Thread by @TylerMcBrien

It’s a foggy, misty morning at 100 Centre St, where I’m waiting to enter the courtroom for Day 10 of Trump’s NY criminal trial.

I’ll be reporting it all today, alongside @AnnaBower and Ben Wittes, for @lawfare. Join me! 🧵⚖️

Its a quiet morning thus far, with nary a protester in sight.

Collect Pond Park, just opposite the courthouse, is totally empty.

While we wait, catch up on everything you missed from Day 9 with @AnnaBower and Ben Wittes’ dispatch, or our 30-min debrief podcast recorded after court each day.



lawfaremedia.org/article/corner…
lawfaremedia.org/article/trump-…

Day 9 started with a bang but ended with a whimper. That morning, Merchan found Trump in criminal contempt for violating the court’s gag order 9 times, fining him $9k. The day ended w/ ADA Steinglass struggling over defense objections to ask a question to witness Keith Davidson.

A very friendly @lawfare podcast listener just walked up to me and Ben and tried to offer us a cash donation right here on the street.

Tempted as we were, we directed him to our GiveButter campaign for funding our coverage of all of Trump’s trials.
givebutter.com/c/trumptrials/…

A lone protester arrives, ringing a bell and holding a wooden cross aloft.

He leaves in the time it takes me to compose this tweet.

Out in line, a German reporter told his American counterpart how to say hush money—Schweigegeld—but lamented it sounds better in Enlighs.

"My god," she replied. "How do you say pornstar?" Pornostar. Or, he thought for a second, Sexfilm Erwachsene, translated to "sexfilm adult."

Justice Merchan's order to show cause for why Trump should not be held in contempt of court lists the four alleged gag order violations about which we'll discuss at today's 2:15 p.m. contempt hearing.

s3.documentcloud.org/documents/2461…

CORRECTION: the contempt order hearing is first up today, at 9:30 a.m., before the jury is due into the courtroom at 10 a.m.

(With thanks to @joshuajfriedman!)

With our German lesson out of the way, we now cross the border, courtesy of @ClaireMeynial, who tells me that hush money in French is pots-de-vin (directly translate to "pot of wine.")

To be fair, a bribe of a pot of wine would definitely work on me.

It's 9:20 a.m. and Trump is seated with defense counsel—Todd Blanche to his right, Emil Bove to his left, and Susan Necheles to Bove's left. Pool photographers snap away at Trump, who wears what appears to be a yellow(?) tie, though sharper eyes may correct me.

The prosecution is here too, as ADA Susan Hoffinger unloads a few documents and Joshua Steinglass chats collegially with Blanche. Matthew Colangelo also begins to unpack a few things from his bag.

Per a hallway pool reporter, Trump said Merchan is "conflicted," and also commented on college campus protests: "I'm so proud of New York's finest." He praised police at Columbia and UCLA, blamed "radical left lunatics."

Confirmed: a bright gold tie paired with navy suit.

According to @AnnaBower my eyes in the courtroom right now, Trump is joined in the courtroom today by Boris Epshteyn, who was recently indicted in Arizona on charges related to the 2020 election.

None of Trump's offspring spotted yet today.

@AnnaBower At 9:30 a.m., the ever punctual Justice Juan Merchan strolls in, "All rise."

Introductions are made, it's the regular cast of characters.

"Good morning, Mr. Trump," Merchan says, mentioning that he asked the jury to come in a little late today in order to have the contempt hearing. 4 exhibits—one for each of the alleged violations—from the prosecution, & the defense also distributed their own—close to 500 pages.

Christopher Conroy for the prosecution says he will not play the videos of the exhibits, but will instead quote the language.

Conroy says the order was issued b/c of Trump's persistent and escalatory rhetoric, to prevent Trump from attacking witnesses and jurors in the case.

Conroy reads the first quote from Trump, hours before his previous contempt hearing, "this judge...said that I can't get away from the trial. You know he's rushing the trial like crazy. Nobody's ever seen a thing go like this. That jury was picked so fast—95% democrats."

Conroy calls his defense of this allegation a "contrived justification" and says it's a little bit like his reposting argument but weaker.

The second violation is from 4/25, when Trump responded to a question about witness David Pecker: "He's been very nice. I mean, he's been — David's been very nice. A nice guy."

