying attention as Bove continues to cross-examine Pecker.

Their eyes have followed the back-and-forth between of them.

Remember: The jury is comprised of 12 jurors and six alternate jurors. Read about them here.

Donald Trump’s attorneys cross-examined David Pecker on Friday morning, poking holes at the veracity of his comments and pointing out a discrepancy between Pecker’s 2018 FBI testimony and his testimony in court this week.

Most of the questions centered around American Media Inc.’s business interests, beginning on the topic of running negative articles about Trump’s foes, including the Clintons and Ben Carson. The defense was trying to establish that Pecker’s actions were made in line with the company’s bottom line in mind.

Here are some of the key points from the cross examination of Pecker:

CNN’s Kristina Sgueglia contributed reporting to this post.

Pecker confirmed there was a provision related to the federal investigations in a deal with Hudson News Group regarding the sale of the National Enquirer and two other tabloids.

The investigations had to be resolved before the deal could be finalized, he confirmed. The proposed deal was worth $100 million.

Bove asked whether the federal investigation “put some pressure on the negotiations.”

Pecker paused before answering. “From a timing standpoint, it would have added onto the stress of the transaction,” Pecker said.

“If AMI had been indicted that would have affected the value of its assets,” Bove asked while emphasizing “indicted.” Pecker agreed.

Bove asked Pecker whether there was a “price pressure” on the agreement. “To Hudson News, the federal investigation was going to reduce the earnings of those magazines,” Pecker said.

Bove again confirms with Pecker that American Media Inc. entered into a non-prosecution agreement with federal prosecutors.

Bove asks Pecker whether the meetings with FBI agents were stressful.

“You wanted it over with though, right?” he asks.

“Uh, yes,” Pecker says.

Bove is asking Pecker about the time FBI agents came to his home in 2018.

Three agents arrived around 8 a.m. and took Pecker’s phone with a search warrant, but did not search his house, the former tabloid boss testifies.

Bove is resuming his cross examination of Pecker.

Judge Juan Merchan is back on the bench. Pecker is returning to the courtroom.

Trump is chatting with Bove before we begin. Trump is seated between Bove and attorney Susan Necheles. Attorney Todd Blanche is the farthest away from him now.

Pecker is smiling in the direction of the defense table.

Prosecutors and the defense have been zeroing in on key moments related to the hush money case.

CNN compiled a timeline of the events leading up to the historic trial. Read up on the moments below:

See the full timeline. 

Bove says he has less than an hour left in his cross-examination of Pecker.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass said there will be redirect.

The court is taking a short break and the jury is leaving the courtroom.

Pecker is off the stand. The lawyers are still in courtroom.

Trump has also left the room. He gave reporters a thumbs up when asked how things are going.

Bove now raises Pecker’s 2018 FBI interview, asking if he recalled saying that “Trump did not express any gratitude to Pecker and AMI” during the January 6, 2017, meeting.

Pecker is now looking at his prior testimony.

Bove is working to get Pecker up to speed with the interview notes in front of him.

Meanwhile, attorney Todd Blanche and Trump are leaning in to whisper with each other at the defense table. Blanche covers his mouth as he speaks.

Pecker pushes back on Bove and the interview notes, suggesting the notes could be wrong, “I know what I testified to yesterday and I know what I remember.”

Pecker confirms that what he’s testified to at trial about this is inconsistent with the FBI interview notes.

Defense attorney Emil Bove is asking about Pecker’s testimony that Trump thanked him for handling the situation surrounding potentially damaging stories from former Playboy model Karen McDougal and a Trump tower doorman.

Bove asks Pecker of the testimony, “Was that a mistake?”

“No,” Pecker says, furrowing his brow.

“You believe that President Trump said that to you, as you sit here right now?”

Pecker said, “Yes I do.”

Specifically, Bove asks Pecker about his testimony yesterday, when the ex-tabloid boss said Trump thanked him for the door man story.

