SaintsInDome2006
Footballguy
Trump was on the cover of Playboy, was in a soft core porn, and dated more than one sex/porn star. His own wife did lesbian soft core er 'modeling'.
The whole thing is ridiculous.
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Stormy Daniels scandal thread (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Bayhawks
- Start date
The whole thing is ridiculous.
GROOT
Footballguy
Joe Summer
Footballguy
I dunno man. Trump appeared in a softcore porn film and also had sex with at least one porn star.
If he's not a "porn star", he's at least "porn star adjacent".
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SaintsInDome2006
Footballguy
He’s a tv reality star who asked her on his show. She’s good enough for the President of the United States to screw with and *work with but not good enough to be believed. Got it.
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Joe Summer
Footballguy
Also, thank you to Rudy Giuliani for continuing to be the gift that won't stop giving.
His latest interview is like a greatest hits of 1950s misogynist talking points:
- "Donald Trump would never have sex with a porn star because his 3 wives were much prettier than her"
- "I show respect to criminals and to beautiful woman, but I don't respect porn stars"
- "being a 'porn star' is not a profession"
- "you can tell she can't be trusted based on her looks"
- "I'd love to get Stormy on the stand and cross examine her, if you know what I mean"
Also, his recent quote where he said "Donald Trump forced Kim Jong Un to get on his knees and beg" is a brilliant little piece of diplomacy. It's such a blatant example of trolling that you have to wonder if Trump ordered him to say that so that they could trigger an angry response from North Korea which would then allow Trump to justify backing out of the summit (again).
His latest interview is like a greatest hits of 1950s misogynist talking points:
- "Donald Trump would never have sex with a porn star because his 3 wives were much prettier than her"
- "I show respect to criminals and to beautiful woman, but I don't respect porn stars"
- "being a 'porn star' is not a profession"
- "you can tell she can't be trusted based on her looks"
- "I'd love to get Stormy on the stand and cross examine her, if you know what I mean"
Also, his recent quote where he said "Donald Trump forced Kim Jong Un to get on his knees and beg" is a brilliant little piece of diplomacy. It's such a blatant example of trolling that you have to wonder if Trump ordered him to say that so that they could trigger an angry response from North Korea which would then allow Trump to justify backing out of the summit (again).
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bicycle_seat_sniffer
Smells like chicken
bicycle_seat_sniffer
Smells like chicken
squistion
Footballguy
Michael Avenatti @MichaelAvenatti 3h3 hours ago
. @seanhannity @TuckerCarlson Why don’t you have me and Mr. Giuliani on to discuss my client’s credibility, his client’s credibility, and the issues in the case? Why do you keep avoiding this? If he’s your guy, you should want to make it happen! What are you afraid of? Let’s go.
. @seanhannity @TuckerCarlson Why don’t you have me and Mr. Giuliani on to discuss my client’s credibility, his client’s credibility, and the issues in the case? Why do you keep avoiding this? If he’s your guy, you should want to make it happen! What are you afraid of? Let’s go.
squistion
Footballguy
Maggie Haberman @maggieNYT 2h2 hours ago
Yikes. I asked @FLOTUS spokeswoman @StephGrisham45 about Giuliani saying that she believes her husband re Stormy Daniels. Response: “I don't believe Mrs. Trump has ever discussed her thoughts on anything with Mr. Giuliani.”
https://twitter.com/maggieNYT/status/1004819724713234432
Yikes. I asked @FLOTUS spokeswoman @StephGrisham45 about Giuliani saying that she believes her husband re Stormy Daniels. Response: “I don't believe Mrs. Trump has ever discussed her thoughts on anything with Mr. Giuliani.”
https://twitter.com/maggieNYT/status/1004819724713234432
packersfan
Footballguy
It's almost as if they just make up chit up knowing that millions will believe anything they say without caring at all.SaintsInDome2006 said:
packersfan
Footballguy
SaintsInDome2006
Footballguy
Rudy's has quite the torrid personal history as well. I don't see why he would go there.
squistion
Footballguy
Michael Avenatti @MichaelAvenatti 2h2 hours ago
I want to test Mr. Giuliani’s claims of being adamantly against pornography and having no use for adult film stars. If anyone can provide me with any evidence of him voluntarily viewing pornography, I will protect you as a source and publish it. Let’s PROVE the hypocrisy. #Basta
I want to test Mr. Giuliani’s claims of being adamantly against pornography and having no use for adult film stars. If anyone can provide me with any evidence of him voluntarily viewing pornography, I will protect you as a source and publish it. Let’s PROVE the hypocrisy. #Basta
SaintsInDome2006
Footballguy
Uh, I've had this feeling for a while, but he's getting Trumpish. This isn't good, edging into extortion as an attorney for someone who claims she was extorted. He may have been the first lawyer in history to face a pro hac vice hearing much effectively lose one, which he did. I know anti-Trumpers often struggle about how to combat him but becoming him is not the answer.
