Trump trial: 'Oh my god' Daniels says of her reaction to Trump on bed
Former President Donald Trump is on trial in New York City, where he is facing felony charges related to a 2016 hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. It marks the first time in history that a former U.S. president has been tried on criminal charges.
MORE: Here are 8 pieces of evidence presented so far in Trump’s hush money trial
Trump last April pleaded not guilty to a 34-count indictment charging him with falsifying business records in connection with a hush money payment his then-attorney Michael Cohen made to Daniels in order to boost his electoral prospects in the 2016 presidential election.
Latest Developments
May 7, 12:00 PM
Daniels describes sexual encounter with Trump
As Stormy Daniels described how she and Trump began having sex, Trump tapped his attorney Susan Necheles again, presumably to encourage her to object. Necheles then raised an objection about details of the sex, which was sustained.
“The next thing I know I was on the bed,” Daniels said. “I had my clothes and my shoes off. I believe my bra however was still on.”
Jurors seem riveted — a few are furiously jotting down notes, but most have their eyes fixed securely on Daniels.
“Do you remember how your clothes got off?” Hoddinger asked.
“No,” Daniels said.
“Did you end up having sex with him on the bed?” Hoffinger asked.
“Yes,” Daniels said.
“Did you touch his skin?” Hoffinger asked.
“Yes,” Daniels said.
“Was he wearing a condom?” Hoffinger asked.
“No,” Daniels said.
“Was that concerning to you?” Hoffinger asked.
“Yes,” Daniels said.
Before detailing the sexual encounter, Daniels noted there was an “there was an imbalance of power” but she was not threatened.
“He was bigger and blocking the way. I was not threatened verbally or physically,” Daniels said.
When it was over, Daniels said Trump toold her, “We have to get together again soon.”
She said he never expressed any worry about his wife finding out.
May 7, 11:56 AM
‘Oh my god’ Daniels says of her reaction to Trump on bed
Stormy Daniels said that Trump was on the bed when she came out of the bathroom.
“Mr. Trump had come into the bedroom and was on the bed, basically between myself and the exit,” Daniels said.
Trump was wearing his “boxer shorts and T-shirt,” she said.
“I felt that the room spun in slow motion. I felt the blood basically leave my hand and feet,” Daniels said. “Oh my god, what did I misread to get here.”
“What was your reaction to seeing him like that?,” Hoffinger asked.
“First I was just startled, like a jump scare,” Daniels said.
“I think I blacked out,” Daniels said about her memory of the interaction. She affirmed that she was not drinking or on drugs during the exchange.
One juror, who had been writing down notes, looked up from his page and raised his eyebrows as Daniels recalled the sight of Trump on his bed.
Trump motioned to his attorney Susan Necheles to object as Daniels began to describe what transpired before the two became intimate, which she did. The judge summoned both parties to the bench.
The objection is sustained, said the judge.
May 7, 11:46 AM
Daniels describes items in suite’s bathroom
Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger resumed the direct examination of Stormy Daniels, asking her if she ever used the bathroom during her time in Trump’s suite.
“I did notice the bed was unmade but there were no personal items around,” Daniels said. “There was a leather-looking toiletry bag on the counter.”
Daniels said she snooped in the bag.
“I did look and I am not proud of it,” Daniels said. “The items were Old Spice and Pert Plus. A manicure set, which was gold.”
May 7, 11:42 AM
Court resumes after break
Judge Juan Merchan resumed the proceedings by asking prosecutors to speed up Stormy Daniels’ testimony.
“The degree of detail … is just unnecessary,” Merchan said.
Daniels walked back in to the courtroom and again did not look over at Trump.
Trump had his head down, looking at papers on his desk, as she walked by.
May 7, 11:33 AM
‘You remind me of my daughter,’ Daniels says Trump told her
Stormy Daniels testified that Trump suggested she go on “The Apprentice.”
“He told me an idea — that I should go on his television show,” Daniels said.
“I said there was no way [they] would ever let me on TV,” Daniels said she responded. “I said, ‘Even you don’t have that much power.'”
“You remind me of my daughter,” Daniels said Trump responded, remaking about how people underestimate her intelligence.
“Approximately how long were you talking, in total, in the suite?” Hoffinger asked.
“Close to two hours. It was a long time,” Daniels said.
“Did you sense any red flags?” Hoffinger asked.
“No,” she said.
Court then broke for a brief recess. When Daniels exited the courtroom, she walked by Trump on her way out but did not look toward the former president.
Trump appeared to be talking with his lawyers when she walked by.
Trump then exited the courtroom for the mid-morning break, giving a fist-pump as he exited.
May 7, 11:22 AM
‘Don’t worry about that,’ Daniels says Trump said of Melania
Daniels said the topic of her and Trump’s conversation quickly turned to the “business aspects” of the porn industry.
“He asked how I got involved in the adult entertainment company,” Daniels recounted, telling the jurors that she told Trump the same story about entering the industry the jury heard at the start of his testimony.
Daniels said that Trump peppered her with questions.