The White House is attempting to use Donald Trump’s legal troubles to draw a contrast between President Joe Biden, who is on the campaign trail, and the former president, who has been in a New York courthouse this week.

Biden’s interview with popular radio host Howard Stern was released moments ago and the president’s campaign has been using non-traditional media outlets to push his story at times, CNN’s Arlette Saenz reports.

Yesterday, Biden said he hasn’t watched any of Trump’s courtroom drama.

Bove is revisiting Pecker’s January 6, 2017, meeting with Trump at Trump Tower.

Bove walks through Pecker’s previous testimony that Reince Priebus, Mike Pompeo, Sean Spicer and James Comey were in Trump’s office standing around his desk when Pecker walked in.

Bove confirmed Pecker’s testimony that he believes they were discussing a shooting in Fort Lauderdale.

Bove asks Pecker for more details about how he was let into the office while Trump was being briefed on a domestic national emergency.

“Mr. Trump has a large office, and I was by the door while they were talking with Mr. Trump,” Pecker says.

Pecker clarified he didn’t overhear the national security conversation. Bove asks Pecker if he knew there was another consequence of that meeting.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass objected and the lawyers are now at the bench.

Judge Juan Merchan sustains the objection.

Trump attorney Todd Blanche whispered to Trump after returning to the defendant’s table.

Ex-National Enquirer boss David Pecker is testifying about his discussions with then-editor-in-chief Dylan Howard and Trump attorney Michael Cohen about the Stormy Daniels story.

“When Howard contacted you about this payment, the main concern was Howard’s reputation,” Bove asks. “Yes,” Pecker replied.

Bove then asks Pecker about the call he and Howard had with Cohen about the tabloid’s parent company, American Media Inc., not paying for the Stormy Daniels story.

“And you meant it?” Bove asks. “I did,” Pecker says.

Bove confirms Pecker wanted nothing to do with it. “That’s right,” Pecker says.

When Pecker told former National Enquirer editor-in-chief Dylan Howard he wanted nothing to do with it, Bove asks Pecker to confirm he was “speaking for the company and for yourself.”

“Yes,” Pecker says.

Bove is now moving on to Pecker’s testimony about Stormy Daniels.

Bove catches a mistake in Pecker’s testimony that he saw the third-party consultant’s invoice for Trump to pay back AMI for McDougal in 2016.

Bove shows Pecker his interview with the district attorney’s office from 2019 where he said the first time he saw that third-party invoice was in 2017. Pecker agrees that was correct.

That agreement was never executed, though it was signed by Cohen and the consultant.

Bove shows the jury the Wall Street Journal article published days before the election that included McDougal’s allegation and the agreement. Pecker agreed it had come out before the election.

Trump is hunched forward leaning into attorney Todd Blanche’s personal space to read a piece of paper during Pecker’s testimony. He’s now leaning back in his chair.

Defense attorney Emil Bove is revisiting previous testimony from David Pecker about consulting a campaign attorney and his company’s general counsel about the tabloid’s agreement with Karen McDougal, the former Playboy model who alleged she had an affair with Donald Trump.

Bove asks Pecker if when he told then-Trump attorney Michael Cohen the agreement was “bulletproof,” he was conveying “there were no legal ramifications.” “That’s correct,” Pecker says.

The Trump attorney then asks Pecker several follow-up questions confirming the then-tabloid boss meant what he said to Cohen, because he had received legal advice about the agreement, to which Pecker agreed.

Pecker says he didn’t withhold any information from the attorneys when they reviewed the agreement.

The prior testimony in question: Bove and Pecker are talking about testimony from 2016, when the former National Enquirer publisher described consulting an election law attorney and the in-house counsel at American Media Inc., his parent company, about the “catch and kill” contract the tabloid reached with McDougal to bury her story about Trump.

Michael Cohen’s attempt to get photographed with business mogul Mark Cuban shows how Trump allies tried to “make themselves look bigger and better” to gain favor with the former president, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins said.

