Trump hush money trial live updates: David Pecker details ‘catch-and-kill’ scheme as ex-president claims MAGA crowd turned away

New York Justice Juan Merchan has denied a motion from Donald Trump’s attorneys to subpoena adult film star Stormy Daniels for materials related to her documentary – as well as his lawyer’s demands for communications from Michael Cohen and others.

In an order on Tuesday, Judge Merchan called the requests “overbroad” and outside the bounds of the case at hand.

A request for “all documents relating to communications” with “Michael Cohen or his representatives; Karen McDougal; E Jean Carroll; Jessica Leeds; or Natasha Stoynoff” was also rejected as “overbroad” and “not limited to the subject matter” of the hush money case.

The second day of trial testimony in Trump’s hush money case continued with David Pecker, the former publisher of the tabloid National Enquirer.

He walked the jury through his relationship with Trump; the arrangement concocted during the 2016 campaign to ensure unflattering stories died; and how that scheme was put into practice — including a plan to bury a bogus story of an alleged affair, which Pecker said could’ve been the magazine’s biggest story since the death of Elvis Presley.

Except it has. To him. Twice.

The former president faces a gag order in his civil fraud trial that prevents him and other parties in the case from publicly attacking court staff and their families. He also faces a gag in his federal election interference case that blocks him from attacks against witnesses, court staff and other lawyers.

Yet Trump is once again lashing out at the gag order in his criminal case in Manhattan where he is forbidden from publicly attacking witnesses and court staff and their families, which he is calling “totally UNCONSTITUTIONAL” in his latest Truth Social post.

“The Gag Order imposed on me, a political candidate running for the highest office in the land, is totally UNCONSTITUTIONAL! Nothing like this has ever happened before,” he wrote on Wednesday.

“The Conflicted Judges friends and party members can say whatever they want about me, but I am not allowed to respond,” he added. “The Trial is Rigged and should never have been allowed to take place on a charge that virtually every legal scholar and expert says is bogus, THERE IS NO CRIME. This is a Political Witch Hunt – ELECTION INTERFERENCE!”

New York Justice Juan Merchan is expected to rule at any point between now and Thursday morning on whether the former president can be held in contempt and fined for his attacks against witnesses in the case.

Good morning from New York, where Donald Trump’s criminal trial is nearing the end of its second week.

As a reminder, there are no trial days on Wednesdays – for now.

Justice Juan Merchan has scheduled proceedings to begin at 9:30am and wrap at 4:30pm, with some exceptions, on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. He anticipates the trial running for five to seven weeks.

But he has mentioned that if the trial is running behind for any reason, he could put Wednesdays on the calendar.

The Daily Show host was in fine form this week satirizing the breathless TV coverage of the defendant’s daily arrival at court but got well and truly owned by a fellow correspondent over his opposition to “fun”.

Jon Stewart makes fun of Trump trial coverage in Daily Show rant

Jon Stewart made fun of coverage of Donald Trump’s criminal trial in a rant during Monday night’s Daily Show. The host criticized some media organizations for focusing on small details of the former president’s court appearances in the Stormy Daniels hush money case. Stewart showed clips of news anchors discussing elements of the trial such as Trump pursing his lips and fidgeting “If the media tries to make us feel like the most mundane bulls**t is earth-shattering, we won’t believe you when it’s really interesting,” Stewart said.

Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene has wildly claimed, without any evidence, that Democrats want Trump to be “murdered in jail”.

The right-wing lawmaker made the remarks during an interview with Infowars host Alex Jones, in which she suggested that the four criminal cases Trump is facing are an intentional effort by his political rivals to imprison the former president until he dies.

She added that Democrats are also attempting to strip Trump of his presidential Secret Service detail to accomplish their goal.

Joe Biden mocked Donald Trump for trying to sell “God Bless the USA” Bibles last month and slammed the former president and his 2024 rivel over his abortion record.

The 46th president laid into his predecessor, referring to years-old remarks Trump had made during an interview on MSNBC when he said women who have abortions should be punished and mocking him for endorsing the line of leather-bound Bibles sold by country singer Lee Greenwood .

“He said there has to be punishment for women exercising their reproductive freedom… maybe it’s coming from that Bible he’s trying to sell. I almost wanted to buy one just to see what the hell is in it,” President Biden said during a trip to Florida on Tuesday.

As Trump continues to cool his heels in a New York City courtroom, the president traveled from Washington to Tampa, Florida.

There, he headlined a campaign event focused on rallying women and supporters of reproductive rights just one week before the ban took effect.

Andrew Feinberg and John Bowden have this report.

Nauta was reportedly told he would be pardoned during a potential second Trump administration if he was charged with lying to the FBI, according to the bureau’s redacted interviews with a witness known only as “Person 16”.

The valet was charged with precisely that offense in June 2023 and for obstructing the agency’s investigation into the classified government documents Trump had stored at Mar-a-Lago after his presidency.

The former president was also charged with obstruction and with mishandling classified national defense information.

Both men have pleaded not guilty.

The defendant took the time yesterday to blame the eruption of demonstrations on American college campuses against Israel’s actions in Gaza on, you guessed it, Joe Biden.

“He has the wrong tone,” Trump said of his opponent for the presidency.

“He’s got the wrong words. He doesn’t know who he’s backing. And it’s a mess.”

Trump describes college pro-Palestine protests as a ‘disgrace’

Donald Trump has labeled the pro-Palestine protests sweeping college campuses across the US a “disgrace”. The former president spoke on the drama as he headed into court for day six of his hush money trial in Manhattan on Tuesday 23 April. Speaking to reporters, he blamed the escalating protests across college campuses on Joe Biden, claiming the US president has been putting out the “wrong signal” on Israel’s ongoing conflict in Gaza. “He has the wrong tone. He got the wrong words. He doesn’t know who he’s backing. And it’s a mess,” Mr. Trump said.

Trump’s daughter-in-law, the new co-chair of the Republican National Committee, got called out by an expert on fascism after appearing to threaten election workers live on Newsmax – not a good look!