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received a hush money payment from michael cohen, a lawyer for the trump organisation, just before the 2016 election to keep silent about her claimed affair with donald trump. and this is michael cohen. he is the fixer, he pleaded guilty to making the hush money payment to stormy daniels in 2018 but says that trump directed him to send that money. next we have karen mcdougal, who is also expected to be a witness. she claims to have had a previous illicit affair with mr trump and also says she was paid hush money by american media incorporated, which is the parent company of the national enquirer, for his story, forcing her to keep quiet. which brings me finally to david pecker. he was the then chairman and ceo of that tabloid and part of a catch and kill scheme to support donald trump's 2016 presidential run. so essentially what he would do is buy the rights to stories
illegal or legal on whether or not he's convicted by a jury. they made a calculated effort to seek to hide information so they could win the election so it wouldn't come out. that is i'm sure what the calculus was. >> robert, just wondering your thoughts, the very few political candidates are 100% pure without any kind of issues, very few. but in this case, robert, there was a lot to the catch and kill plan. especially after the access hollywood tape. what do you think this would have influenced? >> well, i think matthew hit it on the head. i mean, look, every campaign starts knowing that you've got vulnerabilities, and you have a research department that documents those vulnerabilities. they may be bad votes. they may be bad loans. you may look at your opponent and say, oh, they found out they
>> the prosecution's witness list is taking shape. this morning, david. he is the catch and kill former publisher of the national enquirer, expected to be called first, also expect to testify former trump fixer, michael cohen and stormy daniels, the recipient of the hush money along with former trump aid hope hicks, the former playboy playmate karen mcdougal, and former white house staffer, kellyanne conway. our panelists here, cnn senior legal analyst, elie honig, franklin for his staff writer with the atlantic, mac oermann, former senior advisor to the tim scott presidential campaign and kate bedingfield, former white house communications director there is here. good morning to all of you on i mean, how many historic day is l here? we're going to have here but this is one. >> what do you expect today? well the opening statements, first of all, are as the name suggests, it's your first shot at the jury. >> i mean, this is talking about first impressions. this is when you get to make these opening statements should not be lengthy. sometimes you're reading the newspaper about someone giving a six-hour opening. i cringe whenever i
somebody else corroborate that's not michael cohen builds up cohen's credibility and helps prosecutors point the finger at trump, not relying on this one witness. >> it's important, not a lot of people recognize or know just how prevalent these catch and kill thing is, just the whole example of catch and kill, which is not illegal, but it certainly has been prevalent in so many cases. >> sure, and i think it's of particular interest in the trump case because it was something that he was so involved in and that the tabloids did on his behalf so often, and i think it really contributed to this sense that he has that he could get away with pretty much anything because he had for so long this notion that he could stand in the middle of 5th avenue and shoot someone and still be fine. you know, that came from years of going around new york, doing whatever he sort of wanted to do, and then making sure that just stories sort of went away. the lawsuits, you know, just went away through settlements or
who was the head of ami american media incorporated basically had a meeting with donald trump and michael cohen in the beginning of the campaign, essentially saying that he would help donald trump get elected yeah, i'll be your eyes and ears. >> and he did help him both to amplify stories that would help him. so stories that weren't great about his opponents. and also by suppressing stories that could hurt trump's chances. now when it comes to the stormy daniels hush money payment that was not made by ami or david, but they did help to suppress two other stories. another alleged affair with karen mcdougal, and then a story via dorman that turned out to be false, alleging that trump on pad a child out of wedlock, but these were two stories that was willing to catch and kill by the right, that's the term that was used internally. >> catch and kill, catch the story and then kill it. yeah. hey, the person pay karen mcdougal for the rights to her story, but never actually
michael cohen's credibility, david pecker is going to introduce not only the documents but how the documents were generated, how the communications went down, how this entire catch and kill scheme was orchestrated and who was behind it. and by the way, he is and was donald trump's friend. we may hear about conversations that he had with donald trump. the key for the people here is they have to show donald trump's intent. they have the checks. the checks have the signatures on them. they have the documents. they have to defeat the defense's argument, i'm the head of the corporation, i sign the checks. i see no evil, hear no evil. >> that's a good example of what pecker can bring to the conversation as opposed to cohen. >> he was one of the three men in the meeting when the whole scheme, according to prosecutors, were set up. >> catherine christian and danny cevallos, thank you so much. really great seeing you.