Cohen wanted a job in the administration, and though he didn’t get one, Collins would see him at the White House.

“We always see the jockeying in Trump’s orbit of people trying to elevate themselves in his eyes for whatever their purpose was,” Collins said.

Bove is asking Pecker about Keith Davidson, noting that he was both a lawyer for McDougal and a source for National Enquirer editor in chief, Dylan Howard. Pecker says it was a “unique situation.”

Pecker said he eventually learned that Davidson knew Michael Cohen.

He first learned that Davidson knew Cohen in August 2016 around the time they were signing McDougal’s agreement.

Bove is trying to drill down on Davidson’s role as a “major source” for the National Enquirer.

“I wouldn’t classify him as a major attorney,” Pecker says. Bove responded, “stipulated.”

This drew some laughs in the courtroom. Trump’s other attorney, Todd Blanche, cracked a wide smile. Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass also laughed.

Bove followed up by asking whether Davidson was a major source for Howard.

“We have hundreds of sources, he was one of many,” Pecker says.

Bove hones in that Davidson and Cohen knew each other and that Pecker didn’t know that until right before the agreement was signed.

“You don’t know what Cohen and Davidson were doing on the side, (did) you?” Pecker replied, “I don’t.”

Bove is now showing Pecker the invoice from Karen McDougal’s attorney Keith Davidson for her $150,000 agreement.

Pecker confirms he did not personally process the invoice and wire transfer to McDougal’s attorney. Pecker confirms he trusted his accounting department to do that clerical work as “standard operating procedure.”

Pecker is acknowledging that Karen McDougal was interested in restarting her career.

There was a video presentation that discussed promotional opportunities for McDougal. Money was not discussed at the meeting, Pecker agrees.

Bove also asked Pecker to confirm, “Ms. McDougal was not focused on cash.”

Pecker after a long pause says, “money —cash — wasn’t the primary portion of the agreement.”

She cared more about the other provisions that would help relaunch her career, he confirmed. Pecker agreed there was a legitimate business purpose for the agreement.

In summer 2016, then-Trump attorney Michael Cohen told National Enquirer publisher David Pecker he was looking to work with business mogul Mark Cuban, Pecker testified.

Cohen asked Pecker to send paparazzi to a meeting the attorney had with Cuban, Pecker says.

Defense attorney Emil Bove pushes Pecker to agree that photographing such a meeting would “put a little pressure” on Trump by elevating Cohen. Pecker says Cohen never told him that, but he agrees that it would have been a consequence.

Remember: Cohen’s testimony is expected to play a key role in the hush money criminal case, and prosecutors has warned the jury that the defense will “go to great lengths to get you to reject his testimony” by highlighting his past wrongdoing.

Bove is now showing Pecker the AMI agreement with former Playboy model Karen McDougal.

Bove confirms with Pecker that while he testified on direct examination that the promised articles and cover photo provisions were meant to “hide” the actual intention of the agreement to suppress her story, AMI was still on the hook for following through on the legitimate work product.

Pecker is recounting his previous testimony, where Pecker says that Trump told him he did not buy stories because that “always gets out.”

Ex-National Enquirer boss David Pecker has been asked to recount a phone call with Donald Trump in which Trump asked about former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who alleged she had an affair with the former president.

In June 2016, Pecker left a company meeting when he was informed by his assistant that he got a call from Trump.

Trump attorney Emil Bove asks if the former publisher recalls telling Trump, “She doesn’t want her story published.”

“Yes, I remember saying that,” Pecker said.

Pecker hesitated at times in the testimony, appearing to lose his train of thought, and explained after one long pause that he “just wanted to make sure” he remembered.

Defense attorney Emil Bove asks ex-National Enquirer publisher David Pecker whether a story from Dino Sajudin, a Trump Tower doorman who was selling information about Donald Trump allegedly fathering a son, could have been “the biggest National Enquirer article ever.”

