Hope Hicks, a former White House official and longtime aide to Donald Trump, took the stand in the Manhattan trial against the former president. Her testimony provided jurors with an inside look at the chaotic final weeks of the 2016 campaign, when a 2005 recording of Trump making lewd comments about women was made public.
Hicks described the Access Hollywood recording as a "massive story" that dominated the news cycle and was a "damaging development" for the campaign. Prosecutors allege that Trump and his allies sought to prevent the release of other potentially embarrassing stories, including hush money payments to a porn actor and a Playboy model who claimed to have had sexual encounters with Trump before he entered politics.
The trial is expected to continue with testimony from Michael Cohen, Trump's former lawyer and personal fixer who pleaded guilty to federal charges related to the hush money payments. Cohen is expected to face a tough cross-examination from defense attorneys seeking to undermine his credibility.
Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection with the payments. Prosecutors allege that the Trump Organization reimbursed Cohen for payments to the porn actor and gave him bonuses and extra payments, which were falsely logged as legal expenses.
Trump has pleaded not guilty and denied any wrongdoing. His lawyers have argued that he was possibly a target of extortion and was forced to arrange payouts to suppress harmful stories. Prosecutors maintain that the payments were made to preserve Trump's political viability as he sought the presidency.
The case is one of four Trump prosecutions and possibly the only one that will reach trial before the November election. Other felony indictments charge him with plotting to subvert the 2020 presidential election and illegally hoarding classified documents after he left the White House.