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squistion
Footballguy
This is isn't even remotely edging into extortion. He is asking others to bring forward any evidence of Giuliani voluntarily viewing pornography so as to expose his hypocrisy. How could that be considered extorting Rudy?
SaintsInDome2006
Footballguy
squistion
Footballguy
Publish it, which does not make it extortion. Rudy has made these public claims about Stormy's character as a result of her work in adult films. If there are people out there with knowledge of Rudy's viewing porn they will come forward or they won't. At this point there is nothing Rudy can do to stop this from becoming public (if it exists) so this can't viewed as Avenatti extorting Rudy.
SaintsInDome2006
Footballguy
IMO and just that, it's designed to humiliate Rudy, embarrass him, silence him, maybe even make him lose his job. Avenatti is literally calling for the release of compromising information on Giuliani.
squistion
Footballguy
So what? Asking for the release of information that is already out there, that others may possess is not extortion. If he obtains it, Avenatti will be releasing it even if Rudy says nothing more about Stormy's character, so this isn't being used to silence him, only to show his hypocrisy.
This is no different than Larry Flint offering $10M for dirt leading to help impeach Trump and no one has suggested that is a form of extortion.
Avenatti has not asked for an apology from Rudy, nor suggested any course of action that Rudy could take to keep this information from coming out. If he had made this conditional, "Apologize to Stormy" and "quit making derogatory remarks about her occupation" or I will go public with testimony of your porn viewing habits," then you might have an argument for extortion. But not here as he has not requested any course of action for Rudy.
SaintsInDome2006
Footballguy
Eh, extortion is at the heart of this. Stormy claims Trump intimidated her into signing the NDA. Trump is accused of using kompromat during the election.
But maybe I do need to back up here. "Voluntarily viewing pornography" isn't exactly evidence of a crime. The request itself is weird, how is someone going to find evidence of this?
Man of Constant Sorrow
Footballguy
Maybe his Mom walked in on him without knocking...
...god that's an awful experience! :X
Sweet J
Footballguy
Person 1 (loudly on TV, intending harm): the person suing my client is a despicable character because she hangs out with architects.
Opposing attorney: "I'd like anyone to come forward with testimony that Person 1 himself has been hanging out with architects an therefore is a hypocrite."
Sweet J
Footballguy
Here's the thing: why would viewing porn "embarrass, silence, or make him loose his job"? It's not illegal, or even immoral. Guiliani has the absolute right to view porn. It's like someone "extorting" me with proof that I hired painters to come paint my living room.
. . . . Unless I made a huge public condemnation of people who hired painters, and trashed someone I was fighting against for being a painter.
Sweet J
Footballguy
@SaintsInDome2006 and @squistion, this is the real heart of the matter.
If Avenetti is looking for people to come forward who can give first-hand testimony that they witnessed Giuliani watching porn, I have absolutely no problem with that.
If Avenetti wants people to illegally hack Giuliani's private computer and provide evidence (or break into Giuliani's house and find his porn stash), that would be clearly wrong, and he shouldn't accept such evidence.
Maybe that's what your discomfort was?
SaintsInDome2006
Footballguy
Ha, ok ok, like I said further up maybe I made a bad comp here. I compared info about Giuliani's porn proclivities to threatening a woman and espionage, and yeah that doesn't work.
Also like I said what would such evidence look like and where would it come from? Giuliani's divorce proceeding maybe? I have no idea.
I still think this is a little hairy though. I mean it is dumb but Avenatti is basically accusing Rudy of being a porn watcher (like you said so what anyway) but if he doesn't get the evidence what does that mean, that he's not? It just seems like he's casting out this allegation with no proof in an effort to suggest Rudy is a hypocrite.
Rudy is a hypocrite anyway on a number of levels, as the way I recall it he cheated on his wife and got thrown out of Gracie Mansion in disgrace. Tbh the whole discussion is kind of impossible and nuts.
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SaintsInDome2006
Footballguy
Maybe so, I'm pretty sure I botched it. The way I imagined this originally was having some sort of hacker who would demonstrate Rudy has a stash somewhere. Otherwise I have no idea how this works? Rudy's mom? His wife? Who would know about such things?
squistion
Footballguy
Well, this is rather cryptic...