Pecker agrees that it could have been.

Bove then asks, “So if this story was true you were going to run it right.”

Pecker answers, “Uh, yes.”

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass has objected repeatedly when Bove has referred to Donald Trump as President Trump as he discusses events about 2016.

“He wasn’t President Trump,” Steinglass said.

The judge sustained the objection.

Trump did not react at all during this back and forth. He is leaned back in his chair, his head cocked to look at Pecker, as he’s answering questions.

Trump attorney Emil Bove is attempting to use deals American Media Inc. made with other celebrities to undermine the prosecution’s argument and normalize the conduct, according to Adam Kaufman, a former executive assistant district attorney at the Manhattan District Attorney’s office.

Bove is moving on to former Playboy model Karen McDougal’s agreement now.

Pecker confirms that when an amended agreement was signed giving AMI exclusivity rights in perpetuity, Pecker still thought there was a small chance it could be true.

Bove asks, “You could not walk away from that possibility” that it was true, “however small it might be?” Pecker agrees.

Bove is emphasizing that McDougal’s main interest was that she didn’t want her story published. Pecker agrees.

Pecker confirms that it took several weeks after the source agreement was signed for American Media Inc. to try to vet Dino Sajudin’s story.

Bove asked Pecker: Sajudin threatened to take the story someplace else and “that is why you decided to pay Sajudin $30,000?”

Defense attorney Emil Bove is questioning ex-publisher David Pecker about the National Enquirer’s practice of publishing stories based on other news organizations’ reporting, as he continues a line of questioning around the tabloid’s coverage of Trump’s political foes.

“The National Enquirer was recycling information from other publications because it was cost-efficient and made business sense?” Bove asks. “Yes,” Pecker testifies.

Bove notes that the tabloid’s work included cultivating a network of sources. “But that’s not what was happening” with these articles, he says.

“Yes,” Pecker says.

Bove is showing the Wall Street Journal story about Karen McDougal published just before the 2016 election, saying it shows that American Media Inc.’s help for Trump was out there.

Bove cites a line in the story that said that since last year, the National Enquirer “has supported Mr Trump’s presidential bid, endorsing him and publishing negative articles about some of his opponents.”

Bove asks Pecker to confirm that the concept of “catch and kill” was not discussed at the August 2015 meeting at Trump Tower.

Pecker confirms to Bove that Trump and Cohen did not pay AMI any money in connection with the Dino Sajudin story. Sajudin was a former doorman at Trump Tower.

Pecker also confirms that AMI has executed “hundreds of thousands” of source agreements like the ones used for Sajudin and McDougal “over the years.”

Bove notes Pecker testified that he wanted to keep the August 2015 meeting discussions “highly, highly confidential” and “quiet” but says it became public before the election. Pecker agrees.

Merchan sustained a prosecutor’s objection to that question.

Pecker’s voice has become softer as he is responding and agreeing with the defense.

Bove has moved on to the National Enquirer articles about Marco Rubio.

Bove says these articles are also based on information “not exclusive” to the National Enquirer. “Yes,” Pecker confirms.

Trump is whispering with attorney Susan Necheles as copies of the article in question are handed out.

Bove is asking Pecker about the negative stories about Trump’s primary opponents in the National Enquirer.

Bove confirms with Pecker that it’s “standard operating procedure” for the National Enquirer to recycle content from other outlets.

Bove shows the jury five headlines about Ben Carson, an exhibit prosecutors used earlier in the week

Bove asks if Pecker would have done it even without a conversation with Trump. “Yes,” Pecker agrees.

Bove confirms with Pecker that other outlets covered malpractice claims against Carson in May 2015, months before the meeting at Trump Tower.

More context: The defense has been trying to poke holes at Pecker’s testimony, who is the prosecution’s first witness, about his tabloid’s “catch-and-kill” methods for suppressing negative stories about Trump that could have harmed his 2016 campaign.

