#metoo likely revival as women and the men who love them, react to the badgering of #stormydaniels and the overall treatment of women by Republicans and denial of #abortion and #bodyautonomy to women. #vote like #democracy is on the line. It is.
The prosecution asks that the defense be precluded from asking #StormyDaniels whether she was arrested. Justice #Merchan agrees w/the prosecutors, saying that “anybody can be arrested” & that it “doesn’t prove anything.”
The people call Stormy Daniels back to the stand
#Trump atty #Necheles begins questioning by saying that in 2011, Daniels denied having had sex w/Trump.
The defense is asking for a mistrial & that #Trump be allowed to respond in public (not court) to #StormyDaniels's testimony. To be clear. Trump is asking the court to lift the #legal restrictions of the #GagOrder, so he can publicly attack a witness’s testimony.
#Trump has sought maximum press coverage of this trial, & now his atty Todd #Blanche is complaining about the press coverage of #StormyDaniels's testimony.
Blanche says that Trump will get asked about Daniels & won't be able to answer because of his #GagOrder.
Blanche concludes & Chris Conroy, a prosecutor, responds, saying the defense team seem to almost live "in an alternate reality." He says the gag order was designed to protect the trial & has been eftective thus far.
Prosecutor Chris Conroy is laying out the challenge facing the critics & opponents who have sought to hold #Trump accountable. He has the protections of a candidate, & a number of people who support him think his rights have been stripped. But if he isn't #gagged, the #witnesses face greater #harassment & #intimidation.
#Blanche is now arguing that #StormyDaniels's testimony about her sexual encounter w/Trump differed from when she told her story previously.
Justice #Merchan encouraged the defense lawyers when they moved for a #mistrial on Tuesday to address any disparities by cross-examining #StormyDaniels. But Daniels has been off the stand for hours, & #Blanche is now seeking to make these points to the judge — & the news media. The judge isn't buying it. "I fail to understand" he says, how this is "an alternate set of facts."
#Merchan says he is concerned, not only w/protecting #StormyDaniels & other #witnesses who have testified, but w/protecting those who have yet to testify & protecting the proceedings as a whole. The judge says that he himself wrote down a version of Conroy's argument "I can't take your word for it that, 'no no, this is going to be low key," Merchan says, referring to the comments #Trump would make if the #GagOrder was altered. "That's just not the track record."
Trump leans forward & glares at the judge as he denies the motion.
Now Todd #Blanche is arguing for a #mistrial, again. Trump's lawyers have been known to call for multiple mistrials in the course of a proceeding. It could exhaust the judge’s patience, & lose credibility.
Steinglass also criticized Blanche's colleague Susan #Necheles's cross-examination of #StormyDaniels, calling it "very thorough but somewhat misleading" & hardcore [#SlutShaming ]
Prosecutor #Steinglass says that the details of Daniels's story before & during the sexual act corroborate her account, & show the fact that sex happened, which increases the motivation to silence her.
#Steinglass said that the details elicited about the sex act were important because they corroborated other parts of #StormyDaniels's story. For instance, at their non-dinner before having sex, acc/to Daniels, Trump asked her about safe-sex practices in the porn industry. Prosecutors later asked Daniels whether Trump used a condom. Steinglass argues that fewer than 10 questions actually elicited salacious details.
#Merchan is effectively saying here that #Trump's position of totally denying the sexual encounter w/ #StormyDaniels opened the door for prosecution to introduce specific evidence that it did occur.
Judge also concern themselves w/being overturned on appeals, which can be embarrassing, especially in a high-stakes trial. By saying he went back & reviewed his own decision, Merchan sends a signal to appeals judges, that he took that first motion for a mistrial seriously.
#Merchan even criticized specific lines of defense’s cross-examination, chiding #Necheles in particular for leaning into the most awkward & uncomfortable parts of #StormyDaniels's testimony w/her questions in a way that he says he simply didn't understand.
[remember, the jury isn’t there]
After insisting to the defense that he barred certain details "to protect your client," Justice Merchan says, "I disagree w/your narrative that there's any new account here."
#Merchan cites specific issues w/the defense's arguments, saying that instead of denying the falsification of business records, they denied the sex w/ #StormyDaniels. [THANK YOU!]
"That in my mind allows the people to do what they can to rehabilitate her & to corroborate her story. Your motion for a mistrial is denied," he concludes.