Conroy says Trump is saying, "Pecker be nice, to everyone else hearing this, I have a platform."

Moving to the 3rd statement, from PA TV station interview on 4/23: "Michael Cohen is a convicted liar and he's got no credibility whatsoever."

Conroy says there's no question this is related to the trial, clearly willful, clearly knowing.

As Trump keeps his eyes closed, we move to the last allegation from 4/23, made right outside the courtroom door.

All of these are clearly related to this proceeding, clearly willful, Conroy says. "This is the most critical time—the time the proceeding has to be protected."

Conroy says that Trump wasn't responding to anything in particular, especially b/c he is referencing things Cohen said well before the gag order was issued.

"Michael Cohen is not a political opponent," Conroy says.

"[Trump's] statements are corrosive to this proceeding," says Conroy.

Conroy reminds court that on 4/23, Blanche said of Trump's knowledge of the order, "Trump does in fact know what the gag order allows him to do and allow him not to do."

Prosecution is seeking a maximum $1,000 fine for each statement, but prefers to minimize disruptions to the trial, so they're not yet seeking jail.

Blanche is up now.

Blanche says that his response is guided by Merchan's 4/30 order and decision, which defense disagrees with.

Here it is, if you don't have it handy: s3.documentcloud.org/documents/2462…

Blanche says the gag order and Merchan's intention is not to allow unfettered attacks on Trump—recognizing he's running for president. Blanche says there's no dispute that political attacks and responses do not violate the gag order.

Blanche pushes back on the prosecution's timing argument—since Trump announced his candidacy, there have been "multiple and repeated attacks" from Cohen and other people.

"My main concern is with conduct that took place after the gag order" was issued, Merchan says, it's not going to weigh heavily on his decision if Blanche refers to exhibits from a year or two ago.

As a reminder, the defense's exhibits number in the hundreds of pages.

Blanche wants to "keep in perspective" things "beyond just the gag order."

"You can do that. I'm telling you what I'm going to consider," Merchan replies quickly.

Blanche references Biden's comment at the WH correspondents dinner: "Donald has had a few tough days lately. You might call it Stormy weather." Blanche suggests that the gag order prevents Trump from responding to statements like that.

Merchan isn't convinced.

Blanche: Exhibits 61-126 are mostly tweets or RTs by Michael Cohen, certain recent Mea Culpa podcasts, and video transcripts.

Blanche hands up a thumb drive of exhibits, and Merchan asks why it wasn't submitted before today.

Moments ago during the "stormy weather" exchange, Merchan told Blanche: [Trump] can respond to president Biden. Biden can make a reference to this trial, and Trump can respond in certain ways.

Those ways do not include talking about witnesses.

Blanche categorizes Trump's comments about Pecker as "neutral."

"It's not just about Mr. Pecker," Merchan says. "It's about what all the other witnesses who come here see." He expressed concern about Cohen and Daniels, but it's about the others too.

Blanche says gag order is not fair b/c of "what's happening behind us"—referring to the press's 24/7 coverage of everything that's happening, what witnesses are saying.

I can't help but wonder if Blanche has read some of my live-tweets.

"What's happening in this trial is no surprise to anyone. The former pres of the US is on trial. He's the leading candidate of the Repub Party. It's not surprising we have press here" and in the overflow room, Merchan says.

There's an uncanny feeling of breaking the fourth wall

Blanche complains that the witnesses and press can say whatever they want, but Merchan quips, "They're not subject to the gag order," with a few chuckles from the press. "That's a very significant issue you're overlooking," saying he doesn't have authority over them.

Merchan cuts Blanche off to point out that in certain statements, Trump went to the press, the press didn't go to him. He quite literally could've gone out a different door, nobody forced Trump.

"Judge...I agree with that," Blanche says defeatedly, w/ big laugh from the press.

We're back to Pecker now, and Blanche argues that there was no animosity between the witness and Trump (or rather, to Pecker, just "Donald."), and the court should take that into consideration.

"Just to save you time, I'm not terribly concerned about that one," Merchan says.

No ruling yet of course, but it sounds like Merchan may not hold Trump in contempt for the allegation re: his statements about Pecker.