Michael Avenatti @MichaelAvenatti 14m14 minutes ago
The sheer power of the Internet and Twitter never ceases to amaze me...
https://twitter.com/MichaelAvenatti/status/1005883470625660928
Encyclopedia Brown
Footballguy
Cohen files a restraining order against Avenatti: https://www.cnn.com/2018/06/15/politics/cohen-restraining-order-avenatti/index.html
FBG lawyers, what is the play behind this filing? What is Cohen's aim and intentions?
FBG lawyers, what is the play behind this filing? What is Cohen's aim and intentions?
Sheriff Bart
Footballguy
squistion
Footballguy
Lawrence O'DonnellVerified account @Lawrence 10h10 hours ago
Michael Cohen mentions me in his motion against Michael Avenatti, so Mr Avenatti you are invited back to @TheLastWord Friday night to discuss.
Michael AvenattiVerified account @MichaelAvenatti 3h3 hours ago
I’ll be there.
squistion
Footballguy
Michael Avenatti @MichaelAvenatti 5h5 hours ago
For over 12 yrs, Mr. Cohen and his boss Mr. Trump have routinely tried to “shut people up” and hide the truth through intimidation & threats. Reporters, judges, adversaries, attys. The motion is right out of their playbook. And their assault on the 1st Amendment continues. #Basta
For over 12 yrs, Mr. Cohen and his boss Mr. Trump have routinely tried to “shut people up” and hide the truth through intimidation & threats. Reporters, judges, adversaries, attys. The motion is right out of their playbook. And their assault on the 1st Amendment continues. #Basta
squistion
Footballguy
Let's see if you are still laughing if her lawsuit is what sets the wheels in motion to ultimately bring down Trump. Cohen was stupid enough to use the L.L.C he set up to pay off Stormy for his other Trump related dealings including those with Russians. Mueller has all kinds of evidence he never would have had if not for "this whore"
SaintsInDome2006
Footballguy
Sorry, I'd object to your using this language as to women, but which woman are you speaking of, the woman that slept with Trump who did nude pictures in Playboy (at least two of those on record), or the woman that slept with Trump that did nude lesbo-faux sex pics, or the woman that slept with Trump that produces faux-sex movies, or the woman that slept with GOP Finance chairman Broidy who did nude pics in Playboy but who used Trump's attorney and the same attorney as the other women for their NDA? Losing track here.
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Weebs210
Footballguy
So you like to pick and choose when you are offended depending on how it would effect the narrative. Seems about right.
SaintsInDome2006
Footballguy
No, it's just we have discussed them all in here. You referred to 'that whore', I was just trying to figure out who I should be objecting for.
Henry Ford
Footballguy
Dickies
Footballguy
Ditkaless Wonders
Footballguy
Don'tWeebs210 said:
G
Guest
Guest
https://www.wsj.com/articles/publisher-of-national-enquirer-subpoenaed-in-michael-cohen-probe-1529529151
Publisher of the National Enquirer subpoenaed for information on Karen McDougal payoff
Publisher of the National Enquirer subpoenaed for information on Karen McDougal payoff
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SaintsInDome2006
Footballguy
Pecker’s been poked.https://www.wsj.com/articles/publisher-of-national-enquirer-subpoenaed-in-michael-cohen-probe-1529529151
Publisher of the National Enquirer subpoenaed
Federal authorities have subpoenaed the publisher of the National Enquirer for records related to its $150,000 payment to a former Playboy model for the rights to her story alleging an affair with Donald Trump, according to people familiar with the matter.
The subpoena from Manhattan federal prosecutors requesting information from the publisher, American Media Inc., about its August 2016 payment to Karen McDougal is part of a broader criminal investigation of Mr. Trump’s former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, they said.
Investigators are probing any potential efforts by Mr. Cohen to suppress damaging information about Mr. Trump during the presidential campaign, including whether he coordinated with American Media to pay Ms. McDougal and then not publish her account, other people familiar with the matter said.
Prosecutors are examining whether the payment violated campaign-finance or other laws, the people said.
American Media hasn’t been accused of wrongdoing, and the company has denied paying Ms. McDougal to suppress her story.
“American Media Inc., has, and will continue to, comply with any and all requests that do not jeopardize or violate its protected sources or materials pursuant to our first amendment rights,” a company spokesman said in an emailed statement.
