The legal team representing former President Donald Trump has asked the judge overseeing his criminal trial in New York to enforce a subpoena seeking communications between former porn star Stormy Daniels and witnesses Michael Cohen and Karen McDougal, plus material she has from NBC's documentary on her.
Trump is facing 34 counts for falsifying business records to cover up alleged hush-money payments made to Daniels to keep her quiet before the 2016 election about an alleged affair. Trump has vehemently denied any wrongdoing and of having an affair with Daniels.
In a letter to Judge Juan Merchan dated Friday, Trump attorneys Todd Blanche and Emil Bove wrote that Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, and her attorney, Clark Brewster, did not respond to the subpoena by the March 29 deadline. The subpoena sought documents in Daniels' possession regarding the NBC documentary "Stormy" that began streaming March 18 on NBC's Peacock platform.
Merchan on Friday rejected Trump's bid to gain documents related to the documentary from NBC, citing New York's Shield Law, but the former president's legal team argued the Shield Law does not apply to documents in Daniels' possession.
The case was set to go to trial March 25 but was pushed to April 15 by Merchan following the release of thousands of pages of documents by federal prosecutors.
The subpoena also seeks any communications between Daniels and Cohen, a former Trump attorney, and McDougal, a former Playboy model, each of whom is set to testify in the case. Trump's legal team wrote that Daniels' communications with Cohen and McDougal, or confirmation the communications were deleted, suggests the witnesses "communicated in order to coordinate their false testimony."
"Communications between Clifford and other women who have sought to monetize sexual assault claims against President Trump are probative of Clifford's motive and intent to do the same through false trial testimony," the attorneys' letter stated.
Trump's legal team is also seeking Daniels' communications with advice columnist E. Jean Carroll, who was awarded $83.3 million in a defamation lawsuit filed against Trump, which the former president is appealing. They also are seeking communications between Daniels and Jessica Leeds and Natasha Stoynoff, who testified in Carroll's civil rape trial against Trump. A jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse but ruled he did not commit rape. Carroll was awarded $5 million.
The attorneys also cited comedian Kathy Griffin's recent comments that she is on a daily text chain with Carroll, Daniels, and Trump's niece Mary Trump.
"Kathy Griffin has stated publicly that she participates in multiparty electronic communications that include both Clifford and Carroll on a daily basis," the attorneys wrote. "President Trump is entitled to this specific evidence of bias, motive, and hostility under the state and federal constitutions, and the evidence is appropriately subject to a defense subpoena pursuant to [New York Criminal Procedure Law], particularly in light of public confirmation of some of the communications."
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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