Trump trial live updates: Ex-president awaits gag order contempt ruling as hush money testimony set to resume
LIVE – Updated at 10:32
Donald Trump’s hush money trial will get back underway on Tuesday with further testimony from Gary Farro, the banker for former Trump fixer Michael Cohen who took the stand at the end of last week.
Cohen was instrumental in making a $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels to cover up an alleged affair with Mr Trump. The court also heard on Friday from the former president’s long-time executive assistant, Rhona Graff.
Judge Juan Merchan is still yet to rule on whether Mr Trump should be held in contempt of court for violating a gag order imposed on him to stop attacks on witnesses, jurors and court staff.
Meanwhile, the Republican presidential candidate is understood to have met with Florida governor Ron DeSantis in Miami on Sunday to resolve their differences after a bruising primary rivalry.
Mr DeSantis’s campaign for the GOP nomination ended in disappointment in January and the former president now hopes to capitalise on his influence with Sunshine State conservative donors.
The Independent’s Alex Woodward is covering Mr Trump’s trial at Manhattan Criminal Court and will be bringing us regular updates throughout the day.
Key Points
- Trump baselessly claims ‘Deranged Jack Smith, a sick PSYCHO, got caught’
- DeSantis peace talks ‘about money’, not running mate pick
- President trails Trump in poll showing RFK Jr winning one in six voters
- ‘Stormy weather’: Joe Biden pokes fun at Trump at White House Correspondents’ Dinner
- Barr: Angry Trump often proposed executing his rivals
New York hush money trial: Stuck in court, Trump turns criminal proceedings into his campaign
10:00 , Joe Sommerlad
Trump’s hush money trial will get back underway today with further testimony from Gary Farro, the banker for former Trump fixer Michael Cohen who took the stand at the end of last week.
Cohen was instrumental in making a $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels to cover up an alleged affair with Mr Trump.
The court also heard on Friday from the former president’s long-time executive assistant, Rhona Graff.
Judge Juan Merchan is still yet to rule on whether Trump should be held in contempt of court for violating a gag order imposed on him to stop attacks on witnesses, jurors and court staff.
Alex Woodward will be back at Manhattan Criminal Court for us today to watch proceedings.
Here’s his latest dispatch on the trial.
Stuck in court, Trump turns his criminal trial into his campaign
Trump-DeSantis meeting ‘about money’, not running mate pick
09:30 , Joe Sommerlad
Also on Truth Social, Trump has been blowing smoke about his new best pal Ron DeSantis, whom he was last heard deriding as “Meatball Ron DeSanctimonious” and for being both short and dumb.
The men staged an hours-long summit in Miami on Sunday with the aim of brokering a truce after their bitter GOP primary feud — and with Trump hoping to convince the Florida governor to tap into his substantial network of donors in good time for November’s election, according to The Washington Post.
Gustaf Kilander has the latest.
Meeting between Trump and DeSantis was about money; DeSantis won’t be VP, sources say
Truth Social: Trump claims ‘Deranged Jack Smith, a sick PSYCHO, got caught’
09:05 , Joe Sommerlad
In among a thick soup of Fox News clips pleading his case, the former president launches his latest ludicrous attack on the Justice Department special counsel.
The basis? An utterly spurious Newsmax “report” alleging that the Biden administration met with the National Archives in late January 2021, which, angry anchor Rob Schmitt and Judicial Watch president Tom Fitton insist, proves America’s legal system has been weaponised against Trump and is “filthy”.
Judge for yourselves.
Trump led a ‘violent insurrection’ but McConnell still voting for him
08:15 , Oliver O’Connell
Like Bill Barr, Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell has said he will vote for the man he holds personally responsible for leading a “violent insurrection” at his workplace, the US Capitol.
Here’s John Bowden with more on McConnell’s comments…
Trump led a ‘violent insurrection’ but I’ll still vote for him, says McConnell
Eric Trump praises father’s ‘stamina’ at New York trial
06:15 , Joe Sommerlad
This gushing tribute to the old man’s fortitude was all too easily shot down, as in the tweet below, given the defendant’s constant griping about every aspect of life in Judge Juan Merchan’s courtroom.
