“Everyone calls Stormy Daniels.”
So began the tense and often uncomfortable testimony of Ms. Daniels, who spent nearly five hours in a Manhattan courtroom Tuesday telling her story of her 2006 encounter with Donald J. Trump and the subsequent cover-up of his money became the basis of the prosecution’s case.
Ms. Daniels spoke quickly and at length about her first meeting with Mr. Trump at a celebrity golf tournament in Lake Tahoe, Nev.
After the lunch break, Mr. Trump’s lawyer Todd Blanche requested a mistrial, arguing that the prosecution’s questions were intended to embarrass Mr. Trump and disadvantage the jury.
The judge, Juan M. Merchan, agreed that some of Ms. Daniels’ statements “might have been better left unsaid,” but denied a mistrial.
The former president was charged falsifying business records to cover up a $130,000 payment to Ms. Daniels just before the 2016 election. Mr. Trump, 77 years old, has denied the accusations and said he did not have sex with Ms. Daniels. If convicted, he could face prison or probation.
Here are six takeaways from the 13th day of Mr. Trump’s trial.
Prosecutors took a risk with their witnesses.
The jury heard a vivid account of the Lake Tahoe encounter and met the woman who received the hush money agreement. This could pose a risk for prosecutors, depending on whether the jury evaluates Ms. Daniels’s story as brash or strong.
Ms. Daniels described meeting Mr. Trump at a golf event and accepting his dinner invitation after her publicist said: “What could go wrong?”
She recalled that Mr. Trump was wearing pajamas when she met him at the hotel and she asked him to change. They discussed the porn industry, and he asked about residue, unions, and STD testing.
She said they talked about his family, including his daughter, whom he likened to Ms. Daniels — “People underestimate her, too,” Ms. Daniels recalled him saying. They also discussed his wife; Mr. Trump said they “don’t even sleep in the same room.” He suggested Ms. Daniels could appear on “The Apprentice.”
Then, when she stepped out of the bathroom, Ms. Daniels saw Mr. Trump partially undressed, she said. The sex was consensual, she said, but there was an “imbalance” of power.
Trump received another warning.
Judge Mercan held the former president in contempt 10 times, fined him $10,000 and twice threatened to send him to prison. On Tuesday, Mr. Trump again angered the judge after Judge Merchan said he “cussed out loud” and “shaken his head.”
The judge asked Mr. Trump’s lawyers to speak privately with their client, saying Mr. Trump’s actions could intimidate the witness, Ms. Daniels.
“You need to talk to him,” the judge said. “I will not tolerate that.”
The motive for restitution is a point of contention.
Prosecutors asked Ms. Daniels about a 2018 statement in which she denied having sex. Ms. Daniels said she did not want to sign and that was not true.
Defense attorneys, exploiting what they saw as Ms. Daniels’s shortcomings as a witness, were scathing. One of them, Susan Necheles, suggested during cross-examination that Ms. Daniels was trying to “blackmail” Mr. Trump.
Ms. Daniels replied harshly: “Wrong.”
Daniels’ story upset Trump.
Before the trial began Tuesday morning, Trump expressed his frustration with Ms. Daniels in an angry post on Truth Social, saying he had just learned about an upcoming witness and his lawyers “no time” to prepare. The post was deleted shortly after, possibly out of concern for violating the gag order.
Mr. Trump, who spent much of the trial with his eyes closed, remained attentive throughout much of the day, often with a sour look on his face. He repeatedly whispered to his lawyer and at one point uttered obscenities.
But in the afternoon, he had a habit of closing his eyes, even during a tense cross-examination.
Daniels’ credibility was a stumbling block for prosecutors.
Ms. Daniels’s motive was the defense’s main focus. In a heated moment, Ms. Necheles confronted her about her hatred of the former president and asked if she wanted him to go to jail. Ms. Daniels replied: “I want him to be held accountable.”
Ms. Necheles also questioned Ms. Daniels about making money by claiming to have had sex with Mr. Trump. Ms. Daniels replied: “I made money by telling my stories,” then added: “It also cost me a lot of money.”
Trump’s words haunt him.
Prosecutors have repeatedly tried to use Mr. Trump’s previous statements against him.
Before Ms. Daniels testified Tuesday, a witness read passages of Mr. Trump’s book aloud. Some people talk about his frugality. Others speak of his penchant for revenge.
“For years I have said that if someone bothers you, get back at them,” the witness wrote. The passage continues: “When someone hurts you, go after them as ruthlessly and violently as possible.”
Not long after, one of his enemies – Ms. Daniels – took the stand. Her cross-examination will continue on Thursday.