Taking the small win in stride, Blanche moves breezily back to Trump's comments re: Cohen. "Quickly," Merchan urges as Blanche shows an exhibit

Chuckles ripple thropugh the courtroom as Cohen's posts are displayed, including a caption of "I won't send money to your commissary" and an AI-generated photo of Trump in an orange cape with the caption SUPER VICTIM.

"Von ShitzInPantz" gets an especially hearty laugh.

Bon courage to @ClaireMeynial as she has to translate "Von ShitzinPantz" to French in real time for readers of Le Point.

🫡

Note that because the exhibits are displayed on screen, it's difficult to see Trump's reaction, if any, because the video of him is relegated to a small corner of the screen.

"You've made your point," Merchan says as Blanche tries to show more exhibits.

Blanche is tying it all together now: Finally, as is reported, "because it's true," Cohen has been going on TikTok nightly and "literally making money" off of criticizing Trump.

"This is not a man who needs protection from the gag order," Blanche says of Michael Cohen.

"Can I ask you to address the comments that were made about the jury?" Merchan asks, wanting to move on from Cohen.

Blanche offers a defense, "We very much believe that this is a political persecution—a political trial," pointing to the political makeup of the jurisdiction.

Merchan cuts in, impatiently: "Did he violate the gag order? That's all I want to know."

It's now 10 minutes after the jury was expected in, and Merchan is trying to move this along. He's reeling Blanche back in to the matter at hand.

"I understand your argument, thank you," Merchan says conclusively.

We're taking 5 minutes before we go to the jury.

*To clarify, we're taking 5 minutes before we bring in the jury. The jury was not present for any of that, nor will the know or see Merchan's decision on these contempt allegations (just as they did not see or witness his decision holding Trump in contempt for the other 9)

"I think we can get the witness back on the stand," Merchan says, now back at 10:18 a.m.

The video feed to the press overflow room is cut as (I assume) the jurors enter the courtroom.

There are quite a few members of the public in the back of the gallery today. Not a peep from them, nor any rule violations. So far a very orderly and respectful bunch.

"Morning Mr. Davidson," Steinglass greets the witness, Keith Davidson, former lawyer to Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal.

We resume discussing email exchanges btwn Davidson and Michael Cohen.

Steinglass asks Davidson to read a 10/26/16 email from Dylan Howard to him and Cohen, which we see on the screen, confirming agreement on "Keith's client."

What is your understanding of what this email is about? asks Steinglass. Long, careful pause from Davidson.

The email followed a conference call between the three men, as there was difficult in comms btwn Cohen and Davidson, the latter of whom had lost trust in Cohen, and Howard came in as a "mediator."

Why the loss of trust? "I believed he was not telling me the truth," says Davidson, regarding "delays in funding."

Now we see another email on screen: btwn Davidson and Cohen, subject line "Re: wire on behalf of Essential Consultants LLC" from 10/27/2016.

Davidson reads the content of another email chain.

In the email, he confirmed to Cohen that he received a wire transfer, and will work in good faith, no funds will be dispersed until settlement.

Now Steinglass throws onto the screen texts btwn Howard and Davidson.

When Howard texted "money wired I am told," Davidson took that to mean Cohen.

Then:

Davidson: "Funds received"
Howard: "Unbelievable"
Davidson: "Was never really sure..."

Davidson replies neutrally to each of Steinglass's questions. He answers carefully, pausing frequently to get things right, betraying no emotions that I can tell.
He's dressed in a light gray suit and blue tie, and his hair is parted neatly. He strikes a professional appearance.

He discusses liquidated damages provision of contract, one million dollars per breach, per Cohen's request. Davidson believed it unenforceable bc no rational relationship btwn liquidated damages & underlying payment, should be reasonably related to amount in underlying contract.

The contract is between Stormy Daniels (using the pseudonym PEGGY PETERSON) and Trump (under the pseudonym DAVID DENNISON, named after a hockey teammate of Davidson's.)

Apologies to any of my old high school lacrosse teammates if you ever end up on a court record.

Daniels and Cohen signed the agreement on 10/28/16, and Davidson signed a few days later on Halloween.

There is no signature above the line for DAVID DENNISON, aka Donald Trump.

Here's the agreement that's displayed on screen, if you'd like to follow along at home: documentcloud.org/documents/2462…

Davidson says that he personally made $10,000 from this deal.

