Jury Hears Opening Statements in Trump’s Hush Money Trial
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Jurors heard opening statements and the first witness testimony in 2024 candidate and former President Donald Trump’s New York hush money trial on Monday.
For Context: Trump is currently in New York on trial for business fraud stemming from allegations that he covered up hush money payments made shortly before the 2016 election to an adult film star.
Opening Statements: The prosecution and defense offered differing depictions of Trump’s actions, with prosecutors depicting Trump as a co-conspirator in a criminal conspiracy, and the defense arguing that Trump’s actions were not illegal. Prosecutor Matthew Colangelo told the jury that Trump “wanted to conceal his and others’ criminal conduct,” Trump’s lawyer, Todd Blanche, told the jury, “I have a spoiler alert: There’s nothing wrong with trying to influence an election. It’s called democracy.”
First Witness: The trial also called its first witness, David Pecker, publisher of The National Enquirer. Prosecutors alleged Trump worked with Pecker to purchase and bury stories that could damage Trump’s campaign. The alleged stories include a disproven story about Trump fathering a child out of wedlock, a story about Trump having an affair with a Playboy model, and the most notable — Trump’s $130,000 hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, who Trump allegedly had an affair with.
How the Media Covered It: Outlets across the spectrum covered Monday’s proceedings, noting the differing depictions of events given by the lawyers and the stakes of the trial for Trump’s political future.
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Left
An Unprecedented Trial Opens With Two Visions of Trump
Manhattan prosecutors delivered a raw recounting of Donald J. Trump’s seamy past on Monday as they debuted their case against him to jurors, the nation and the world, reducing the former president to a co-conspirator in a plot to cover up three sex scandals that threatened his 2016 election win.
Their opening statement was a pivotal moment in the first prosecution of an American president, a sweeping synopsis of the case against Mr. Trump, who watched from the defense table, occasionally shaking his head. Moments later, Mr. Trump’s lawyer delivered...
From the Center
Democracy in Action or Election Fraud? Trump Trial Lawyers Paint Hush-Money Payment Two Ways
Donald Trump orchestrated a criminal conspiracy to influence the 2016 election, then sought to cover up a hush-money payment to a porn star by lying in his New York business records over and over again, a prosecutor alleged as the former president’s first trial began.
“It was election fraud, pure and simple,” prosecutor Matthew Colangelo said in his opening statement, as the jurors watched intently.
Trump’s lawyer painted a different picture. “I have a spoiler alert,” Todd Blanche said. “There is nothing wrong with trying to influence an election. It’s...
From the Right
Prosecutors open Trump trial with tales of political dirt, money, collusion with National Enquirer
Prosecutors began building their case Monday against former President Donald Trump in the first criminal trial against an ex-president, telling jurors he committed tax and election crimes to hush up bad press ahead of the 2016 election.
Mr. Trump and tabloid allies used “catch-and-kill” tactics to stiff-arm bad press before the 2016 election and then lied about it on business records “over and over and over again,” they told the jurors.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s team put former National Enquirer executive David Pecker on the witness stand and plan...
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