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Donald J. Trump, the onetime president, and Stormy Daniels, the longtime porn star, despise one another. But when Ms. Daniels returned to the witness stand at Mr. Trump’s criminal trial on Thursday, his lawyers made them sound a lot alike. During Thursday’s grueling cross-examination, Mr. Trump’s lawyers sought to discredit Ms. Daniels as a money-grubbing extortionist who used a passing proximity to Mr. Trump to attain fame and riches. But the more the defense assailed her self-promoting merchandise and online screeds, the more Ms. Daniels resembled the man she was testifying against: a master of marketing, a savant of social-media scorn. “Not unlike Mr. Trump,” she said on the stand, though unlike him, she did it without the power and platform of the presidency.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Stormy Daniels, Daniels, Ms, grubbing, ”

☆ Whoopi Goldberg revealed what one 'Sister Act' star did after her mother died
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-07 | by ( Olivia Singh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewWhoopi Goldberg revealed that her "Sister Act" costar, Maggie Smith, consoled her after she learned of her mom, Emma Johnson's, death in 2010. Goldberg recalled the touching moment in her new memoir " Bits and Pieces: My Mother, My Brother, and Me ," released Tuesday. AdvertisementMaggie Smith as Mother Superior and Whoopi Goldberg as Deloris Van Cartier in "Sister Act." "I explained to Maggie Smith what was going on and apologized for having to fly home as soon as I could. "That's when this magnificent woman, Dame Maggie Smith, went from being my backstage company to being my friend through the rest of the night," she said.

Persons: —, Whoopi Goldberg, Maggie Smith, Emma Johnson's, Goldberg, cohost, Superior, Clyde K, Johnson, Smith, Mother Superior, Deloris Van Cartier, Goldberg's, Emma Johnson, John Nacion, Dame Maggie Smith, Maggie, I've Organizations: Service, London Palladium, Business, Variety Locations: San Francisco

Ms. Daniels could take the stand to testify against Mr. Trump as early as this week. Her presence would let Mr. Trump’s defense lawyers attack Ms. Daniels as an extortionist and question her credibility. Nor can she testify about the plan for Mr. Trump to hide his reimbursements to Mr. Cohen by characterizing them as legal fees. Mr. Trump’s lawyers contend that he did not know that the checks he signed for Mr. Cohen were not for legal fees, and that Mr. Cohen and Mr. Trump’s employees were responsible for any false records. “He has never thought that the little man, or especially women, and even more, women like me, matter,” Ms. Daniels said.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Stormy Daniels, Daniels, Alvin L, Bragg, Trump’s, Michael Bachner, Bachner, Dave Sanders, Stephanie Clifford, Barrett, “ I’m, Donald Trump, ” Ms, Norm, ”, Peacock, J., r. “ Organizations: Mr, The New York Times Locations: Manhattan, New York City, Baton Rouge, La, Texas, Florida, New York

When Donald J. Trump met Stormy Daniels, their flirtation seemed fleeting: He was a 60-year-old married mogul at the peak of reality television fame, and she was 27, not half his age, a Louisiana native raised in poverty and headed to porn-film stardom. But that chance encounter in Lake Tahoe, Nev., some two decades ago set off a chain of events that has brought the nation the first criminal trial of an American president. And on Tuesday, Ms. Daniels took the stand at that trial, bringing the former president face to face with the porn star at the case’s center.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Stormy Daniels, Daniels Locations: Louisiana, Lake Tahoe, Nev

☆ Opinion | Trump Is Rallying in New Jersey and Boasting of New States. Is It a PsyOp?
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-06 | by ( Katherine Miller | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Toward the end of Maggie and Shane’s article, they report that Trump campaign officials told donors that the 2024 race has only three swing states: Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan. But Trump campaign officials also showed donors an “expanded reality” map that included Minnesota and Virginia, neither of which has received much attention this year. First, maybe they’ve polled and really see something in those states; the electoral map can change, as when Democrats won Georgia in 2020. Second, sometimes campaigns will spend money in less apparently competitive states primarily to require opponents to divert resources from a more competitive state. As time has gone on, though, voter enthusiasm for that social conservatism seems to have waned, as Jamelle Bouie has argued.

Persons: Maggie, it’s, Glenn Youngkin, Trump, Bouie Organizations: Trump, Democrats, Georgia Locations: Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Minnesota, Virginia

☆ Kristi Noem Suggests Biden’s Dog Should Have Been Killed, Too
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-05 | by ( Maggie Astor | More About Maggie Astor | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

She said that the dog proved “untrainable,” “dangerous to anyone she came in contact with” and “less than worthless” as a hunting dog — so she shot her in a gravel pit. “I hated that dog,” Ms. Noem wrote. She also alluded to Commander in elaborating on her decision to shoot Cricket: “A dog who bites is dangerous and unpredictable (are you listening, Joe Biden?) — especially if you are running a business where people interact with your dogs,” she wrote. Imagining becoming president in 2025 and sending Mr. Biden’s dog to meet his maker, Ms. Noem added: “Commander, say hello to Cricket for me.”

