Political Wire

Cohen Seeks to Gag Avenatti

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“Attorney Michael Avenatti’s months-long publicity tour attacking President Trump and Trump attorney Michael Cohen could be brought to an abrupt end soon if a federal judge agrees to a new request for a gag order against the ubiquitous Avenatti,” Politico reports.

“A lawyer for Cohen, Brent Blakely, asked a judge in Los Angeles Thursday to issue an order barring Avenatti from making public statements about the lawsuit Avenatti’s client, porn star Stormy Daniels, filed against Trump and Cohen in March… Blakely said an avalanche of inflammatory public comments by Avenatti—including at least 121 TV appearances and 439 tweets—is tainting the court proceeding.”

Porn Star Says Her Lawyer Was ‘Puppet’ for Trump

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Stormy Daniels says in a new lawsuit that her former attorney betrayed her and became a “puppet” for President Trump and his personal lawyer while still representing her, NBC News reports.

The filing alleges that lawyer Keith Davidson “hatched a plan” and “colluded” with Trump attorney Michael Cohen to get the adult film actress to go on Fox News a few months ago and falsely deny she had an affair with Trump a decade ago.

Graham Says Stormy Daniels Is ‘Nobody’s Business’

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Evangelist Franklin Graham told the Associated Press that the whole Stormy Daniels scandal was “nobody’s business.”

He added: “This stuff happened 12 years ago. This isn’t behavior that has taken place since he’s been president. These things happened long before he became president. That doesn’t make it right. And I don’t defend those kinds of relationships he had. But the country knew the kind of person he was back then, and they still made the decision to make him the president of the United States.”

Trump Undercuts Giuliani on Payments to Porn Star

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President Trump “undercut his attorney, Rudy Giuliani, and said the former New York mayor will eventually get the facts right regarding a payment to a pornographic actress who said she had an affair with Mr. Trump,” the New York Times reports.

Trump said that everything “has been said incorrectly,” blaming the media coverage and Mr. Giuliani’s short time on the job.

He added that Giuliani, who joined Trump’s legal team last month, “started a day ago” but will “get his facts straight.”

Giuliani Says Trump Only Recently Knew He Paid Cohen

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Rudy Giuliani told NBC News that President Trump “only recently found out that he reimbursed his personal attorney, Michael Cohen, for a $130,000 nondisclosure agreement with adult performer Stormy Daniels just days before the 2016 election.”

Said Giuliani: “I don’t think the president realized he paid him back for that specific thing until we made him aware of the paperwork.”

Giuliani said the president responded: “Oh my goodness, I guess that’s what it was for.”

Court Grants 90-Day Delay In Stormy Daniels’ Lawsuit

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A federal judge ruled that a lawsuit filed by Stormy Daniels over an alleged “hush money” deal with President Trump and his attorney Michael Cohen will be put on hold for three months because of a criminal investigation Cohen is facing, Politico reports.

The judge said it appeared “likely” that Cohen would be indicted in connection with the ongoing investigation.

Michael Avenatti, a lawyer for Daniels, responded in a tweet: “Justice delayed is justice denied.”

Trump Says Cohen Worked for Him on Stormy Daniels Deal

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President Trump admitted in a Fox News interview that Michael Cohen did legal work on his behalf to reach a non-disclosure agreement with Stormy Daniels, The Hill reports.

Said Trump: “Like with this crazy Stormy Daniels deal, he represented me and you know, from what I see, he did absolutely nothing wrong.”

Trump previously said he had no knowledge of the payment Cohen made as part of the agreement.

Cohen Will Plead Fifth In Stormy Daniels Lawsuit

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President Trump’s personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, plans to assert his Fifth Amendment rights in the lawsuit filed against him by adult film star Stormy Daniels, The Hill reports.

“Cohen said the FBI raids earlier this month on his residence, office and hotel room — and the ongoing criminal probe they represent — are behind the decision not to offer testimony in the California lawsuit.”

Why Stormy Daniels Poses a Problem for Democrats

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Ron Brownstein: “Trump has forged a powerful connection with many working-class whites by expressing their anxiety about cultural, demographic, and economic change. If there’s an opening for Democrats among these Americans, it’s through discrediting Trump’s argument that he’s championing working-class interests against powerful elites. For Democrats, the key is building a case that Trump, for all his posturing as a working-class hero, has increased economic insecurity for average families. They could do so by highlighting his attempts to repeal the Affordable Care Act, along with his support for a tax plan that mostly benefited the wealthy and corporations and will eventually increase pressure to cut Social Security and Medicare.”

“Those arguments, however, now rarely break through the tabloid maelstrom constantly engulfing Trump. Yet, as in 2016, personal doubts about the president may not prove disqualifying for enough voters to provide Democrats a winning majority.”

“The election results in November are much more likely to turn on which side wins the arguments over those policies than on whether slightly more or fewer Americans than today consider Trump unfit for the presidency. In other words: For a sunny outcome this fall, Democrats probably need more health care and taxes—and less Comey and Stormy.”

Trump Mocks Sketch Released by Stormy Daniels

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President Trump tweeted “about a sketch of a man who a pornographic actress claims threatened her years ago on behalf of Mr. Trump. It was just the second time the president weighed in on the subject after weeks of frenzied news media coverage,” the New York Times reports.

“The president mocked the sketch, which the pornographic actress, Stephanie Clifford (known as Stormy Daniels) released on Tuesday. His tweet accompanied a post from another Twitter user, who said the man looked like Ms. Clifford’s former husband.”

Trump, Cohen Seek Pause of Stormy Daniels Lawsuit

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President Trump and his personal attorney Michael Cohen “will be filing an application on Friday to pause the Stormy Daniels lawsuit,” according to the Hollywood Reporter.

“The case appeared to be headed towards arguments about whether it should be arbitrated, but thanks to a stunning FBI raid on Cohen’s office and residence earlier this week, the lawsuit is now taking an abrupt turn.”

In a filing in California federal court today, the parties told the judge that the application to stay the case will be made “on the grounds that an ongoing criminal investigation overlaps with the facts of this case, and implicates Defendant Michael Cohen’s Fifth Amendment rights.”

Stormy Daniels Cooperating with Federal Investigators

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Stormy Daniels is cooperating with federal investigators probing the 2016 non-disclosure agreement and $130,000 payment she received from President Trump’s longtime personal attorney, Michael Cohen, NBC News reports.

Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal reports federal prosecutors asked the Trump Organization for records relating to the $130,000 payment as well. The request came in connection with yesterday’s FBI raids on Cohen’s home and office.

Trump Says He Didn’t Know Stormy Daniels Was Paid Off

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President Trump said that “he did not know that his personal attorney paid adult film star Stormy Daniels $130,000 days before the presidential election to prevent her from publicly accusing Trump of having an affair,” the Washington Post reports.

“The president said he did not know where his attorney, Michael Cohen, got the money for the payment, and he declined to say if he ever set up a fund for Cohen to cover expenses like that.”

Judge Denies Stormy Daniels Attempt to Expedite Case

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“A federal judge on Thursday denied a request from Stormy Daniels, who says she was paid to remain silent about an affair with President Trump, to expedite a jury trial in her lawsuit against the president,” the Washington Post reports.

“The request for an expedited jury trial and limited discovery — including a deposition of Trump and his personal attorney, Michael Cohen — was deemed ‘premature and must be denied’ because some questions may wind up being answered by a future petition from Trump and Cohen… The ruling is a temporary setback for Daniels’s case and comes as it is unclear how the high-profile lawsuit will proceed.”

Taegan Goddard

Taegan Goddard

Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire -- which for more than two decades has been one of the nation's most influential political news sites.

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