The former president has been accused of taking part in an illegal conspiracy to undermine the integrity of the 2016 election and an unlawful plan to suppress negative information, which included a hush money payment made to an adult film star to hide an affair. Trump has denied the affair.

Trump attorney Emil Bove is asking David Pecker about an August 2015 meeting at Trump Tower that has become central to this case.

According to Pecker’s testimony, the former National Enquirer publisher met with former President Donald Trump and Trump’s then-personal attorney Michael Cohen shortly after Trump announced his candidacy.

During the meeting, Pecker agreed to be the “eyes and ears” for Trump’s campaign and flag any negative stories to Cohen.

CNN first reported that Trump was at that meeting in late 2018. Federal prosecutors in Manhattan mentioned the meeting when they charged Cohen that summer with two campaign finance violations.

Trump is once again sitting back in his chair with his eyes closed while witness Pecker is testifying about the August 2015 Trump Tower meeting.

Bove is now asking about stories about Bill and Hillary Clinton stories in the National Enquirer, confirming with Pecker that AMI had decided to run negative stories before the August 2015 Trump Tower meeting.

Bove asks, “Before August 2015 meeting you had decided it made sense for the business of AMI to run articles about Bill and Hillary Clinton? “Yes,” Pecker replies as Bove continues to focus on this being in the interest of AMI

Pecker is reviewing a portion of a transcript of his grand jury testimony.

Bove is focusing on the August 2015 meeting.

Former President Donald Trump on Friday continued to make false claims about security and access at the Manhattan courthouse where his criminal hush money trial is taking place, saying “security is that of Fort Knox” and that “MAGA will not be able to attend this trial.” 

“I’m at the heavily guarded Courthouse. Security is that of Fort Knox, all so that MAGA will not be able to attend this trial, presided over by a highly conflicted pawn of the Democrat Party. It is a sight to behold! Getting ready to do my Courthouse presser. Two minutes!” Trump posted on Truth Social. 

While there are various security measures in place around the courthouse, including some street closures enforced by police officers and barricades, people are permitted to drive right up to the front of the courthouse and walk into the building, which remains open to the public. If people show up early enough in the morning, they can even get into the trial courtroom itself or the overflow room that shows near-live video of the proceedings. 

Trump has made several false claims about his supporters not being able to get near the courthouse. The designated protest zone for the trial is at a park directly across the street from the courthouse, and only a handful of Trump supporters have shown up to demonstrate near the building.

Former President Donald Trump spoke to reporters Friday ahead of the fourth day of testimony and complained about the temperature in the courtroom, which he speculated was intentional.

The former president also railed against Judge Juan Merchan, calling him “the most highly conflicted judge I’ve ever seen.”

Bove begins by saying there was some “confusion” in the questioning on whether Hope Hicks had come up in his FBI interview in 2018.

“I wanted to apologize and move on from that,” Bove says.

He added, “If I ask a bad question, Mr. Steinglass will probably tell me but you can as well,” he says to Pecker.

The statement drew smiles from several members of the jury.

Bove notes that Hicks was in and out of the August 2015 meeting and did not speak at the meeting.

“That’s absolutely correct,” Pecker says.

Before Bove began, the judge read the jury instructions that a witness can meet with prosecutors and review prior testimony.

Trump’s attorney Emil Bove is at the lectern and is beginning his cross examination of Pecker.

Witness David Pecker is back on the stand to continue to be cross-examined by the defense.

As he made his way to the witness stand, Pecker walked past Trump’s table without glancing over.

The jury is entering the courtroom. Each juror walked to the jury box with their heads facing forward with no apparent glance at Trump.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass is asking whether the judge will instruct the jury about misleading Pecker about his FBI interview and whether Hope Hicks was in the August 2015 Trump Tower meeting.

Trump attorney Emil Bove says he will apologize to Pecker at the start of testimony for not being clear enough yesterday, and direct him to the relevant part of the FBI interview.