Amazingly, it wasn’t even the silliest thing said on Fox News over the weekend.
Trump is a hero for going to Chick-fil-A, claims Jeanine Pirro.
‘Trump may lose his hush money trial – but it’s not his biggest worry’
04:15 , Oliver O’Connell
The former president’s public image may take a bruising in New York, writes Jon Sopel, but his eyes will be fixed firmly on the Supreme Court in Washington – and the promise of immunity.
Trump may lose his hush money trial – but it’s not his biggest problem | Jon Sopel
New York hush money trial: Key takeaways from first week of testimony
02:15 , Oliver O’Connell
Trump’s trial is not happening on Monday but will be back tomorrow with more testimony from banker Gary Farro and others.
Here’s Kelly Rissman on what we learned from week one proper.
Key takeaways from the first week of Trump’s trial testimony
Trump invites himself to the White House to debate Biden
01:15 , Oliver O’Connell
The former president turned criminal defendant has suddenly begun to put pressure on his successor to debate him, despite refusing to appear on stage with his rivals for the Republican nomination last year.
Speaking outside of Manhattan Criminal Court on Friday, he proposed the White House as the ideal venue for such a contest, which Biden has said he is more than willing to be part of.
Here’s more on Trump’s challenge from Andrew Feinberg, Eric Garcia and Josh Marcus.
Trump invites himself to the White House to debate Biden
Biden trails Trump in poll showing RFK Jr winning one in six voters
Tuesday 30 April 2024 00:15 , Oliver O’Connell
Here’s more from John Bowden on CNN’s latest poll suggesting RFK Jr is having a serious impact on the presidential race, no doubt a major factor behind Trump’s sustained attack on the Kennedy family’s black sheep over the weekend.
Biden trails Trump in poll showing RFK Jr winning one in six voters
Stuck in court, Trump turns his criminal trial into his campaign
Tuesday 30 April 2024 00:10 , Josh Marcus
The last place Donald Trump wants to be is seated at a defence table, muted, in a courtroom in New York City, surrounded by reporters, for six to eight weeks.
A man who is used to spending his days golfing, surrounded by loyalists at his Florida resort, raging at network news, and traveling to makeshift arenas for rallies where his name is everywhere is instead entering the second week of witness testimony in the first-ever criminal trial of an American president.
But like his civil fraud trial down the street from the downtown Manhattan courthouse where he is on trial for allegedly falsifying business records, the former president is relying on the cameras staged in the adjoining hallway to cast himself as a victim of political prosecution, the defining feature of his 2024 presidential campaign.
That rhetoric is amplified in his campaign’s messages to supporters in increasingly absurd and false characterisations of what’s happening in court, where he pits his word against the reporters in the room and the official court transcript.
Alex Woodward has the full story from the courthouse in Manhattan.
Stuck in court, Trump turns his criminal trial into his campaign
Watch: Lincoln Project debuts new ad with an intended audience of one
Monday 29 April 2024 23:45 , Oliver O’Connell
Per The Lincoln Project:
As Trump stews every night at Trump Tower, the Lincoln Project has released a new “audience-of-one” ad that’s bound to have him chucking his happy meal at the wall in despair. “Guilty” features a whispering voice speaking directly to Trump about all the ways he’s ruined his life and how the walls are closing in.
“Trump falls asleep in the courtroom because he stays up all night dejected, afraid and all alone. He’s rattled at the prospect of being thrown into a court holding cell,” said Rick Wilson, co-founder of the Lincoln Project. “So while he rots away while essentially confined to Trump Tower, we want to make him feel the claustrophobia of prison as much as possible.”
The ad will run digitally geofenced at Trump Tower this week.
Arizona Republican charged in election subversion case elected RNC committeeman
Monday 29 April 2024 23:15 , Oliver O’Connell
An Arizona state senator charged in the election subversion case in the state has been elected as its national committeeman for the Republican National Committee.