Persons: Donald J, “, Ms, Noem, Joe Biden, ” Organizations: South, Cricket, CBS Locations: South Dakota

☆ Chief Counsel at R.N.C. Pushed Out After Two Months on the Job
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-05 | by ( Maggie Haberman | More About Maggie Haberman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Charlie Spies, the Republican National Committee’s chief counsel, was pushed out of his new role just two months after taking the job, amid a storm of controversy over conflicts involving other clients at the firm where he still works, according to two people briefed on the matter. Spies, a veteran election-law lawyer whom the R.N.C. A spokeswoman for the Trump campaign and the R.N.C. His past work — including for the presidential campaign of Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, the super PAC supporting Jeb Bush against Donald J. Trump during the 2016 Republican primary and Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee — was highlighted for Mr. Trump by people seeking to oust Mr.

Persons: Charlie Spies, Ron DeSantis, Jeb Bush, Donald J, Mitt Romney, —, Trump, Mr, Spies Organizations: Republican National Committee’s, Trump, Gov, PAC, Republican, Mr Locations: Florida

☆ Campaign Updates: At the R.N.C. donor retreat, Trump calls the Biden administration the ‘Gestapo.’
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-05 | by ( Maggie Haberman | Shane Goldmacher | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +8 min

“You have to respect the office of the presidency,” Mr. Trump said. “When you are Democrat, you start off essentially at 40 percent because you have civil service, you have the unions and you have welfare,” Mr. Trump said on Saturday. director whom Mr. Trump fired amid an investigation into Mr. Trump and his campaign, was connected to the Blagojevich investigation. Mr. Trump also mocked the physical appearance of Jack Smith, the special counsel who has indicted him twice. At another point, Mr. Trump said that if anyone wanted to donate $1 million to the R.N.C.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Biden’s, ” Mr, Trump baselessly, Biden, “, Mr, ”, William P, Barr, Michael Whatley, Mitt Romney, Hope Hicks, Rod Blagojevich, Blagojevich’s, James B, Blagojevich, Jack Smith, Smith, Mike Johnson, Roe, Wade, Trump’s, — Susie Wiles, Chris LaCivita, Tony Fabrizio — Organizations: Republican National Committee, The New York Times, Trump, Democratic, Mr, Sun Locations: New York, Florida, Palm Beach, Fla, Manhattan, Illinois, Minnesota, Virginia, Nevada , Arizona, Georgia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin

☆ Candidates for Federal Office Can Raise Unlimited Funds for Ballot Measures
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-05 | by ( Maggie Haberman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Federal Election Commission quietly issued an advisory opinion last week allowing candidates to raise unlimited money for issue-advocacy groups working on ballot measures in elections in which those candidates are on the ballot. The decision applies to all federal candidates, but with a presidential election taking place in six months, the biggest attention will fall to that race. If Mr. Biden can solicit money for abortion-rights ballot measures, he can add to an already-existing fund-raising advantage that his team currently has over Mr. Trump. In Arizona, an abortion rights group said it had the number of signatures required to put a referendum on the ballot. Florida — a state that has voted reliably for Republicans in recent presidential races — has a similar measure on the ballot.

Persons: Biden, Trump, — Locations: Nevada, Arizona, Florida

☆ This is the moment Trump changed American politics
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-04 | by ( Zachary B. Wolf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Being elected president shortly after surviving the publication of the leaked “Access Hollywood” tape in 2016 is the moment in which Donald Trump defied political gravity. The ‘Access Hollywood’ tape reexaminedTrump’s 2016 victory in the Electoral College seems only more improbable in the retelling. It is worth revisiting the earthquake the “Access Hollywood” tape set off in the 2016 campaign. Return of the tapeNow, the “Access Hollywood” tape is back. Video Ad Feedback Trump asked if he stands by comments from 'Access Hollywood' tape.