"I fear that invades attorney-client privilege," Davidson asks to Steinglass' question of how much $ he disbursed to Daniels. He says he disbursed everything pursuant to the agreement. For Gina Rodriguez too.

Steinglass shows Davidson a WSJ article from 11/4, in which the McDougal deal was made public.

Cohen "was very upset the article had been published" wanted to know about the timing of it and who the source was. Also that his "boss was very upset."
wsj.com/articles/natio…

Where was McDougal when this article was published? Steinglass asks, but Davidson doesn't recall.

More texts now between Davidson and Howard.

D: "What have we done?" [a giggle from the press.]

This is sort of "gallows humor," Davidson says, this was on election night. There was surprise that Trump was leading, and folks were ready to call the election for him.

"This was an understanding that our activities may have in some way assisted the presidential campaign of Donald Trump," Davidson explains.

How did Howard respond? Steinglass asks.

Howard simply texted: "Oh my god."

After the election Cohen called Davidson "fairly frequently." In one such call, a saturday morning, Davidson was doing holiday shopping at a department store that was "strangely decorated"—a rare digression for him.

A "depressed and despondent" Cohen told Davidson something to the effect of:

Jesus Christ, can you fucking believe I'm not going to Washington after everything I've done. I can't believe I'm not going to Washington. I saved that guy's ass so many times, you don't even know.

Cohen also mentioned to Howard during that phone call that he was not even going to get paid the $130,000.

Steinglass shows Davidson a receipt from that department store on the day in December.

I'm almost afraid to ask this question, but how was the store decorated? Steinglass asks.

It was Alice in Wonderland, very strange, "you felt very small and there were these huge rabbits." Confused laughter in the press overflow room.

A chilling scene, to be sure.

Now an email on screen from KD to MC, subject line "Fwd: Stormy Daniels."

KD forwarded his comment to a reporter at WSJ, which read, "Nothing about the presend day regurgitation of these rumors causes us to rethink our prior denial issued in 2011."

KD and MC had a mutuality of interest" at this time, KD says, a full executed agreement, the underlying matter of which was about to be published. He thinks he had a contractual duty to inform Cohen that something was about to be published.

Exhibits gone from the screen for now, I can see Trump a lot more clearly. He is slid down in his chair, eyes closed, head moving side to side occasionally. He opens his eyes to say something to Blanche, who leans in close.

More texts on the screen now, People's Exhibit 255, txts btwn Davidson and Cohen.

KD: WSJ called stormy. She didn't answer. They say they are running story & have a deadline of tonight for her to comment.
MC: Write a strong denial comment for her like you did before.

(These texts are from Jan 10, 2018)

KD understood this to mean...well exactly what the text said.

A denial of what? Steinglass asks.

Everything.

Including sexual encounter with Trump?

Yes.

Now we see on screen the aforementioned "strong denial comment" dated 1/10/18, signed by Stormy Daniels.

How would you characterize the truthfulness of this statement? Steinglass asks, as the press chuckles.

Davidson describes this denial statement as a common cat-and-mouse tactic between publicists, attorneys, and the press. An extremely strict reading of this denial would "technically be true."

We are now doing a close reading, akin to a high school English class dissecting poetry

The accuracy turns on how one defines "romantic" "sexual" and "affair" says KD.
Why?
I don't think anyone could characterize the relationship between her and Trump as "romantic," KD says with a sheepish look. The press cracks up once again.

[This is good content, as they say]

Here's the full statement if you'd like to do a close reading of your own at home.

Truthful or not? You decide.

pdfs.nycourts.gov/PeopleVs.DTrum…

"The wise men all believe the story is dying and don't think it's smart for her to do any interviews. Let her do her thing but no interviews at all with anyone," Cohen texted Davidson on 1/17/18.

Davidson said this was one of Cohen's chaotic "pants on fire" periods.

KD: Spoke to her. Everything is as we discussed - she steadfastly refuses to speak about the past
MC: We will see because it airs tonight
MC: Why is she going on Kimmel after the Sotu
KD: Idk I was pissed. She said this is her shot. I'm meeting with her this weekend to prep...

...her and get the statement.
KD: Call when u can

Davidson reads the transcript slowly, punctuating each word in a staccato rhythm.