State Senator Jake Hoffman was indicted last week, facing allegations that he joined the effort to overturn President Joe Biden’s win in the state. Mr Biden became the first Democrat to win Arizona on the presidential level since President Bill Clinton in 1996.
Gustaf Kilander has the details:
Arizona Republican charged in election subversion case elected RNC committeeman
Watch: Judge Luttig weighs in on Trump immunity claim
Monday 29 April 2024 22:45 , Oliver O’Connell
OAN restracts false story about Michael Cohen
Monday 29 April 2024 22:23 , Oliver O’Connell
Rightwing news outlet OAN has agreed to a legal settlement and to retract a false article about former Trump fixer Michael Cohen.
Cohen’s lawyer Danya Perry tweeted: “Today OAN has announced it is retracting a false story about my client @MichaelCohen212. This is a total vindication for Mr. Cohen — and a warning: Mr. Cohen is telling the truth, and there will be legal consequences for those who lie about him.”
Trump hails DeSantis support
Monday 29 April 2024 22:17 , Oliver O’Connell
Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis are back together again after their bitter primary fight at the start of the year.
The former president posted on Truth Scoial that he is “very happy to have the full and enthusiastic support” of the Florida governor following their meeting on Sunday.
Hillary Clinton trolls Kristi Noem over dog execution
Monday 29 April 2024 22:15 , Oliver O’Connell
Hillary Clinton has become the latest figure to troll South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem over her shocking admission that she executed her dog because it was “untrainable”.
On Monday morning, the former secretary of state and 2016 presidential candidate reshared a 2021 post on X reading: “Don’t vote for anyone you wouldn’t trust with your dog.”
“Still true,” Ms Clinton wrote alongside the post.
Martha McHardy reports:
Hillary Clinton wades in on Kristi Noem’s shocking confession about shooting dog
Hunter Biden takes fight to Fox News
Monday 29 April 2024 21:50 , Oliver O’Connell
Hunter Biden’s attorneys anticipate an “imminent” lawsuit against Fox News and its associated streaming service Fox Nation and have requested that top personalities at the network preserve documents.
Attorneys for the president’s son cited statements made by Fox personalities including Jessie Watters and Maria Bartiromo in a lengthy letter sent to Fox attorneys last week and shared with The Independent on Monday.
John Bowden reports:
Hunter Biden threatens to sue Fox News over hacked photos coverage
Trump often suggested executing his rivals, says Barr
Monday 29 April 2024 21:30 , Oliver O’Connell
Bill Barr has claimed Donald Trump often suggested executing his political rivals during heated moments of his four-year tenure in the White House.
Former White House communications director Alyssa Farah Griffin told The View back in December that Mr Trump once called for a staff member to be put to death for leaking a story about the then-president going down to a bunker during Black Lives Matter protests in summer 2020.
Former Trump administration attorney general Mr Barr was asked about the claims during an interview on CNN last week.
Joe Sommerlad has the story:
Bill Barr says Trump often suggested executing rivals in heated White House outbursts
How secure were Trump’s classified documents at Mar-a-Lago? Not very according to one witness…
Monday 29 April 2024 20:45 , Oliver O’Connell
According to a witness, a coat hanger or a “very tiny screwdriver” could be used to unlock the Mar-a-Lago storage room where Donald Trump stored classified documents.
The claim was made by the unidentified witness in an interview with FBI agents in January 2023, according to new documents, which were released as part of an ongoing effort by Mr Trump and his co-defendants to make additional evidence gathered by special counsel Jack Smith public.
The revelation could undercut Mr Trump’s claims that the documents, which are believed to have contained sensitive government information, were always secured while they were at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.
Martha McHardy has the story:
A coat hanger could be used to unlock room where Trump ‘kept classified documents’
Trump-DeSantis meeting about money, sources say
Monday 29 April 2024 20:15 , Oliver O’Connell
The hours-long meeting was set up with the aim of brokering a truce — and with the aim of convincing the Florida governor to tap into his substantial network of donors ahead of the general election this autumn, according to The Washington Post.