Ms. McDougal has said publicly that she had a nearly yearlong affair with Mr. Trump beginning in 2006. The tactic of paying for a story but not publishing it is known in the tabloid world as “catch and kill,” The Wall Street Journal previously reported.
The company’s chairman and chief executive, David Pecker, has said he is a longtime friend of Messrs. Trump and Cohen, and the Enquirer aggressively supported Mr. Trump’s campaign. Ms. McDougal said in a March lawsuit against the publisher that she realized after the fact the payment was intended to muzzle her during the campaign.
Two months after American Media’s payment to Ms. McDougal, Mr. Cohen wired $130,000to former adult-film star Stephanie Clifford so she would keep silent about an alleged sexual encounter with Mr. Trump, also in 2006. That payment occurred 12 days before the presidential election.
Mr. Trump and his representatives have denied he had sexual encounters with Ms. McDougal or Ms. Clifford, who is professionally known as Stormy Daniels. Mr. Trump has acknowledged repaying Mr. Cohen through monthly retainers. The White House and Mr. Cohen didn’t respond to requests for comment for this article.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and the Federal Bureau of Investigation have been examining whether Mr. Cohen committed bank fraud or violated campaign-finance or other laws in connection with the payment to Ms. Clifford and other matters, according to people familiar with the investigation. Mr. Cohen has denied wrongdoing and hasn’t been charged.
Federal agents raided Mr. Cohen’s home, office and hotel room in April. A search warrant obtained by federal investigators authorized seizure of documents related to the payments to Ms. Clifford and Ms. McDougal, the Journal has previously reported. The search warrant also contained a broad provision asking for materials related to any effort or payment to deal with sources of negative publicity, a person familiar with the matter said.
Around that time, federal prosecutors sent a subpoena to American Media asking for records related to the McDougal payment, people familiar with the matter said. The company is in the process of producing the documents, one of the people said.
Phone records show that Messrs. Cohen and Pecker were in frequent contact around the time of the negotiations with Ms. McDougal, another person familiar with the matter said. It isn’t clear whether investigators have obtained any information reflecting the substance of their discussions.
The Justice Department’s guidelines for federal prosecutors describe subpoenas sent to news organizations as “extraordinary measures, not standard investigatory practices.”
Corporations are barred from making contributions to candidates under federal election law. If investigators find evidence that Mr. Cohen pressed American Media to buy Ms. McDougal’s story to protect Mr. Trump’s campaign, prosecutors could bring charges against Mr. Cohen, the company or both, legal experts said.
In such a case, prosecutors would have to prove Mr. Cohen coordinated with American Media to provide Mr. Trump something of value for the purpose of influencing the election, said Douglas Spencer, a professor of law and public policy at the University of Connecticut. Proving coordination would likely be the most difficult prong of such a case, he said.
The Federal Election Campaign Act makes clear that news stories, commentaries or editorials aren’t considered campaign expenditures, a press carve-out that could add First Amendment complications to an investigation of American Media.
But the exemption isn’t absolute, said Thomas Frampton, a lecturer at Harvard Law School who studies criminal law. “If the other evidence is there, I don’t think AMI’s status as a media company will preclude liability,” he said.
American Media, Mr. Pecker, and Dylan Howard, the company’s chief content officer, have all retained separate lawyers in connection with the investigation, people familiar with the matter said.
American Media released Ms. McDougal from her contract with the company as part of an April legal settlement. Her lawsuit alleged that American Media and her lawyer at the time lured her into the agreement under false pretenses.
American Media would pay her $150,000 but “would not publish the story because...David Pecker is close personal friends with Mr. Trump,” Ms. McDougal recalled her lawyer, Keith Davidson, telling her, according to the suit.
She signed the contract on Aug. 5, 2016. Mr. Davidson emailed Mr. Cohen afterward to let him know the deal was done, according to a person familiar with the matter. Mr. Davidson is cooperating with prosecutors’ requests for information in the Cohen investigation, people familiar with the matter say.
American Media previously told the Journal its payment to Ms. McDougal was principally for her to write columns and appear on magazine covers.
American Media had published no fitness columns or magazine covers featuring Ms. McDougal when the Journal revealed the contract in an article published on Nov. 4, 2016, four days before Mr. Trump’s electoral victory. Since then, the company has published about 20 columns under Ms. McDougal’s name and put her on the cover of one of its fitness magazines, according to an American Media spokesman.
Mr. Trump’s relationship with the National Enquirer stretches back decades. Tips about Mr. Trump poured into the tabloid after his television show “Celebrity Apprentice” took off in 2002, but the Enquirer turned away stories that could paint him in a bad light, two former American Media employees said. Barry Levine, the National Enquirer’s executive editor until 2016, reminded them that Mr. Pecker wouldn’t allow it, these former employees said. Mr. Levine declined to comment.