She wanted to talk about her life and reinvigorate her career, Davidson says of the exchange, referring to Stormy Daniels' plan to go on Kimmel. More texts:
MC: It's out.
MC: Press will be calling you
MC: Have you received calls from Press?
KD: About a hundred

(from 1/30/18) Davidson texted "She's stating that she authored iti & she released it of her own volition" in reference to another denial statement that they wrote on Cohen's request.

Davidson prepared another statement for Daniels to sign and release prior to her appearance on Kimmel.

He notes that at the time he was at the Marilyn Monroe suite at the Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood, CA.

How would you characterize the truthfulness of this statement? Steinglass asks again.

I think it's technically true, Davidson responds again.

How?

Because no one had ever alleged there was a "relationship" btwn Daniels and Trump, bc a relationship is an "ongoing interaction"

But it also denies that Daniels was paid hush money, Steinglass says.

Davidson maintains the statement's truthfulness, however technical it may be.

Texts now from 1/31:
MC: She just denied the letter
MC: Claiming it's not her signature
MC: You said she did it in front of you
KD: She did. Impossible - she posted it on her own twitter page
MC: They showed her signature and she claimed it was not hers on Kimmel

Did you respond in anyway? Steinglass asks Davidson.

He did.

"Wtf"

"It was sort of a...signal of exasperation," Davidson explains, getting—you guessed it—quite the laugh from the press.

An upset Cohen texted Davidson, who responded: Gina is ticked off at stormy because stormy made her look like a liar. Gina says she is going to have a LONG talk with stormy on the plane to NY tomorrow. She assured me this will get handled

I was trying to thread the needle and hold off allegations of breach and all the penalties that would come with that, KD explains. That would be a disaster...We're trying to placate him while also—pause.

He can be a very aggressive guy, KD says of MC's threats to sue Stormy.

Davidson continues that Cohen could be a very aggressive guy. Cohen would say he would bankrupt Daniels or "rain legal hell" on her, saying things like “Dont fuck with us. You don’t know who you’re fucking with.”

Steinglass is displaying another series of texts from Davidson to Cohen.

In one of them, Davidson texts Cohen: "U up?"

But, it probably wasn't *that* kind of "U up" text, I'm guessing.

What's going on here in the rest of the texts?

KD says that Cohen was under some fire and wanted validation or corroboration that the $130k was in fact paid through Cohen and not somebody else. He asked Davidson to write something to that effect to send to Chris Cuomo.

KD said yesterday he believed the ultimate source of the funds was Trump, so how does he reconcile that?

There was a point, you'll recall, when Cohen said “fuck it I’ll do it myself.” At the time of the transaction, Cohen told him he’ll do it himself.

We fast forward to April 2018, when Davidson said on CNN that Cohen used his own funds to pay Daniels, which KD confirms.

Steinglass asks for a moment to step away from the lectern to consult with fellow counsel.

He returns and asks, "Mr. Davidson do you have any stake in the outcome of this trial?"

None whatsoever.

No further questions.

We take a brief break.

It's 11:56 a.m., Merchan is back on the bench, Davidson is on the stand, and the jurors have returned.

Emil Bove for the defense begins the cross.

Davidson confirms he never met nor spoke to Trump, and has no firsthand knowledge of the Trump Organization beyond what he received.

Bove points out that everything Keith Davidson knows about Trump "came from either TV or Michael Cohen."

Bove turns to ask Davidson about his close relationship with Dylan Howard, whom he knew for over a decade, though can't recall the starting point.

Would it surprise you to learn that Mr Howard considered you to be a major source of info? Bove asks. Yes, KD says.

Karen McDougal didn't want to publish an article about the claims discussed here, Davidson confirms to Bove.

She had three goals: one was to rejuvenate her career, Davidson said she had a "real career," had been on magazine covers, a "healthy career."

Another goal was to make money? Yes.

A third goal was to avoid telling her story, something that McDougal said in an interview with Anderson Cooper.

Focusing now on Daniels and her manager Gina Rodriguez, the latter of whom Davidson had a "reciprocal referral relationship." In fact, Davidson tried to represent GR in this very case, though the DA's thought that would be a conflict of interest, bc KD is a witness.