“Are there any unions? Do you get residuals? How do you get paid? Do you get health insurance?. What about STDs?” Daniels recounted.
Daniels said that Trump specifically asked about her own tests for STDs.
“Every test that I have ever done … and I have never had a bad test. I never tested positive for anything,” Daniels said.
Judge Merchan asked Daniels to “slow down a little bit so the court reporter can get everything that you’re saying.”
Daniels and Trump also discussed wrestling, including Trump’s televised appearance with Vince McMahon, Daniels said.
“Oh yeah, I made him,” Daniels said eagerly about Trump’s scene with McMahon.
Daniels recalled having a “very brief” conversation with Trump about his wife Melania.
“He showed me a few pictures … and I said, ‘Oh what about your wife?'”
“Oh don’t worry about that, we don’t sleep in the same room,” she said Trump responded.
May 7, 11:18 AM
Daniels says Trump was initially in pajamas
Stormy Daniels testified that Donald Trump was still in his pajamas when she entered his suite.
“He was wearing silk or satin pajamas that I immediately made fun of him for. ‘Does Mr. Heffner know you stole his pajamas?” Daniels said.
“I told him to go change and he obliged very politely,” Daniels said, noting he retured in a dress shirt and dress pants.
Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger asked Daniels to describe the hotel suite in detail — a move to possibly corroborate her testimony later.
“This hotel room was three times the size of my apartment,” Daniels said.
Daniels has been looking to Hoffinger as she answered her questions, but at times reorients herself toward the jurors, engaging with them and appearing to search for eyes to make contact with. She directs her comments to them when she attempts to explain certain details.
Daniels said that once Trump changed his clothes, they passed the time before their planned dinner by talking at a table in the suite.
“He said it was a bit early. ‘Do you mind talking a bit so we can get to know each other?'” Daniels said.
Hoffinger, for a third time, asked Daniels to slow down as she recounted the contents of her conversation with Trump over dinner — which she called the “general get-to-know-you sort of things.”
Daniels said she discussed her upbringing — including whether she was married or had a boyfriend — during the discussion.
May 7, 11:12 AM
Daniels recounts going to Trump’s suite
Jurors were shown the contact information for Trump’s bodyguard in Daniels’ phone. It is listed as “Keith Trump.” Daniels testified she did not know his last name at the time.
“If nothing else you’ll get a great story,” Daniels recalls her then-publicist telling her when she told him Trump invited her to dinner. Daniels said she reconsidered Trump’s invitation after her then-agent encouraged her to join Trump for dinner.
“He said, ‘I think you should go. It would make a great story. He is a business guy. What could possibly go wrong?’ That was his words to me,” Daniels said.
Daniels testimony appears consistent with how she described the interaction in her 2018 book “Full Disclosure.”
Daniels said that she went to Trump’s Harrah’s resort to meet Trump and went directly to his suite per the directions of bodyguard Keith Schiller.
“The door was already open, so I walked right in,” Daniels said.
Trump, at the defense table, sat with his head cocked slightly to the left, as Daniels described details from the night they met for dinner at his hotel room.
May 7, 11:03 AM
Daniels identifies Trump in court
Asked to identify Trump in court, Stormy Daniels slightly got up from her chair to see Trump clearly.
“Navy blue jacket, second at the table,” Daniels said.
Jurors the saw a series of images, starting with a photo of Trump and Daniels together, in which Donald Trump wears a yellow shirt and red hat. Daniels smiles next to him.
Trump and defense attorney Todd Blanche were reviewing paperwork on the desk and Trump did not did not appear to look up as the photo of Daniels and him flashed on the monitor in front of him.
In the next exhibit, jurors saw a photo of Trump at the golf outing wearing the identical outfit.
Trump attorney Emil Bove, seated at the end of the defense table, whispered a message to Todd Blanche, who then appeared to relay the message to Trump.
Daniels testified that at that meeting, Trump’s body guard came to her with a proposal: “That Mr. Trump was interested in having me joining him for dinner”
“F— no,” Daniels said of her reaction, including a bleeped out expression.
“I’m sorry?” Hoffinger asked.
“No,” Daniels repeated with a laugh.
May 7, 10:56 AM
Daniels describes meeting Trump on golf course
Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger, shifting the topic to Trump, asked Daniels about her role at the Lake Tahoe Golf Tournament where Daniels met Trump in 2006.
“Did you meet Donald Trump on the golf course at the celebrity golf tournament at Lake Tahoe?” Hoffinger asked.
“Yes I did,” Daniels said. “It was a very brief encounter on the course.”
Daniels testified she was 27 when she met Trump.
Former President Donald Trump attends his trial at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York City, on May 7, 2024.
“I didn’t know his age, but I knew he was as old as or older than my father,” Daniels said, noting her father was 60. One juror cracked a smile.
Asked what she knew about Trump, Daniels said she knew “he was obviously a golfer and that he had a television show that I had never seen.”
Trump, sitting at the defense table, remained stoic, slouched in his chair and averting his gaze from the witness stand. He has been looking down or straight ahead at intervals, seeming to zone out and then return to attention.
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