In time, AMI employees wouldn’t pitch any more critical articles about Mr. Trump, one of the ex-employees said, which is how Mr. Trump became known within the company as a “FOP,” or Friend of Pecker.
The subpoena from Manhattan federal prosecutors requesting information from the publisher, American Media Inc., about its August 2016 payment to Karen McDougal is part of a broader criminal investigation of Mr. Trump’s former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, they said.
Investigators are probing any potential efforts by Mr. Cohen to suppress damaging information about Mr. Trump during the presidential campaign, including whether he coordinated with American Media to pay Ms. McDougal and then not publish her account, other people familiar with the matter said.
Prosecutors are examining whether the payment violated campaign-finance or other laws, the people said.
American Media hasn’t been accused of wrongdoing, and the company has denied paying Ms. McDougal to suppress her story.
“American Media Inc., has, and will continue to, comply with any and all requests that do not jeopardize or violate its protected sources or materials pursuant to our first amendment rights,” a company spokesman said in an emailed statement.
Ms. McDougal has said publicly that she had a nearly yearlong affair with Mr. Trump beginning in 2006. The tactic of paying for a story but not publishing it is known in the tabloid world as “catch and kill,” The Wall Street Journal previously reported.
The company’s chairman and chief executive, David Pecker, has said he is a longtime friend of Messrs. Trump and Cohen, and the Enquirer aggressively supported Mr. Trump’s campaign. Ms. McDougal said in a March lawsuit against the publisher that she realized after the fact the payment was intended to muzzle her during the campaign.
Two months after American Media’s payment to Ms. McDougal, Mr. Cohen wired $130,000to former adult-film star Stephanie Clifford so she would keep silent about an alleged sexual encounter with Mr. Trump, also in 2006. That payment occurred 12 days before the presidential election.
Mr. Trump and his representatives have denied he had sexual encounters with Ms. McDougal or Ms. Clifford, who is professionally known as Stormy Daniels. Mr. Trump has acknowledged repaying Mr. Cohen through monthly retainers. The White House and Mr. Cohen didn’t respond to requests for comment for this article.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and the Federal Bureau of Investigation have been examining whether Mr. Cohen committed bank fraud or violated campaign-finance or other laws in connection with the payment to Ms. Clifford and other matters, according to people familiar with the investigation. Mr. Cohen has denied wrongdoing and hasn’t been charged.
Federal agents raided Mr. Cohen’s home, office and hotel room in April. A search warrant obtained by federal investigators authorized seizure of documents related to the payments to Ms. Clifford and Ms. McDougal, the Journal has previously reported. The search warrant also contained a broad provision asking for materials related to any effort or payment to deal with sources of negative publicity, a person familiar with the matter said.
Around that time, federal prosecutors sent a subpoena to American Media asking for records related to the McDougal payment, people familiar with the matter said. The company is in the process of producing the documents, one of the people said.
Phone records show that Messrs. Cohen and Pecker were in frequent contact around the time of the negotiations with Ms. McDougal, another person familiar with the matter said. It isn’t clear whether investigators have obtained any information reflecting the substance of their discussions.
The Justice Department’s guidelines for federal prosecutors describe subpoenas sent to news organizations as “extraordinary measures, not standard investigatory practices.”
Corporations are barred from making contributions to candidates under federal election law. If investigators find evidence that Mr. Cohen pressed American Media to buy Ms. McDougal’s story to protect Mr. Trump’s campaign, prosecutors could bring charges against Mr. Cohen, the company or both, legal experts said.
In such a case, prosecutors would have to prove Mr. Cohen coordinated with American Media to provide Mr. Trump something of value for the purpose of influencing the election, said Douglas Spencer, a professor of law and public policy at the University of Connecticut. Proving coordination would likely be the most difficult prong of such a case, he said.
The Federal Election Campaign Act makes clear that news stories, commentaries or editorials aren’t considered campaign expenditures, a press carve-out that could add First Amendment complications to an investigation of American Media.
But the exemption isn’t absolute, said Thomas Frampton, a lecturer at Harvard Law School who studies criminal law. “If the other evidence is there, I don’t think AMI’s status as a media company will preclude liability,” he said.
American Media, Mr. Pecker, and Dylan Howard, the company’s chief content officer, have all retained separate lawyers in connection with the investigation, people familiar with the matter said.