Gustaf Kilander has the details:
Meeting between Trump and DeSantis was about money; DeSantis won’t be VP, sources say
Trump and DeSantis ‘make amends’ during private Miami meeting
Monday 29 April 2024 20:00 , Oliver O’Connell
Donald Trump and Florida governor Ron DeSantis have met privately for the first time since their bruising battle in the Republican presidential primaries.
The 77-year-old former US president and Mr DeSantis, 45, appeared to put their bitter feud aside as they met in Miami on Sunday to talk about how they could work together ahead of November’s election.
The meeting was “set at the request of governor DeSantis”, whose hopes of winning the White House were dashed in the primaries, a Trump campaign official told The Washington Post.
James Liddell has the story:
Trump and DeSantis ‘make amends’ during meeting following bitter feud
Monday 29 April 2024 19:30 , Oliver O’Connell
Trump defence team try to pick holes in David Pecker’s ‘catch and kill’ testimony
Monday 29 April 2024 19:15 , Oliver O’Connell
Alex Woodward reports:
Donald Trump’s defence attorneys have tried to undermine trial testimony from one of the alleged architects of the scheme to buy up politically damaging stories about Mr Trump to boost his chances of winning the 2016 presidential election.
Former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker, the first witness in the former president’s historic hush money trial, faced a barrage of “yes” or “no” questions during cross-examination from Mr Trump’s lawyer Emil Bove on Thursday and Friday in an attempt to poke holes in his week-long testimony.
But Mr Bove’s attempts to impeach Mr Pecker’s credibility fell flat, as the former publisher repeatedly affirmed his under-oath descriptions of his meetings with Mr Trump.
Read on…
Trump’s attorneys try to pick holes in David Pecker’s ‘catch and kill’ testimony
Watch: Hunter Biden planning to sue Fox News, NBC reports
Monday 29 April 2024 18:44 , Oliver O’Connell
Comment: Yes, Trump may lose his hush money trial – but he’s got bigger things to worry about
Monday 29 April 2024 18:30 , Oliver O’Connell
Jon Sopel writes:
Hell hath no fury like a Donald Trump forced to spend all day in a dingy, cold courtroom at 100 Centre Street in downtown Manhattan. Here on the 15th floor, he has spent the last two weeks fulminating. But he can’t do that while the court is in session. Here, it is Judge Juan Merchan who is in charge, not the former president. Here, the president has to do what he’s told.
Continue reading…
Trump may lose his hush money trial – but it’s not his biggest problem | Jon Sopel
‘I think the whole thing is a crock’: Lindsey Graham jumps to Trump’s defence over hush money trial
Monday 29 April 2024 17:45 , Oliver O’Connell
South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham leaped to Donald Trump’s defence on Sunday as he dismissed the former president’s New York hush money trial as “a crock”.
The longtime Mr Trump ally appeared on CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday where he railed against the trial and branded the former president’s long list of legal woes as examples of “selective prosecution” – but declined to say that he should have full immunity from criminal prosecution.
Gustaf Kilander reports:
Lindsey Graham jumps to Trump’s defence over NY trial: ‘The whole thing is a crock’
Arizona state senator indicted in fake electors scheme elected to RNC role
Monday 29 April 2024 17:00 , Oliver O’Connell
Jake Hoffman, the Arizona state senator named as one of the so-called fake electors charged in the state’s 2020 election subversion case, has been elected to the Arizona Republican National Committee.
“I’m humbled and honored to have been elected as the next RNC National Committeeman for Arizona!,” Mr Hoffman said in a post on X over the weekend.
Here’s Kelly Rissman’s breakdown of the case and who is involved:
Who are the 18 indicted co-conspirators in the Arizona fake electors’ scheme?
Recap: Trump and DeSantis ‘make amends’ during private Miami meeting following bitter primary feud
Monday 29 April 2024 16:15 , Oliver O’Connell
Here’s more on our top story today from James Liddell.
Trump and DeSantis ‘make amends’ during meeting following bitter feud
Trump too ‘busy taking himself down’ for Biden to need a big political strategy against him, ex-staffer says
Monday 29 April 2024 15:30 , Joe Sommerlad
According to President Biden’s former chief of staff Ron Klain, Trump is making enough of a hash of things himself for his successor to have to worry about curating a “big political strategy” to beat him this November.
