WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – An adult-film actress who claims she had sex with Donald Trump before he was president said yesterday she had been threatened in 2011 while in a parking lot with her infant daughter to discourage her from discussing the relationship.
Stormy Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, told CBS News’ “60 Minutes” that she was on her way to a fitness class with her child when an unknown man approached her, according to a transcript of the interview released on Sunday.
“And a guy walked up on me and said to me, ‘Leave Trump alone. Forget the story.’ And then he leaned around and looked at my daughter and said, ‘That’s a beautiful little girl. It’d be a shame if something happened to her mom.’ And then he was gone,” Daniels said.
Daniels sued the president on March 6, stating Trump never signed an agreement for her to keep quiet about an “intimate” relationship between them.
White House aides did not immediately respond to requests for comment after the interview aired.
Trump did not respond to reporters’ shouted questions about whether he would watch the interview when he returned to the White House from Florida on Sunday evening.
Daniels’ appearance represented back to back trouble for Trump after an interview broadcast last week on CNN with former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who described a 10-month long affair with Trump starting in 2006.
Trump would have been married to his wife, Melania, during both the alleged extramarital relationships. The first lady accompanied him this weekend to his Florida golf club. A White House spokeswoman said Melania stayed behind as is her custom during their son’s school holiday.
Daniels told “60 Minutes” that she and Trump had had sexual relations only once, but that she had seen him other occasions and he had kept in touch with her.
She said she was not attracted to Trump, who was 60, to Daniels’ 27, in 2006.
The White House has denied he had an affair with Daniels, although Trump lawyer Michael Cohen said he paid her $130,000 of his own money during the 2016 presidential election campaign.
The payment could pose a legal problem. Watchdog groups have filed complaints with the Department of Justice and Federal Election Commission, saying that it may have violated campaign finance law by exceeding the limit on the size of a contribution.
Cohen, who has denied that there was an affair, has not explained why he made the payment or said whether Trump was aware of it. Cohen did not respond to requests for comment after the interview aired.
Daniels and her attorney would not discuss in the interview whether they had text messages or other materials that might verify her story.
She was asked why she repeatedly signed statements denying the relationship with Trump, and acknowledged that there could be questions about her credibility.
“I felt intimidated and … honestly bullied. And I didn’t know what to do. And so I signed it,” Daniels said.
Asked why viewers could be confident now that she was telling the truth, she said, “Cause I have no reason to lie. I’m opening myself up for, you know, possible danger, and definitely a whole lot of s***,” she said.