American Media released Ms. McDougal from her contract with the company as part of an April legal settlement. Her lawsuit alleged that American Media and her lawyer at the time lured her into the agreement under false pretenses.
American Media would pay her $150,000 but “would not publish the story because...David Pecker is close personal friends with Mr. Trump,” Ms. McDougal recalled her lawyer, Keith Davidson, telling her, according to the suit.
She signed the contract on Aug. 5, 2016. Mr. Davidson emailed Mr. Cohen afterward to let him know the deal was done, according to a person familiar with the matter. Mr. Davidson is cooperating with prosecutors’ requests for information in the Cohen investigation, people familiar with the matter say.
American Media previously told the Journal its payment to Ms. McDougal was principally for her to write columns and appear on magazine covers.
American Media had published no fitness columns or magazine covers featuring Ms. McDougal when the Journal revealed the contract in an article published on Nov. 4, 2016, four days before Mr. Trump’s electoral victory. Since then, the company has published about 20 columns under Ms. McDougal’s name and put her on the cover of one of its fitness magazines, according to an American Media spokesman.
Mr. Trump’s relationship with the National Enquirer stretches back decades. Tips about Mr. Trump poured into the tabloid after his television show “Celebrity Apprentice” took off in 2002, but the Enquirer turned away stories that could paint him in a bad light, two former American Media employees said. Barry Levine, the National Enquirer’s executive editor until 2016, reminded them that Mr. Pecker wouldn’t allow it, these former employees said. Mr. Levine declined to comment.
In time, AMI employees wouldn’t pitch any more critical articles about Mr. Trump, one of the ex-employees said, which is how Mr. Trump became known within the company as a “FOP,” or Friend of Pecker.
the rover
Footballguy
He lost this at the preliminary hearing for a temporary restraining order, so the chance of this succeeding is pretty slim. Although he hasn't been charged, he expects to be. His argument is that Avanetti's 100+ appearances on TV trashing him will make it more difficult to get a fair trial.
Lutherman2112
Footballguy
"Top GOP fundraiser Elliott Broidy to end hush payments over affair - Attorney claims breach of NDA"
Story is behind WSJ paywall; snippet from Market Watch.
This is a very odd way of keeping people from discussing his affair with a Playboy model.
SaintsInDome2006
Footballguy
True, in contrast when Stormy spoke about her affair, Cohen sprung into action to enforce the arbitration clause and silence her.
Somebody might do that if their lawyer told them that every payment after knowing they were possibly engaged in an illegal act was itself another illegal act might do that though.
- eta - Note on the WSJ story - Bechard's original ask was $5 million.
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SaintsInDome2006
Footballguy
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SaintsInDome2006
Footballguy
WSJ:
Top GOP Fundraiser to Stop Hush Payments Over Affair
Elliott Broidy says ex-model’s lawyer breached $1.6 million deal that was arranged by Michael Cohen
Top GOP Fundraiser to Stop Hush Payments Over Affair
Elliott Broidy says ex-model’s lawyer breached $1.6 million deal that was arranged by Michael Cohen
A top Republican fundraiser will stop making payments to a former mistress who signed a hush-money agreement that was negotiated last year by Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s longtime lawyer.
Elliott Broidy, a Los Angeles venture capitalist and former Republican National Committee official, agreed to pay former Playboy centerfold Shera Bechard $1.6 million—in eight installments, beginning late last year—to keep quiet about her affair with the married donor, The Wall Street Journal reported in April.
Now Mr. Broidy, who worked on the RNC with Mr. Cohen, will withhold the third installment of $200,000 that was due Sunday, in response to an alleged breach of the nondisclosure agreement, according to Chris Clark, a lawyer for Mr. Broidy.
Mr. Clark said Ms. Bechard’s lawyer at the time of the agreement, Keith Davidson, improperly discussed the hush-money agreement with another lawyer, Michael Avenatti, who has replaced Mr. Davidson in representing Stephanie Clifford, a former adult-film star. Ms. Clifford, known professionally as Stormy Daniels, got a $130,000 payment arranged by Mr. Cohen to keep quiet about what she said was a 2006 sexual encounter with Mr. Trump.
“Elliott specifically was paying for confidentiality that would shield his family from the embarrassing mistake he made,” Mr. Clark said. “We can prove there was an intentional breach that renders the contract null and void.”
A spokesman for Mr. Davidson said the lawyer hasn’t breached any agreement. “Any accusation to the contrary is false and defamatory,” said the spokesman, Dave Wedge, adding that Mr. Davidson “looks forward to addressing these matters in the proper venue, which is the court room, not the press.”