The judge agrees this is sufficient.

Steinglass has also asked the judge to additionally give the jury a curative instruction about how they should consider the references to Pecker’s meetings with prosecutors ahead of trial.

Steinglass also asked that Bove be clear when distinguishing between federal prosecutors and state prosecutors in questioning Pecker.

Trump is sitting back in his chair as the lawyers go back and forth with the judge about a series of proposed redactions to text messages that were discussed during Thursday’s proceedings.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass said the district attorney’s office sent proposed redactions to the Dylan Howard text messages to the defense team. These texts were disputed yesterday.

For now, Judge Juan Merchan said Trump’s team should continue to object to text messages as the prosecutors try to admit them into evidence. Merchan said he’ll go case by case but said he agrees with Trump’s lawyers generally that at some point the messages could become “cumulatively prejudicial” to Trump.

Judge Juan Merchan officially noted that the hearing over the Donald Trump’s gag order violations has been changed to Thursday at 9:30 a.m. ET.

Yesterday, the judge had said the hearing would occur on Wednesday.

Judge Juan Merchan is on the bench and court is in session.

Former tabloid executive David Pecker is expected to return to the stand to testify in the hush money trial.

The defense will continue questioning Pecker and try to poke holes at the former tabloid executive’s testimony for the prosecution after establishing Thursday that the practice of “catch-and-kill” long predated the run up to election.

Pecker has testified for more than seven hours so far, including direct and cross examination.

Court will be in session for a full day and is expected to adjourn at around 4:30 p.m. ET. There is no court on Monday.

CNN’s Laura Dolan contributed reporting to this post.

Donald Trump walked into the courtroom carrying in his left hand a two-inch stack of papers held together by a binder clip.

The hush money trial is set to resume shortly.

Trump attorney Emil Bove and prosecutor Joshuah Steinglass were chatting before the judge entered the courtroom.

Former President Donald Trump took a moment to wish his wife, Melania, a happy birthday before heading into the courtroom Friday ahead of another day in the historical criminal trial.

Melania Trump has notably been absent during the former president’s court appearances and on the campaign trail as he looks to return to the White House.

Prosecutors have entered the courtroom ahead of the start of today’s proceedings in Trump’s criminal hush money trial.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is not at the proceedings today.

The defense started its cross-examination of David Pecker, the former publisher of the National Enquirer, on Thursday.

Donald Trump’s attorney Emil Bove tried to argue that Pecker’s work helping the former president during the 2016 election was nothing new or out of the ordinary.

Bove’s cross-examination lasted just over an hour before court ended for the day. The defense will continue its questioning with Pecker today.

Here are some of the key points:

Former President Donald Trump’s motorcade has arrived at the Manhattan courthouse where ex-tabloid executive David Pecker is expected to return to the stand to continue his testimony in the hush money trial.  

The hush money criminal trial against former President Donald Trump is one of four criminal cases he faces while juggling his presidential campaign.

The former president faces at least 88 charges over the four criminal indictments in Georgia, New York, Washington, DC, and Florida. Trump has pleaded not guilty to every charge in these cases. 

Here’s a recap of each case: 

Read more about the four criminal cases Trump faces. 

Former President Donald Trump’s motorcade is en route to the Manhattan courthouse where ex-tabloid executive David Pecker is expected to return to the stand to continue his testimony in the hush money trial.  

Pecker, who has over the past three days been laying out the foundation for the district attorney’s case against the former president, will continue to be cross-examined by the defense.

The defense so far has been trying to poke holes at Pecker’s memory of events and establishing that these practices long predated the run up to election.

CNN’s Kristina Sgueglia contributed reporting to this post.

Prosecutors finished their direct questioning of David Pecker Thursday afternoon. He testified for just about six hours over three days for the prosecution.

Pecker, who is the former publisher of the National Enquirer, continued to give details of the repercussions of the “catch-and-kill” schemes to help Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.