Persons: CNN —, Donald Trump, Trump, Hope Hicks, Hicks, –, ”, crassly, Billy Bush, Bush, Sen, Mike Lee of, Chris Christie, Paul Ryan, Reince Priebus, Christie, Steve Bannon, Melania, ” Trump, “, Bill Clinton, WAZiGoQqMQ — Donald J, Hillary Clinton, James Comey’s, Clinton, Comey, Anthony Weiner, Michael Cohen, Stormy Daniels, Cohen, Daniels, Maggie Haberman, Jonathan Martin, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, ’ ”, Collins, Feedback Trump, Bannon, Charlie Rose, Rose, Jean Carroll Organizations: CNN, Republican, Electoral, Washington Post, Republicans, Trump, New, New Jersey Gov, Republican National, Twitter, Democratic, The New York Times, CBS Locations: New York, Mike Lee of Utah, New Jersey

Donald J. Trump is on trial for 34 felony counts of what could be the dullest sounding crime in New York’s penal code: falsifying business records. Yet, across nine witnesses and two weeks of testimony, jurors have been treated to hours of mesmerizing courtroom theater. There was talk of a sex scandal with a porn star, a surreptitious recording of a future president and the tearful testimony of a former confidante in the glare of the witness stand. There was even a celebrity roll call: Charlie Sheen, Lindsay Lohan and the reality television star Tila Tequila were all name-checked this week, drawing chuckles in the Lower Manhattan courtroom. The phrase “falsifying business records,” however, was not uttered to the jury during testimony.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Charlie Sheen, Lindsay Lohan, Tila Tequila Locations: Lower Manhattan

☆ Who Is Hope Hicks, Once One of Trump’s Most Trusted Advisers?
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Maggie Haberman | Matthew Haag | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Hope Hicks was 26 years old and had no political experience when Donald J. Trump plucked her from a job at his daughter Ivanka’s clothing business and hired her for his presidential campaign in 2015. In the years that followed, she rose to be one of his most trusted advisers, eventually serving as the White House communications director. But Mr. Trump has been angry with Ms. Hicks since 2022, when text messages emerged during a House investigation into his efforts to stay in power after his election loss. The messages showed that she had been critical of him after the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol by his supporters. Now, Ms. Hicks, 35, has taken the stand in Mr. Trump’s hush-money trial in a Lower Manhattan courtroom.

Persons: Hope Hicks, Donald J, Trump, Hicks, Trump’s, Michael D, Cohen Organizations: White House, Capitol, Trump Locations: Lower Manhattan, Manhattan

“I’m really nervous,” Hope Hicks, the onetime Trump spokeswoman, messaging maestro and all-around adviser, acknowledged to the prosecutor questioning her, declaring what was already obvious to the riveted courtroom. Ms. Hicks’s unease came to a head hours later as Mr. Trump’s lawyer began to cross-examine her — and she began to cry. Mr. Trump locked his eyes on her. The question that initially unnerved Ms. Hicks was about her time at the Trump Organization, the family’s business, where she had fond memories of working. Ms. Hicks left the stand, and the trial paused so that she could compose herself.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, “, ” Hope Hicks, Trump’s, Ms, Hicks Organizations: Trump, Trump Organization

☆ Donald Trump says he wasn't sleeping in court but simply closing his 'beautiful blue eyes' so that he could 'listen intensely'
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Kwan Wei Kevin Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewFormer President Donald Trump says he didn't fall asleep during his hush-money trial. Trump has been regularly appearing in a Manhattan court since the trial kicked off on April 15. "I simply close my beautiful blue eyes, sometimes, listen intensely, and take it ALL in!!!" Related storiesHaberman, however, did acknowledge that there were times where Trump really was just closing his eyes. Besides the case in Manhattan, Trump has been charged in three other criminal cases, including a state criminal case in Georgia over accusations that he attempted to overturn the 2020 election results.

Persons: —, Donald Trump, Trump, Stormy Daniels, Hunt, Maggie Haberman, CNN's Kaitlan Collins, Haberman, It's, UBLPJEbA0y, Jon Stewart Organizations: Service, New York Times, CNN, Washington Post, Business, Times, Independent, Trump Locations: Manhattan, Georgia, Lago

It might seem strange that prosecutors from the Manhattan district attorney’s office are eliciting such testimony about their central witness, especially given that the defense has already begun attacking Mr. Cohen’s credibility. Mr. Cohen, who pleaded guilty to federal crimes in 2018, was often belligerent as he did Mr. Trump’s bidding. It appears that the district attorney’s office will seek to turn that to their advantage: So far, they’ve drawn smiles and chuckles from jurors when asking witnesses to discuss Mr. Cohen. “I didn’t want to receive a million frustrating phone calls from Michael,” said the lawyer, Keith Davidson, who in 2016 represented a porn star, Stormy Daniels, who received the hush money. Prosecutors have accused the former president of falsifying business records to cover up the hush money deal and charged him with 34 felonies.