Peter Stris, Ms. Bechard’s current lawyer, said he would “take immediate action” to protect her from “any inappropriate conduct by Keith Davidson, Michael Avenatti, or Elliott Broidy.”
Mr. Cohen couldn’t be reached for comment.
Mr. Avenatti said: “I’m neither going to confirm nor deny what information I have about this, whether it’s all been disclosed yet, or where I learned it. But I would encourage Ms. Bechard to disclose everything she knows about this situation to the public.”
The action by Mr. Broidy, 60 years old, also makes the Bechard agreement the third hush-money contract this year to unravel that involved Mr. Davidson and either Mr. Trump or Mr. Cohen, who until recently was the president’s personal lawyer. Any effort by Ms. Bechard to use the legal system to enforce the nondisclosure agreement could shine more of a light on how Mr. Cohen maneuvered to protect the secrets of his high-profile clients.
Mr. Davidson also negotiated six-figure payments during the 2016 presidential campaign for Ms. Clifford and Karen McDougal, another former Playboy model who said she had a sexual encounter with Mr. Trump more than a decade ago. Both women have sought to extricate themselves from contracts brokered by Mr. Davidson.
Federal agents in New York raided Mr. Cohen’s home, office and hotel room in April and are investigating his role in those deals and whether they violated campaign-finance or other laws, according to people familiar with the matter. The president and the White House deny that Mr. Trump had sex with either Ms. Clifford or Ms. McDougal. Mr. Cohen has said he has done nothing wrong.
The Journal has reported that Ms. Bechard, Playboy’s Miss November 2010, said Mr. Broidy impregnated her during a relationship that spanned more than a year. Mr. Broidy gave more than $160,000 last year to the RNC, and in March, he helped organize a fundraiser in Los Angeles that Mr. Trump attended, the Journal reported. Mr. Broidy acknowledged the consensual relationship and said she told him she had gotten pregnant.
The Broidy deal came about after Ms. Bechard hired Mr. Davidson to represent her. Mr. Davidson called Mr. Cohen, whom he dealt with in the agreements involving Ms. Clifford and Ms. McDougal, to see if he knew Mr. Broidy, according to people familiar with the matter.
Mr. Cohen then called Mr. Broidy. “It’s your lucky day, because you have a big problem, and I can help you solve it,” Mr. Cohen told him, according to the people familiar with the conversation. Mr. Broidy, aware of Mr. Cohen’s reputation as a fixer for Mr. Trump, hired him, one of the people said.
The initial demand Mr. Cohen conveyed from Ms. Bechard was for more than $5 million, according to a person familiar with the matter; the parties eventually settled for $1.6 million, payable over two years.
The contract said any potential claims relating to the alleged pregnancy were excluded from the agreement, the Journal has reported. Ms. Bechard later said she had an abortion, people familiar with the matter said. Mr. Broidy has said that was her decision alone.
Months after the agreement was signed, Mr. Avenatti, the lawyer for Ms. Clifford, appeared to reference it in an April 12 tweet: “In last 18 mos, Mr. Cohen negotiated yet another hush NDA, this time on behalf of a prominent GOP donor who had a relationship with a LA woman, impregnated her and then made sure she had an abortion. The deal provided for multiple payments across many months.” The tweet didn’t mention Mr. Broidy or Ms. Bechard by name.
The Journal reported the details of the agreement the following day. Mr. Broidy resigned that afternoon as national deputy finance chairman of the RNC, a title Mr. Cohen also held until relinquishing it in June, citing investigations of him.
Mr. Clark, Mr. Broidy’s lawyer, said Mr. Broidy and his representatives later spoke to people who said they had knowledge that Mr. Avenatti learned of the hush-money deal from Mr. Davidson, prompting the tweet.
Ms. Bechard changed lawyers after the deal became public.
Elliott Broidy, a Los Angeles venture capitalist and former Republican National Committee official, agreed to pay former Playboy centerfold Shera Bechard $1.6 million—in eight installments, beginning late last year—to keep quiet about her affair with the married donor, The Wall Street Journal reported in April.
Now Mr. Broidy, who worked on the RNC with Mr. Cohen, will withhold the third installment of $200,000 that was due Sunday, in response to an alleged breach of the nondisclosure agreement, according to Chris Clark, a lawyer for Mr. Broidy.
