NEW YORK — The former lawyer of President Trump attempted to damage the credibility of Stormy Daniels in front of the jury by suggesting that she is motivated by money and implying that her background as a porn actress means she is skilled at fabricating stories about sex.
During the cross-examination of prosecution witnesses, the defense accused Daniels of changing her account of a supposed sexual encounter with Trump, which led to a payment of hush money at the center of his ongoing criminal trial.
The Trump lawyer, Susan Necheles, sought to depict the adult film actress not only as an irrelevant witness but also as an unreliable one, criticizing Daniels for profiting from her claims of an affair with Trump, which he has denied.
Over two days of questioning, the defense attorney suggested that Daniels's work in the adult film industry had prepared her to profit from her allegations.
Necheles asked Daniels on Thursday if she had a lot of experience in presenting fake stories about sex as real.
Daniels responded with a defiant laugh, saying that's not how she would describe her experience.
She then stated, “I have experience memorizing dialogue, not how to have sex. … Pretty sure we all know how to do that.”
Later, Daniels sarcastically remarked, “And if that story was untrue, I would’ve written it to be a lot better.”
Daniels alleges that she met Trump in 2006 at a celebrity golf tournament, where he — through his bodyguard — invited her to have dinner with him. However, she claimed that when she arrived at the suite, they did not have dinner but engaged in sexual activity instead.
Necheles challenged this account, stating that Daniels had previously told a gossip magazine and “60 Minutes” that she did have dinner with Trump. Daniels insisted that although it was “dinner time,” they did not eat.
Daniels pushed back against this, expressing that she would have mentioned the food in the interviews if it were true, as she is very food-motivated.
During the initial day of her cross-examination, Daniels appeared disheveled and was easily provoked by Necheles. She spoke rapidly and grew frustrated by defense attempts to confuse her.
However, by Thursday morning, Daniels seemed more composed, resisting the defense's arguments she disagreed with while remaining composed.
Necheles repeatedly tried to pressure Daniels into admitting that her alleged encounter with the former president was fabricated. The attorney questioned her about the specifics of her previous statements and what she claimed occurred in the Nevada hotel suite.
Necheles asked at one point if Daniels's story had completely changed.
Daniels responded that it hadn't, refusing to be swayed by the suggestion.
Necheles also depicted Daniels as having a vendetta against Trump, whom she now owes hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees after losing a defamation lawsuit against him.
The jury saw a post by Daniels in late March in which someone called her a “human toilet.”
She said on social platform X that she's the best person to get rid of Trump, referring to the trial as an 'orange turd.'
When asked if she hates Trump, Daniels answered 'yes.'
When asked if she wants him to go to jail, the porn actor said she wants him to be held accountable.
On Thursday, jurors were more engaged during the cross-examination, exchanging looks during heated moments or objections.
Trump is on trial for 34 felony charges of falsifying business records, accused of hiding a hush money payment. He pleaded not guilty.
It was only at the end of cross-examination that Necheles brought up the actual documents corresponding to Trump’s criminal counts, as the defense tried to convince jurors that Daniels’s testimony is legally irrelevant.
Daniels admitted she never spoke to Trump about the hush money and has no personal involvement in the repayment scheme Trump is charged over. Trump nodded in agreement.
Daniels told Necheles that she's just there to answer questions about herself.
Necheles asked if Daniels knows about the indictment, to which Daniels replied, "There’s a lot of indictments."
After Daniels left the stand, prosecutors called a Trump Organization bookkeeper, shifting the focus away from the hush money deal.
As prosecutors near the end of their case, they are expected to call Cohen, who paid Daniels $130,000.
Trump’s attorney tried to damage Daniels's credibility by suggesting her career as a porn actor made her skilled in selling fictional sex stories.