Persons: Cohen, they’ve, “, Michael, ”, Keith Davidson, Stormy Daniels, Daniels, Trump Organizations: Prosecutors Locations: Manhattan

☆ Video: Maggie Haberman on the ‘strangest moment’ of Trump trial today
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Sarah Jorgensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

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☆ Opinion | The ‘Impossible Life’ of Equal Devotion to Art and Mothering
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Jessica Grose | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

“Too much life enters this house,” Tillie Olsen, the writer, labor activist and mother of four daughters, wrote in a letter to the poet Anne Sexton. Olsen and Sexton were among the early recipients of a paid fellowship from the Radcliffe Institute for Independent Study. In some ways, remarkable progress has been made for American women since then — at the time, for example, it was perfectly legal to fire a woman for getting pregnant. (In other ways, we have returned to the 19th century.) The book made me ponder whether some of the conflicts that parents feel between their family responsibilities and other parts of their lives can be fully resolved.

Persons: ” Tillie Olsen, Anne Sexton, “, lunchpacking —, Olsen, Sexton, Maggie Doherty’s, Radcliffe’s, Mary Ingraham Bunting, Maxine Kumin, Barbara Swan, Marianna Pineda Organizations: Radcliffe Institute for Independent, Art Locations: midcentury America, Doherty’s

☆ College Democrats Back Protests and Criticize Biden’s Israel Policy
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Maggie Astor | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

College Democrats of America, the student organization of the Democratic Party, endorsed pro-Palestinian campus protests on Tuesday and called on President Biden to support a permanent cease-fire in Gaza. In a statement approved by the organization’s executive board by a vote of 8 to 2, the College Democrats praised student protesters for having “the moral clarity to see this war for what it is: destructive, genocidal and unjust,” and condemned college administrators for suspending and calling in the police to arrest them. The statement came after two tumultuous weeks in which pro-Palestinian protests spread to campuses across the country in the wake of a police crackdown at Columbia University. Overnight from Monday into Tuesday, protesters at Columbia took over a building on campus. Protesters have escalated similarly at two other colleges, Portland State University and California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt.

Persons: Biden, ” Organizations: Democrats of America, Democratic Party, College Democrats, Columbia University, Students, Columbia, Protesters, Portland State University and California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt Locations: Gaza

☆ Move over Coachella, there's a new festival wooing influencers in town
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Amanda Perelli | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Lifestyle influencer Jacqlyn Burnett was more excited this year to attend the country music festival Stagecoach for the first time than to go to Coachella. Stagecoach, the annual country music festival held this past weekend in Southern California, is rivaling the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival as the new favorite among brands and social-media influencers. From the growing interest in country music to fashion, influencers and brands flocked to Stagecoach this year. Some influencers, including Paige Lorenze, Maggie and Emma Macdonald, Estelle Lebourgeois, Chloe Trujillo, and Alyssa Lynch, even skipped Coachella for Stagecoach. Béis, the luggage brand, invited influencers to Stagecoach instead of Coachella, offering themed activities and special access to the festival.

Persons: Jacqlyn Burnett, Beauty, Béis, influencers, Dominick Paielli, he's, Paielli, Paige Lorenze, Maggie, Emma Macdonald, Estelle Lebourgeois, Chloe Trujillo, Alyssa Lynch, Lynch, Liz Flora, Alix Earle, I've, Ali Grant, Stagecoach Mackenzie Gaston, Brynn Wade, Luke Scornavacco, Liz Money Organizations: Stagecoach, Valley Music, Arts Festival, Business, Clementine, Coachella, Tarte, Béis Brands, Stagecoach Mackenzie, 1AM Management Locations: Southern California, Coachella

☆ King Charles returns to public duties in visit to cancer treatment center
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Lauren Said-Moorhouse | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

The 75-year-old monarch revealed he was battling cancer in early February and is continuing his treatment as he restarts his public-facing engagements. The first fresh entry in his diary was a visit to a cancer treatment center in London, where he was expected to meet patients and staff. The King, who has been patron of Macmillan Cancer Support for nearly three decades, was accompanied by his wife, the Queen. The King and Queen meet staff as they arrive at the cancer treatment center. However, it has been confirmed that he will welcome Japan’s Emperor and Empress for a state visit later that month.