Mr. Clark said Ms. Bechard’s lawyer at the time of the agreement, Keith Davidson, improperly discussed the hush-money agreement with another lawyer, Michael Avenatti, who has replaced Mr. Davidson in representing Stephanie Clifford, a former adult-film star. Ms. Clifford, known professionally as Stormy Daniels, got a $130,000 payment arranged by Mr. Cohen to keep quiet about what she said was a 2006 sexual encounter with Mr. Trump.
“Elliott specifically was paying for confidentiality that would shield his family from the embarrassing mistake he made,” Mr. Clark said. “We can prove there was an intentional breach that renders the contract null and void.”
A spokesman for Mr. Davidson said the lawyer hasn’t breached any agreement. “Any accusation to the contrary is false and defamatory,” said the spokesman, Dave Wedge, adding that Mr. Davidson “looks forward to addressing these matters in the proper venue, which is the court room, not the press.”
Peter Stris, Ms. Bechard’s current lawyer, said he would “take immediate action” to protect her from “any inappropriate conduct by Keith Davidson, Michael Avenatti, or Elliott Broidy.”
Mr. Cohen couldn’t be reached for comment.
Mr. Avenatti said: “I’m neither going to confirm nor deny what information I have about this, whether it’s all been disclosed yet, or where I learned it. But I would encourage Ms. Bechard to disclose everything she knows about this situation to the public.”
The action by Mr. Broidy, 60 years old, also makes the Bechard agreement the third hush-money contract this year to unravel that involved Mr. Davidson and either Mr. Trump or Mr. Cohen, who until recently was the president’s personal lawyer. Any effort by Ms. Bechard to use the legal system to enforce the nondisclosure agreement could shine more of a light on how Mr. Cohen maneuvered to protect the secrets of his high-profile clients.
Mr. Davidson also negotiated six-figure payments during the 2016 presidential campaign for Ms. Clifford and Karen McDougal, another former Playboy model who said she had a sexual encounter with Mr. Trump more than a decade ago. Both women have sought to extricate themselves from contracts brokered by Mr. Davidson.
Federal agents in New York raided Mr. Cohen’s home, office and hotel room in April and are investigating his role in those deals and whether they violated campaign-finance or other laws, according to people familiar with the matter. The president and the White House deny that Mr. Trump had sex with either Ms. Clifford or Ms. McDougal. Mr. Cohen has said he has done nothing wrong.
The Journal has reported that Ms. Bechard, Playboy’s Miss November 2010, said Mr. Broidy impregnated her during a relationship that spanned more than a year. Mr. Broidy gave more than $160,000 last year to the RNC, and in March, he helped organize a fundraiser in Los Angeles that Mr. Trump attended, the Journal reported. Mr. Broidy acknowledged the consensual relationship and said she told him she had gotten pregnant.
The Broidy deal came about after Ms. Bechard hired Mr. Davidson to represent her. Mr. Davidson called Mr. Cohen, whom he dealt with in the agreements involving Ms. Clifford and Ms. McDougal, to see if he knew Mr. Broidy, according to people familiar with the matter.
Mr. Cohen then called Mr. Broidy. “It’s your lucky day, because you have a big problem, and I can help you solve it,” Mr. Cohen told him, according to the people familiar with the conversation. Mr. Broidy, aware of Mr. Cohen’s reputation as a fixer for Mr. Trump, hired him, one of the people said.
The initial demand Mr. Cohen conveyed from Ms. Bechard was for more than $5 million, according to a person familiar with the matter; the parties eventually settled for $1.6 million, payable over two years.
The contract said any potential claims relating to the alleged pregnancy were excluded from the agreement, the Journal has reported. Ms. Bechard later said she had an abortion, people familiar with the matter said. Mr. Broidy has said that was her decision alone.
Months after the agreement was signed, Mr. Avenatti, the lawyer for Ms. Clifford, appeared to reference it in an April 12 tweet: “In last 18 mos, Mr. Cohen negotiated yet another hush NDA, this time on behalf of a prominent GOP donor who had a relationship with a LA woman, impregnated her and then made sure she had an abortion. The deal provided for multiple payments across many months.” The tweet didn’t mention Mr. Broidy or Ms. Bechard by name.
The Journal reported the details of the agreement the following day. Mr. Broidy resigned that afternoon as national deputy finance chairman of the RNC, a title Mr. Cohen also held until relinquishing it in June, citing investigations of him.
Mr. Clark, Mr. Broidy’s lawyer, said Mr. Broidy and his representatives later spoke to people who said they had knowledge that Mr. Avenatti learned of the hush-money deal from Mr. Davidson, prompting the tweet.
Ms. Bechard changed lawyers after the deal became public.