Here’s a recap of his testimony on Thursday:

Trump’s legal team is led by Todd Blanche and Emil Bove, two former federal prosecutors from New York, and Susan Necheles, a veteran criminal defense lawyer with deep experience in New York and with appearing before Judge Juan Merchan.

Here are the key things to know about Trump’s legal team:

As the first criminal prosecution of a former American president began, just 13% nationwide feel Donald Trump is being treated the same as other criminal defendants, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS. 

Most of the country was divided over whether he is being treated more harshly (34%) or more leniently (34%) than other defendants.

The poll, which began fielding a few days after the trial’s jury selection phase kicked off April 15, finds only 44% of Americans express confidence that the jury chosen for the case will be able to reach a fair verdict, while 56% more skeptical that a fair outcome is in the cards. More see Trump’s behavior during the trial thus far as inappropriate (42%) than appropriate (25%), with about a third saying they haven’t heard enough to say.

Read more about the poll.

Former American Media Inc. chairman David Pecker took jurors in Donald Trump’s hush money case inside how he paid for Karen McDougal’s story to keep her quiet about her alleged affair with Trump – and how his decision not to pay for Stormy Daniels’ story led to Michael Cohen ultimately paying for it.

Prosecutors on Thursday wrapped up their direct testimony with Pecker, who was on the stand for three days describing in detail how he worked with Trump and Cohen to buy up damaging stories about Trump throughout the 2016 campaign.

His testimony laid the foundation for the rest of the Manhattan district attorney’s case against Trump that focuses on the payment to Daniels.

Here are the takeaways from Thursday in the hush money trial:

Former President Donald Trump’s first criminal trial is expected to take six to eight weeks from start to finish.

This trial, related to a hush money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels in 2016, is the first of four ongoing criminal cases that are expected to head to trial for the presumptive 2024 GOP presidential nominee.

Where we are now in the case: Prosecutors are presenting their case by presenting evidence through witness testimony and exhibits. Defense attorneys can cross examine the prosecution’s witnesses and typically aim to discredit their testimony.

Trump’s attorneys will continue their cross-examination of the prosecution’s first witnesses, David Pecker, today.

Read more about the stages of the trial, and what they mean here.

A wild day of often outlandish legal arguments and tabloid tales could not obscure the stakes for the country.

Only Donald Trump could conjure a two-city legal spectacle that gave equal billing to the deepest thoughts of George Washington and a former National Enquirer publisher known for lurid celebrity scandals and dubious UFO sightings.

The former president was the epicenter of attention Thursday during key testimony from media magnate David Pecker at his first criminal trial in New York and, in absentia, at a US Supreme Court hearing devoted to his audacious claims that the president should have total, king-like immunity from prosecution.

Legal arguments and references spanned two-and-a-half centuries, stretching back to how the founders envisaged the presidency to Trump’s alleged attempts to sway the 2016 and 2020 elections through nefarious means.

But while evidence harked back to the past, the implications of both cases weigh heavily on the future — given their capacity to shape November’s election, a possible second Trump administration and the presidency itself for eons to come.

Keep reading Collinson’s full analysis.

Judge Juan Merchan’s gag order hearing will take place at 9:30 a.m. ET on Thursday, May 2.

It’s unclear why the date and time changed.

Before leaving the bench yesterday, the judge said the hearing would take place on May 1 at 2:15 p.m. ET.

It came after the prosecution filed a motion and argued in court that former President Donald Trump violated the gag order four more times over the past few days.

Former President Donald Trump complained again Thursday about security at the Manhattan courthouse where his hush money trial is being heard.

Trump has been pushing false claims that police have turned away “thousands of people” from the Manhattan courthouse and that his supporters can’t get near. 

CNN has reported that only a handful of Trump supporters have shown up to demonstrate near the building. 

Trump also mentioned the protests at Columbia University in the post.

“If they did the same thing at Columbia, and other locations, there would be no problem with the protesters!”