Former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker will be the first witness for the prosecution in Trump’s hush money trial.
The New York Times reported:
Mr. Bragg’s prosecutors will seek to turn the 2016 campaign strategy against Mr. Trump: the tactics that helped him to victory will be admitted into evidence and reconsidered well beyond the courtroom. Aides and friends who lied on Mr. Trump’s behalf will take the witness stand to testify against him.
They include: David Pecker, the tabloid publisher who bought and buried damaging stories about Mr. Trump; Hope Hicks, a spokeswoman who tried to mislead reporters; and Mr. Cohen, the fixer who paid Ms. Daniels. Mr. Pecker, who headed the company that owned The National Enquirer, will go first and is expected to recount to the jury several conversations with Mr. Trump about the hush money, according to a person familiar with the plan.
You never know how a jury will accept and process witnesses and information, but David Pecker could be the most important witness at Trump’s trial because he communicated directly with Trump and Michael Cohen while playing a central role in the hush money scheme to to keep information about Trump from voters before the 2016 election.
To receive more stories like this, subscribe to our newsletter The Daily.
David Pecker can tell firsthand stories of Trump as the criminal plot was hatched. Pecker has direct knowledge and information, and his testimony will support Michael Cohen. Trump’s defense is that everyone else is lying and out to get him.
Trump is trying to get at least one juror to believe him based on the evidence.
It is not enough for prosecutors to have a mountain of evidence. The prosecutor must convince a jury that the evidence proves beyond a reasonable doubt that Donald Trump is guilty. David Pecker’s testimony is the first step toward that case.
Jason is the editor-in-chief. He is also a White House press pool and congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a bachelor’s degree in political science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Pricing and professional memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and the American Political Science Association