Dark Brandon can simply stand back, fold his arms and enjoy the spectacle, Klain argues.
Here’s James Liddell’s report.
Trump too ‘busy taking himself down’ for Biden to need a strategy against him,
Supreme Court denies Trump advisor Navarro’s bid for release
Monday 29 April 2024 14:45 , Oliver O’Connell
The Supreme Court has denied the latest bid by Trump advisor Peter Navarro to be released from prison pending the appeal of his conviction for contempt of Congress.
Navarro was sentenced to four months in prison for defying a subpoena from the House select committee investigating the events of January 6.
Kristi Noem doubles-down amid dog killing controversy
Monday 29 April 2024 14:30 , Joe Sommerlad
Trump’s potential VP has spent a busy weekend firefighting the confession in her new memoir that she murdered her puppy Cricket, which she somehow assumed would be interpreted as strong leadership.
Ariana Baio has more from the South Dakota governor and dental practice endorser.
Kristi Noem doubles-down over dog killing saying she was being ‘responsible’
Trump led a ‘violent insurrection’ but McConnell still voting for him
Monday 29 April 2024 14:00 , Joe Sommerlad
Like Bill Barr, Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell has said he will vote for the man he holds personally responsible for leading a “violent insurrection” at his workplace, the US Capitol.
Here’s John Bowden with more on McConnell’s insistence that 2+2=5.
Trump led a ‘violent insurrection’ but I’ll still vote for him, says McConnell
Eric Trump praises father’s ‘stamina’ at New York trial
Monday 29 April 2024 13:30 , Joe Sommerlad
This gushing tribute to the old man’s fortitude was all too easily shot down, as in the tweet below, given the defendant’s constant griping about every aspect of life in Judge Juan Merchan’s courtroom.
Amazingly, it wasn’t even the silliest thing said on Fox News over the weekend.
Trump is a hero for going to Chick-Fil-A, claims Jeanine Pirro.
‘Trump may lose his hush money trial – but it’s not his biggest worry’
Monday 29 April 2024 13:00 , Joe Sommerlad
The former president’s public image may take a bruising in New York, writes Jon Sopel, but his eyes will be fixed firmly on the Supreme Court in Washington – and the promise of immunity.
Trump may lose his hush money trial – but it’s not his biggest problem | Jon Sopel
Truth Social: Trump posts ‘STOP THE PROTESTS NOW!!!’
Monday 29 April 2024 12:45 , Joe Sommerlad
Here he is, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, pushing back on American citizens’ constitutional right to protest.
And here he is wading in, without much sensitivity, to the Israel-Hamas conflict to once more insist that 7 October would never have happened if he had been in office.
New York hush money trial: Key takeaways from first week of testimony
Monday 29 April 2024 12:30 , Joe Sommerlad
Trump’s trial is not happening on Monday but will be back tomorrow with more testimony from banker Gary Farro and others.
Here’s Kelly Rissman on what we learned from week one proper.
Key takeaways from the first week of Trump’s trial testimony
Barr: Angry Trump often proposed executing his rivals
Monday 29 April 2024 12:00 , Joe Sommerlad
I don’t know what’s more chilling about this revelation from Trump’s former US attorney general Bill Barr: that the 45th president said this sort of thing at the White House or that Barr plans to vote for him again in November anyway.
Here’s Kelly Rissman’s report on Barr’s recent declaration of support for a man he once compared to a “nine-year-old child” (three years older than Biden placed him).
Bill Barr reveals he will vote for Trump despite once calling him a 9-year-old child
Trump invites himself to the White House to debate Biden
Monday 29 April 2024 11:30 , Joe Sommerlad
The former president turned criminal defendant has suddenly begun to put pressure on his successor to debate him, despite refusing to appear on stage with his rivals for the Republican nomination last year.