In 2016, KD sent a cease and desist letter to The Dirty, a gossip blog which had an article from 2011 about the Daniels-Trump affair and which had been subsequently picked up by the NY Daily News and disseminated elsewhere.

Now onto the side letter to the agreement, the word "decoded" was used, says Bove—with regard to the PP and DD pseudonyms, which are "widely used with these types of agreements," says KD.

Bove asks about the Cohen call in which Davidson described him as "disheartened."

"I thought he was gonna kill himself," Davidson says with some concern.

Bove takes a "step back" to recount how Davidson has interacted with law enforcement throughout this period.

Does Davidson recall invoking attorney-client privilege with federal prosecutors during three meetings in 2018? Yes.

Bove: Do you recall meeting with Pomerantz?
KD: Yes.
Bove: And do you recall him saying you’re obviously concerned with making a statement that someone is going to say—Objection, sustained.

Bove, again: “May I be heard?”

[sidebar.]

Attorneys for both sides huddle around Merchan, who leans in to talk to them.

Trump looks on from the defense table alone.

Merchan clears his throat and says into the microphone: "The objection is sustained."

Bove continues, asking Davidson about his use of "aggressive guy" for Cohen. "You can be aggressive too, can't you?" Bove asks. "I don't know. I suppose," says Davidson.

What's the meaning of extortion? asks Bove?

KD: Obtaining of property by threat or fear of force
Bove: Compelling an action by fear or by force, how's that? Is that accurate?
KD: Sure.

Bove: And as you sit here to today, is it your belief that the statute of limitation on any extortion crimes has run?
When KD says he has no opinion, Bove asks, Youre an attorney and you havent thought about that prior to your testimony?

"You were concerned about linking those two issues: payment and elections," Bove asks, as he puts one hand out to represent payment, and another to represent elections.

Davidson seems a little defensive as he responds to Bove's relentless cross.

After confirming that Davidson was very familiar with NDA agreements in his practice, Bove asks "By 2016, you were pretty well versed in getting right up to the line without committing extortion, right?"

"I don't understand the question," Davidson responds.

In connection with events in 2012 you were investigated by state and federal authorities for committing extortion against Hulk Hogan, and in connection with that investigation, did you not familiarize yourself with extortion offenses? Bove asks.

That's fair, Davidson says.

You did everything you could to get as close to the line as possible in these negotations without crossing them, right? Bove presses him again. Including making overt threats related to the 2016 election?

Davidson says he didn't make threats to anyone.

Did KD rep a woman named Dawn Holland, who leaked info about Lindsay Lohan's rehab facility treatment to TMZ, correct?

It was reported that that’s what she did, says KD.

Did KD help Holland get paid $10k to sell that story to TMZ? KD doesn't recall.

"Do you know who Tila Tequlia is?" Bove asks, as members of the press—I'm guessing a few of my fellow millennials—chuckle quietly.

I do, Davidson says.

Bove asks if KD recalls representing Francis Auls, and whether KD would characterize him as "a sex tape broker"? KD doesn't recall, but says it would be "fair" to call him that.

You don’t recall Auls threatening Tila Tequila that the tape would publish if she didnt pay 75k? KD doesn't recall.

Nor does KD recall that at the time of that transaction he was on a 90-day bar suspension?

Bove now asks Davidson about Charlie Sheen.

It's a trip down TMZ tabloid memory lane.

Bove asks if KD repped some clients to help them extract sums of money from Sheen on behalf of clients?

“There was no extraction," KD says, leaning into the microphone with a slight smirk.

Is it safe to say your memory seems a little fuzzy around these issues? Bove asks.

Davidson leans in again: I've had 1,500 clients over my career.

Look, we're both lawyers. I'm not here to play lawyer games with you, Bove fires back.

Bove says he wants truthful answers.
"I am giving you truthful answers, SIR," Davidson says, with a more than noticeable hint of disdain, and if you don't want to play lawyer games, don't use extraction
"Now *this* is an exchange," a reporter next to me in the press room says.

Bove seems to catch KD in contradiction—at one point he can't recall, at another point he's invoking privilege.

After a very brief sidebar, and a bit of cooling off between the tension that had built between, we continue.

Flashback to 2012: does KD recall a sex tape published by Gawker at the time?

After a slow start on Tuesday, Davidson's testimony has finally turned into the salacious who's who gossip rag column it promised to be.