otherwords, charged, election interference. in other words, that he did it to influence _ other words, that he did it to influence the results of the 2016 election — influence the results of the 2016 election. 50 influence the results of the 2016 election. ., , , election. so the former president sa s it is election. so the former president says it is a _ election. so the former president says it is a book-keeping - election. so the former president says it is a book-keeping case, . election. so the former president j says it is a book-keeping case, in says it is a book—keeping case, in fact it is. says it is a book-keeping case, in fact it is. , , says it is a book-keeping case, in factitis. , , , fact it is. exactly, but i suspect that what _ fact it is. exactly, but i suspect that what the _ fact it is. exactly, but i suspect that what the prosecution - fact it is. exactly, but i suspect that what the prosecution has, | fact it is. exactly, but i suspect. that what the prosecution has, if the jury— that what the prosecution has, if the jury believes them, is witnesses that will— the jury believes them, is witnesses that will say that they heard or they _ that will say that they heard or they have _ that will say that they heard or they have got documentary evidence that proves that the former president said, for example, "you have _ president said, for example, "you have got— president said, for example, "you have got to — president said, for example, "you have got to pay this money, it is close _ have got to pay this money, it is close to — have got to pay this money, it is close to the _ have got to pay this money, it is close to the election and if you do not pay— close to the election and if you do not pay the — close to the election and if you do not pay the money she is going to out me" — not pay the money she is going to out me" "i — not pay the money she is going to out me." "i could lose the election over— out me." "i could lose the election over it" _ out me." "i could lose the election over it" they _ out me." "i could lose the election over it." they have not typed that ”p over it." they have not typed that up obviously because they are on their— up obviously because they are on their first — up obviously because they are on their first witness.— their first witness. they have put david packer _ their first witness. they have put david packer on _ their first witness. they have put david packer on these _ their first witness. they have put david packer on these stand - their first witness. they have put| david packer on these stand first. he is from the parent company that owns the national inquiry. he was instrumental to this catch and kill programme that the prosecution allege was in play. why him first? how good a witness is he?- allege was in play. why him first? how good a witness is he? well, we are auoin how good a witness is he? well, we are going to — how good a witness is he? well, we are going to see. — how good a witness is he? well, we
pecker, the prosecution suggested, will testify that he contacted dylan howard, the editor in chief, about the stormy daniels allegations and directed howard to communicate are cohen that stormy daniels had come to the national enquirer with interests of selling their story to them and based off the previous conversations about the catch and kill scheme, he directed howard to engage with cohen about her story and the fact she was looking for $130,000. it was at that point in time where cohen then directly worked with daniels' lawyer to set up a side arrangement that did not involve the national enquirer. so dylan howard is another name folks will become very much familiar with, especially as it pertains to david pecker's testimony as he kind of used him as a right hand through all of this in 2015 and 2016. >> and we believe they've just called it a day. they've just said that court is
donald trump just walked back into the courtroom. what is the latest from inside the courthouse? >> reporter: literally at this minute right now, the people calling david pecker from alvin bragg's office, the first witness in this criminal trial is now taking the stand. david pecker, the former publisher of the national enquirer who is going to be a pivotal witness in this for the prosecution who established the meeting at trump tower in august of 2015. that is where the prosecution alleges the catch and kill scheme was first outlined and thought of. from that point on, in 2016, it led to not only the purchasing by ami of karen mcdougle's story, but also michael cohen being informed by the enquirer that stormy daniels in october of 2016, had her own story to
for his freedom. >> david henderson, let me get your take to what we've heard from donald trump and how it plays into all of this. >> i find myself thinking, chris, if i was on this jury team -- not the jury team -- the trial team, how would i feel about this, it makes meer in ous vows. jurors are influenced by what happens in the press. what i see that makes me nervous are two things, him talking about how long it took to bring the case and talking about the fact that other agencies didn't bring the case. i'm not persuaded by that. none of us on the panel are persuaded by that. some jurors sometimes will be persuaded by that. here is the catch. he's very good at making these speeches outside of the courtroom. from what i've seen from him so far, he's not very good at testifying on the stand under the constraints of the courtroom and overall between those statements and between what his lawyer said during opening statements today, they have set a really high burden for themselves with respect to