Persons: London CNN — King Charles III, ”, Camilla, Suzanne Plunkett, Charlie Swanton, Buckingham Organizations: London CNN, Macmillan Cancer, Reuters, University College Hospital Macmillan Cancer, Cancer Research, CNN’s Royal Locations: London, Normandy

☆ Trump, Venting About Lawyer in His Criminal Trial, Seeks More Aggression
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Maggie Haberman | Jonathan Swan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Donald J. Trump’s Manhattan criminal trial had barely begun when he started to turn his anger toward his lead lawyer, Todd Blanche. Although Mr. Blanche has been Mr. Trump’s favorite lawyer for some time, behind closed doors and in phone calls, the former president has complained repeatedly about him in recent weeks, according to four people familiar with the situation. He has griped that Mr. Blanche, a former federal prosecutor and veteran litigator, has not been following his instructions closely, and has been insufficiently aggressive. Mr. Trump wants him to attack witnesses, attack what the former president sees as a hostile jury pool, and attack the judge, Juan M. Merchan. Mr. Trump, who often complains about legal fees and sometimes refuses to pay them, has also wondered aloud why his lawyers cost so much, according to the people, who all spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive topic.

Persons: Donald J, Todd Blanche, Blanche, Trump’s, litigator, Trump, Juan M, Merchan

☆ Trump Wants to Prosecute Biden. He Also Thinks Presidents Deserve Immunity.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Alan Feuer | Maggie Haberman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

“Could President Biden someday be charged with unlawfully inducing immigrants to enter the country illegally for his border policies?” the lawyer, D. John Sauer, asked. What Mr. Sauer did not mention was that Mr. Trump has done as much as anyone to escalate the prospect of threatening political rivals with prosecution. In 2016, his supporters greeted mentions of Hillary Clinton with chants of “lock her up.” In his current campaign, Mr. Trump has explicitly warned of his intent to use the legal system as a weapon of political retribution, with frequent declarations that he could go after President Biden and his family. In effect, Mr. Trump has asked the Supreme Court to enforce a norm — that in the United States, public officials do not engage in tit-for-tat political prosecutions — that he has for years threatened to shatter. In promising to sic his Justice Department on Mr. Biden, Mr. Trump has laid the grounds for the very conditions that he was asking the justices to guard against by granting him immunity.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, ceaselessly, “, Biden, John Sauer, Sauer, Hillary Clinton, ” Organizations: Mr Locations: United States

☆ Election Updates: College Democrats of America back protests and criticize Biden’s Israel policy.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Maggie Astor | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

College Democrats of America, the student organization of the Democratic Party, endorsed pro-Palestinian campus protests on Tuesday and called on President Biden to support a permanent cease-fire in Gaza. It was a striking rebuke from an organization that has historically worked in tandem with the Democratic Party and whoever leads it. “As College Democrats, we are committed to the re-election of President Biden and Democrats across down-ballot races in every corner of our nation,” the statement said. “We’re realizing that our duty as College Democrats is to be representatives of college students to the party, rather than vice versa,” Mr. Muralitharan said. “As it stands right now, young people starkly differ on the issue of Palestine/Israel from the Democratic Party apparatus.

Persons: Biden, ”, “ MAGA, “, Mr, —, Netanyahu, Sunjay Muralitharan, ” Mr, Muralitharan, Joe Biden, Hasan Pyarali, Biden’s, Pyarali, Donald J, Trump, won’t Organizations: Democrats of America, Democratic Party, College Democrats, Columbia University, Students, Columbia, Protesters, Portland State University and California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, “ MAGA Republicans, Jewish, “, Democratic National Committee, University of California, Muslim Caucus, Wake Forest University, Mr Locations: Gaza, United States, Israel, San Diego, Palestine, Biden’s Israel

Listen and follow The DailyApple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon MusicIn a special series leading up to Election Day, “The Daily” will explore what a second Trump presidency would look like, and what it could mean for American democracy. In the first part, we will look at Tump’s plan for a second term. On the campaign trail, Trump has outlined a vision that is far more radical, vindictive and unchecked than his first one. Jonathan Swan and Maggie Haberman, political correspondents for The Times, and Charlie Savage, who covers national security, have found that behind Trump’s rhetoric is a highly coordinated plan to make his vision a reality.

Persons: Trump, Jonathan Swan, Maggie Haberman, Charlie Savage Organizations: Spotify, The Times

On Today’s Episode:With Israel Poised to Invade Rafah, Negotiators Try Again for Cease-Fire Deal, by Isabel Kershner and Edward WongCrackdowns at 4 College Protests Lead to More Than 200 Arrests, by Anna Betts, Matthew Eadie and Nicholas Bogel-BurroughsTrump and DeSantis Meet for First Time Since Bruising Primary, by Maggie Haberman and Nicholas Nehamas

Persons: Isabel Kershner, Edward Wong Crackdowns, Anna Betts, Matthew Eadie, Nicholas Bogel, Burroughs Trump, Maggie Haberman, Nicholas Nehamas Locations: Rafah

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