NEW YORK, (Reuters) – Former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker testified yesterday at Donald Trump’s criminal trial that he suppressed a story about an alleged affair to help Trump’s 2016 presidential bid, even though it would have boosted sales of his tabloid.
Testifying for a third day, Pecker, 72, agreed with a prosecutor who asked whether it would have been “National Enquirer gold” to publish the story of former Playboy model Karen McDougal’s claim that she had an affair with Trump in 2006 and 2007.
But Pecker said he opted not to run the story after paying McDougal for it, because it would have hurt the Republican Trump’s chances of winning the election over Democrat Hillary Clinton.
“You killed the story because it helped the candidate, Donald Trump?” prosecutor Joshua Steinglass asked him.
Pecker said yes.
The exchange bolstered previous testimony in which Pecker said he worked with Trump’s campaign to suppress allegations of adultery at a time when the then-presidential candidate was facing multiple accusations of sexual misbehavior.
Pecker was the first witness in the case, which accuses Trump, 77, of falsifying business records to cover up a hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels. Trump has pleaded not guilty.
Pecker testified his tabloid paid for the rights to two such stories he never published, a tabloid practice referred to as “catch and kill.” Pecker also alerted Trump that Daniels was looking to sell her story of a sexual encounter with Trump.
The defense argues the hush money payment was made to spare Trump’s family embarrassment, not to protect his presidential campaign. Trump, a businessman whose first public office was the White House, denies an encounter took place.
After Pecker’s testimony, prosecutors called two more witnesses to boost their case.
Rhona Graff, who worked as Trump’s business assistant from 1987 to 2021, testified she once saw Daniels at Trump Tower before he ran for president. She said she heard Trump say he was interested in casting her on “The Apprentice,” the reality TV show he hosted.
She said the email addresses of Daniels and McDougal were stored in the computer systems of Trump’s company.
Trump shook her hand when she left the witness stand.
Banker Gary Farro testified that Trump’s lawyer, Michael Cohen, set up accounts with him shortly before the election for two shell companies, including one that was used to pay Daniels.
The trial was scheduled to resume on Tuesday.
During cross-examination, Trump lawyer Emil Bove sought to undermine Pecker’s credibility.
Bove asked Pecker whether he had inaccurately testified that Trump thanked him at the White House for handling the negative news stories. That conflicted with a report by FBI agents who previously interviewed Pecker, which said Trump had not expressed gratitude.
Pecker, 72, said the FBI report could be wrong.
“I know what I testified to, and I know what I remember,” Pecker told the New York court’s 12 jurors and six alternates.
Bove asked Pecker whether his statements aligned with facts contained in an agreement by the Enquirer’s parent company to cooperate with legal authorities to avoid prosecution. Pecker denied any substantial mismatch.
