David Pecker, the former publisher of the National Enquirer, testified about how his newspaper may have influenced the 2016 presidential election by stifling news that was detrimental to the candidate.
This was a major development in Trump’s hush money trial.
The 72-year-old David Pecker was the first to testify in the case.
He detailed how the National Enquirer used a tactic known as “catch and kill” to support Trump’s campaign.
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The tabloid used a strategy of buying but never publishing stories about his alleged sexual misconduct.
Pecker described a meeting in 2015 in which he gave Trump the assurance that the Enquirer would publish positive stories and protect him from the bad press by keeping an eye on potentially damaging stories that were being circulated in the media.
He testified that Trump had refused to do this himself, since he believed that these types of things always came out in the end.
Buying stories but never publishing them was part of the plan to keep them out of the public domain.
Pecker attested that this was a standard strategy used by well-known candidates for public office.
Among the stories told by the Enquirer was a claim from Karen McDougal, a former Playboy model who alleged an affair with Trump.
Pecker admitted purchasing her story for $150,000 after Trump himself declined to buy it to avoid public exposure.
The tabloid also paid $30,000 for a dubious story from a Trump Tower doorman who claimed Trump had fathered a child with a maid.
This story was ultimately proven false, according to Pecker.
Pecker noted that the payments for these stories were unusually high, driven by the potential impact the revelations could have had on Trump’s presidential campaign.
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Prosecutors are arguing that Pecker’s actions were part of a broader attempt to mislead voters by hiding Trump’s extramarital affairs during the election, further complicated by Trump’s denial of the encounters and subsequent legal maneuvers to obscure these payouts.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to charges of falsifying business records related to these transactions, framing the payments as efforts to protect his personal reputation rather than election tampering.
Pecker’s testimony occurs alongside ongoing legal disputes over Trump’s compliance with a gag order, highlighting the former president’s contentious relationship with the legal system as he faces multiple criminal prosecutions.
The outcome of this trial could significantly affect Trump’s political future, especially as he prepares for a possible electoral rematch with Joe Biden.
Despite the potential repercussions, a conviction would not necessarily disqualify him from holding office.
David Pecker’s testimony offers a window into the secretive practices of media influence in political campaigns, underscoring the lengths to which individuals might go to protect a candidate from public scrutiny.
As the trial continues, more revelations are expected to unfold, possibly shaping public perception and legal outcomes for Trump.
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