CORRECTION: Bove asked Davidson if he recalled the Hulk Hogan sextape that Gawker *reported.*

Bove asks KD if he recalls telling Hogan's attorney's that KD sees a lot of people caught on tape, not all are celebrities, some of them are family men and don't want to be outed as gay. He was representing people with the tapes at the time. KD doesn't recall.

Bove jogs KD's memory that Natl Enquirer ran stories about the tapes in 2015, including stories on which Dylan Howard had a byline.

That's because you referred info incl of Hogan tape to Howard right? KD says no, Bove says that's just happenstance? KD doesn't know.

Bove asks if around that time the FBI ran a sting operation targeting a meeting btwn KD and Hulk Hogan's representatives at a hotel, correct? Yes, they recorded it, while sitting nearby.

Bove asks about a report about the incident by the Tampa Police Department, but prosecution objects, and it's sustained.

Bove: It was an investigation related to extortion right?
KD: I believe so.

KD was not ultimately charged, but that experience gave you familiarity with extortion law, correct? asks Bove. Not sure, says KD.

How about Gabriel Rea, who was in a dispute re: boxer Manny Pacquiao?

Dispute is loosely used, says KD.

Rea felt he was owed a finders fee upwards of $100m, but KD offered much less and threatened Rea would not be able to find work in California if you did not accept that settlement, right? Bove asks, but KD shakes his head and says, That's false.

I wouldn't necessarily call this "lawyer games," as has been thrown around so far, but Davidson is clearly not going to admit to extortion on the stand, despite Bove's best efforts right now.

As Bove asks Davidson's fee for representing McDougal, we turn to People's 279, which we saw on Tuesday, an email from Davidson to McDougal re: a retainer agreement, attached.

After a truly salacious half hour or so, during which we name checked a who's who of mid-2010's tabloid celebrities, the pace—and tension—has slowed back down, and we're reviewing documents once again. Agreements, texts, the details of many of which Davidson can't recall.

We see June 2016 texts between Dylan Howard and Davidson displayed on screen.

"I have a blockbuster trump story" Davidson texted Howard.

But it stalled—AMI wasn't interested because there wasn't enough corroborating information.

"Is this a good time to stop?" Merchan asks, as I yell YES silently in my head.

We break for lunch, and this reporter is quite thankful food is in my near future.

Stay tuned for the lunch du jour with @AnnaBower and Ben Wittes.

Before we leave, Merchan asks how much time the defense expects to be left for cross, which Bove says to be less than an hour.

We're back in the courtroom after a very quick soup dumpling lunch. As I always say, the best thing about 100 Centre St? Its proximity to Chinatown.

Trump is back at the defendant's table as well, and I wonder what he had for lunch.

As for Merchan's lunch, my money is on a sensible protein bar and a green smoothie, taken peacefully in the comfort of his chambers.

Speaking of the punctual judge, he's back on the bench at 2:12 p.m., ahead of schedule.

Necheles is up now, clarifying some of the finer points of the gag order, mentions pile of articles by legal commentators (Jonathan turley & others), which Trump wants to post on truth social. They mention witnesses and prosecutors, so she wants to run them by the judge first.

Merchan appreciates her bringing these to his attention, but he's not going to give an advanced ruling, as the prosecution argued against the judge doing.

"At this point, this court, a higher court has found that there's nothing wrong with the gag order," says Merchan. He would advise Trump, "when in doubt, steer clear."

Necheles pushes back but Merchan cuts in—"I'm not going to argue this with you, Ms. Necheles."

Necheles persists, arguing this is a core First Amendment issue, but Merchan repeats himself: "When in doubt, steer clear." She relents, and takes a seat.

I must say, Necheles' performance in the past 3 minutes was more impressive than Blanche's much longer one this morning.

Speaking of impressive, Bove probably spent the lunch break sharpening his fangs with a file. They are now pointy and particularly scary looking.

I would not want to be Davidson right now—the pre-lunch cross was something fierce.

The jurors are here, and Davidson is back up at the stand, putting on a brave face.

Bove takes the lectern again. He'd like to talk a little bit more about the 2011 blog post on The Dirty, specifically about Gina Rodriguez, Stormy Daniels longtime manager.

