(NewsInsights.org) – Jurors heard testimony for a second day on Tuesday, April 23, in the New York criminal trial of former President Donald Trump. Reporters have delivered blow-by-blow accounts of the testimony thus far. One reporter sought out ex-Senator Mitt Romey’s (R-UT) opinion about the hush money allegations. Romney, a perennial critic of the former president, returned a stinging attack on Trump’s character.
CNN’s Manu Raju approached Romney on the steps of the Capitol building in Washington, DC. He posted a telling clip of his interview with Romney on X, formerly Twitter.
Asked Mitt Romney about the hush money allegations against Trump.
“I think everybody has made their own assessment of President Trump's character, and so far as I know you don't pay someone $130,000 not to have sex with you." pic.twitter.com/ofBL15MJw1
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) April 23, 2024
In response to Raju’s question, Romney told the reporter, “I think everybody has made their own assessment of President Trump’s character.” Regarding Trump’s claims that he never had an intimate affair with Stephanie Clifford, who uses the stage name, Stormy Daniels, Romney added, “and so far as I know, you don’t pay someone $130,000 not to have sex with you,” calling the former president’s credibility into question.
The trial focuses on 34 felony counts alleging Trump falsified business records in support of another crime. New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg alluded to that crime but didn’t bring additional charges against the former president.
Prosecutors claim Trump altered business records ahead of the 2016 election to cover up payments he made through former personal attorney Michael Cohen to Clifford and others to secure their discretion about alleged extramarital affairs. The former president denied any affairs had occurred.
In 2018, Clifford revealed the affair to then-CBS anchor Anderson Cooper on a “60 Minutes” segment. She described meeting Trump at a 2006 celebrity golf match in Lake Tahoe and meeting him in his hotel suite later at his request to engage in intimate relations. Although then-president Trump denied the alleged affair, his legal representatives threatened to sue the adult entertainer for breaching the non-disclosure agreement.
On Tuesday, David Pecker, the former publisher for the National Enquirer and a longtime Trump friend and associate, returned to the stand in court. He testified regarding his role in buying and suppressing potentially damaging stories about the candidate during his first presidential run as part of a confidential agreement with the New York businessman.
Copyright 2024, NewsInsights.org
