May 16, 2024, 3:17 p.m. ET
Maggie Haberman Reporting from inside the courthouse
Two of Trump’s aides in the room — Boris Epshteyn, who brought Blanche into Trump’s world, and Karoline Leavitt — are smiling as Blanche continues this line of questioning.
May 16, 2024, 3:15 p.m. ET
Wesley Parnell Reporting from the courthouse
Blanche asks Cohen if Trump often made deals to pay cash for buildings or properties. He may be seeking to suggest that when Trump referred to "cash" in that recording, he could have been referencing any number of payments.
May 16, 2024, 3:14 p.m. ET
Jonah BromwichReporting from inside the courthouse
The jurors appear to be paying close attention to Todd Blanche, Trump's lawyer. He is asking Michael Cohen about what it meant for Trump to pay in "cash," noting that it did not necessarily refer to green paper money, but to a payment that was made directly and not through financing. Blanche is seeking to raise questions about the recording we heard earlier in the trial in which Trump directs him to “pay in cash,” though to what end it’s not yet clear.
May 16, 2024, 3:10 p.m. ET
Jonah BromwichReporting from inside the courthouse
Michael Cohen had previously testified that in June 2016, he was negotiating with The National Enquirer and Karen McDougal over her story about having had an affair with Trump. On the stand now, as Todd Blanche digs in about whether he can remember a specific call from that year, Cohen is insisting that seeing prosecutors’ other evidence has jogged his memory about calls he had back then.
May 16, 2024, 3:10 p.m. ET
Jonah BromwichReporting from inside the courthouse
Earlier in the day, Blanche brought up lies Cohen had admitted to telling under oath, and Cohen seemed to still be fighting. But as the day has dragged on, the pile of alleged lies has only grown. And Blanche has almost an hour left to go.
May 16, 2024, 2:59 p.m. ET17 minutes ago17 minutes ago
Jonah BromwichReporting from inside the courthouse
Todd Blanche, the defense lawyer, is asking Michael Cohen how he can have specific memories of phone calls that he conducted eight years ago. Cohen responds that the reason he remembers them is because he’s been talking about the conversations for six years.
May 16, 2024, 3:00 p.m. ET
Jonah BromwichReporting from inside the courthouse
Blanche digs in, asking if Cohen has been talking about the specific phone calls he has been testifying about for six years. Blanche is pouring disbelief into his tone, acting as if Cohen's testimony is ridiculous. Cohen is staring at the lawyer, his mouth downturned.
May 16, 2024, 3:01 p.m. ET
Kate ChristobekReporting from inside the courthouse
Trump has his eyes glued on Cohen this afternoon. This has been rare for Trump throughout this