Speaking outside of Manhattan Criminal Court on Friday, he proposed the White House as the ideal venue for such a contest, which Biden has said he is more than willing to be part of.
Here’s more on Trump’s challenge from Andrew Feinberg, Eric Garcia and Josh Marcus.
Trump invites himself to the White House to debate Biden
Biden trails Trump in poll showing RFK Jr winning one in six voters
Monday 29 April 2024 11:00 , Joe Sommerlad
Here’s more from John Bowden on CNN’s latest poll suggesting RFK Jr is having a serious impact on the presidential race, no doubt a major factor behind Trump’s sustained attack on the Kennedy family’s black sheep over the weekend.
Biden trails Trump in poll showing RFK Jr winning one in six voters
‘Stormy weather’: Biden pokes fun at Trump at White House Correspondents’ Dinner
Monday 29 April 2024 10:30 , Joe Sommerlad
Another target of Trump’s fury was Saturday Night Live regular Colin Jost, who roasted him remorselessly at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday evening.
Notoriously thin-skinned, there’s no way the Republican was going to take jokes like these with good grace.
Trump refused to attend the event when he was commander-in-chief after being mocked remorselessly in person by Barack Obama when he did go in 2011, with the 44th president riotouslessly sending up the Republican’s ludicrous “birther” conspiracy theory of the time.
President Biden also got in on the act on Saturday, teasing his election rival by saying his hush money trial had left him facing “Stormy weather”, nicknamed him “Sleepy Don” for dozing in court and admitted that age was an issue in the race for the White House after all: “I’m a grown man running against a six-year-old”.
Here’s more on the night from Ariana Baio.
Biden quips Trump is facing ‘Stormy weather’ at White House Correspondents’ dinner
Truth Social: Trump spends weekend lashing out at enemies
Monday 29 April 2024 10:00 , Joe Sommerlad
The former president was otherwise busy this weekend attacking his numerous enemies on his social media platform, going after everyone from President Biden to California governor Gavin “Newscum” while getting in jabs at outgoing Utah senator Mitt Romney and even Bill Maher and Howard Stern.
He reserved particular venom for independent presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr, however, amid recent polling indicating the anti-vaxxer is attracting the support of potential Trump voters.
Here’s Ariana Baio with more on his angry reaction to RFK Jr, who has claimed he was approached by the Trump campaign to be the Orange One’s running mate.
Trump calls RFK Jr ‘wasted protest vote’ after strong polling with Republicans
Trump and DeSantis meet in Miami to bury hatchet after bitter primary rivalry
Monday 29 April 2024 09:35 , Joe Sommerlad
Donald Trump is understood to have met with Florida governor Ron DeSantis in Miami on Sunday in order to resolve their differences after a bruising primary rivalry in time for November’s presidential election.
DeSantis’s campaign for the GOP nomination ended in disappointment in January after failing to live up to expectations and after he was brutally taunted by the former president, who now hopes to capitalise on his influence with Sunshine State conservative donors and sat down with him for an hours-long meeting to bury the hatchet, according to The Washington Post.
Trump has consistently fallen behind President Joe Biden’s fundraising efforts so far and is exploring all avenues as he seeks to make up the difference.
Although the front-runner ridiculed DeSantis throughout the campaign – taking credit for his election to the governor’s mansion, mocking him for wearing heeled cowboy boots to appear taller and calling him “Ron DeSanctimonious” and “Meatball Ron” – the governor endorsed Trump for the presidency when he announced the suspension of his campaign.
The pair have reportedly not spoken since, however, and DeSantis was branded “a sad little man” in February by Trump campaign aide Chris LaCivita after criticising the candidate.
Sunday’s detente was intended to bring an end to that animosity between the two men.
Then-Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis speaks to supporters at a caucus night party in West Des Moines, Iowa, on 15 January (AP)
Good morning!
Monday 29 April 2024 09:15 , Joe Sommerlad
Hello and welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of Donald Trump’s race for the White House and numerous legal entanglements.
The Republican presidential candidate’s New York hush money trial is in recess on Monday but, never fear, there’s plenty more going on in Trumpworld to keep us occupied.