Topline
Lawyers for former President Donald Trump asked adult film star Stormy Daniels in July not to disparage Trump ahead of the 2024 election in exchange for settling legal fees she owed him, Daniels’ lawyer told Forbes, despite Trump being found guilty on 34 felony counts based on a hush-money deal made with Daniels before the 2016 election.
Key Facts
Daniels alleges she had an affair with Trump in July 2006 (which Trump denies) and was then paid $130,000 by ex-Trump attorney Michael Cohen to cover up the allegations before the 2016 election, after which she became an outspoken critic of the ex-president and testified against him at his criminal trial.
After Daniels unsuccessfully sued Trump for defamation in March and Oct. 2018, she was ordered to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in attorneys fees to Trump across multiple legal cases — fees which she said in May she had not yet paid.
In a July 23 letter first reported by MSNBC and confirmed by Forbes—which came after she testified at his trial in May—Trump’s attorneys told Daniels’ lawyers that she now owes Trump $652,362.23 for the attorneys fees and asked her to sign a “non-disparagement agreement” regarding making comments against Trump.
Daniels’ attorneys offered to pay $620,000, and Trump’s lawyers said in a July 25 letter that while that amount wouldn’t be “in full satisfaction” of the judgments, they would agree to it if Daniels “agrees in writing to make no public or private statements related to any alleged past interactions with President Trump, or defamatory or disparaging statements about him, his businesses and/or any affiliates or his suitability as a candidate for President.”
Daniels’ attorney Clark Brewster told Forbes that the two sides ultimately settled on her paying $627,500 and the fees have now been “fully paid,” but Daniels did not agree to the non-disparagement agreement.
The Trump campaign has not yet responded to a request for comment, but spokesperson Steven Cheung falsely blamed the emails becoming public on “stolen material by terror regime adversaries” in a statement to MSNBC — a reference to Iran allegedly hacking the Trump campaign — even though Daniels counsel provided the emails to MSNBC.
Crucial Quote
The outstanding judgments ordering Daniels to pay Trump’s legal fees are now “dismissed and released,” Brewster told Forbes in an email. “We refused the extra term of a NDA and made it clear that such a term would never be acceded to.”
Chief Critic
“Ms. Daniels has been held to account by having to pay President Trump over and above the money she owes to him as a result of her wrongdoings,” Cheung said in a statement to NBC, though that conflicts with the amount the two sides settled on being lower than the full amount Trump’s lawyers said Daniels owed. While Daniels lost her defamation claims against Trump and was ordered to pay attorneys fees as a result, the court did not find her liable for wrongdoing.
What To Watch For
Trump has still not yet been sentenced for the 34 felony counts against him, which are for falsification of business records based on reimbursement checks he sent for the Daniels payment. The ex-president successfully delayed the sentencing until Nov. 26—after the election and far later than the original sentencing date in July—with New York State Judge Juan Merchan ruling he would postpone the sentencing in order to avoid any perception of political bias. Each of the 34 counts Trump was convicted on is punishable by a fine of up to $5,000 per offense and/or up to four years in prison, though legal experts believe it’s highly unlikely—but not out of the question—he’ll be sentenced to prison as a first-time offender.
Key Background
Daniels’ alleged affair with Trump took place after they met at a celebrity golf tournament, with Daniels testifying that she went to his hotel room for dinner after they met at the tournament and allegedly had sex with him. The adult film star testified their encounter was based on an “imbalance of power” and that she “felt ashamed I didn’t stop it,” claiming she asked herself “Oh my God, what did I misread to get here?” and “left as fast as I could” after it was over. The alleged affair and ensuing hush money payment were first reported by the Wall Street Journal in Jan. 2018, ultimately leading to Michael Cohen pleading guilty to campaign finance violations and other crimes in relation to his payment to Daniels. Trump has long denied Daniels’ allegations of an affair and pleaded not guilty when he was indicted on charges stemming from the hush money payments. Trump reimbursed Cohen through a series of checks paid throughout 2017, which prosecutors alleged and the jury agreed were falsely labeled as legal payments. The ex-president has lashed out at Daniels amid the criminal proceedings against him—violating a gag order that barred him from doing so—and has continued to oppose his conviction.
Further Reading
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