Rodriguez had a boyfriend, an Anthony K(?)—didn't he write that blog post? Davidson doesn't know.

And James Guardina(?)—Karen McDougal's ex-husband—he worked at The Dirty right? asks Bove. Again, Davidson can't recall.

Bove leans down to collect something that fell.

"That drop was catastrophic to my binder," Bove says reshuffling the documents before him.

It seems everyone had a heavy lunch. The atmosphere is lethargic.

Bove resumes, establishing that Daniels and McDougal wanted the blog post taken down so that they could negotiate a better deal via Davidson.

They were using my efforts to create an exclusive opportunity with another publication, KD clarifies, pinching the air.

Back to Michael Cohen.
Bove: You continued to work with Cohen after the Daniels settlement? asks Bove.
KD: Yes—well, not *with him*
Bove: He sent you work?
KD: Yes—well, non-paying work. Our relationship changed over time.

Bove: How about a client of KD's named Shera Breshard from late-2017?
KD: That doesn’t strike me as wrong.
Bove asks about allegations of sexual relations between Breshard and Elliot Broide.
KD: I think that’s publicly reported.

Davidson has regrouped—now he's a steel trap.

In conversations with Cohen about Daniels, did Davidson ever say that Daniels had "settler's remorse" or use the word "leverage"?

Funny enough, he doesn't recall.

Bove introduces Defense Exhibit F15AT, and instructs Davidson to don headphones, which he at first holds up to one ear like a radio DJ.

He then takes them off and puts them on upside-down, though, I suppose, they still "technically" work that way, to borrow a word from Davidson.

Christopher Conroy also has headphones on now, as does Necheles, but we can't hear anything.

It looks a bit like the lamest silent disco you've ever seen, which is saying something.

The audio has refreshed Davidson's memory. He did indeed say "settler's remorse" to Cohen, who had recorded that conversation in March 2018.

Bove shows KD a paper he said "hypothetically speaking" and asks that was code right? "You were using the word hypothetical so you could sit in a chair like this and say 'I'm not sure I was talking about Stormy Daniels,'" Bove accuses KD, his voice rising.

Davidson agrees that this conversation was about Daniels, but says Bove is grossly mistaken about the dates.

But this is all shorthand for "settler's remorse," is it not? Bove presses.

That's true, Davidson relents.

Bove asks Davidson's recollection of a converastion with Cohen in which he says Avenatti has really driven a wedge...between Stormy and Gina.

Davidson can't recall, so the headphones are back on and the lame silent disco resumes.

The clunky headphones are connected to dials that resemble a Walkman, so the scene has a real throwback quality to it.

Recall Bove said before lunch that he expects an hour for the rest of his cross. We've just about hit the 30-minute mark.

Though I wonder how slowly time is moving for Davidson.

The headphones are back on, and KD listens intently.

To all the sports fans out there, including @mollyereynolds, unfortunately KD = Keith Davidson, not Kevin Durant. Alas.

Trump's eyes remain closed as Davidson dons the headphones again. Perhaps his own silent disco is playing in his head.

Bove enters a confidential settlement agreement—aka an NDA—into evidence, and we see it on the screen.

It's a "serious legal" agreement, Bove says, the one signed by PP aka Daniels, Cohen, and Davidson (with a blank line for DD aka Trump) in late October 2018.

At 2:55 p.m. Bove says, "Nothing further judge."

Redirect from the prosecution?

Steinglass asks for a 5-minute break, which Merchan grants.

While we wait, set an alarm for 5:30 pm ET, when @AnnaBower, Ben Wittes, and I will chat live with @annaehickey about everything that went down in court today, from Tila Tequila to lame silent discos, for @lawfare.

Looking back at the periodic updates from reporters stationed in the hallway for Trump's comings and goings, aside from one long comment this morning, Trump hasn't so much as glanced in their direction.

Sounds like a lonely, boring day for the hallway pool.

It's 3:03 p.m., and Steinglass is back at the lectern for redirect.

Davidson is not done yet.

Steinglass clarififes that Avenatti was suing Davidson and Cohen at the time of the discussions referenced before the brief recess.

Steinglass distributes a transcript of Davidson's comment that Avenatti is driving a wedge btwn Stormy and Gina.

KD says that he meant that Avenatti was trying to persuade Gina's testimony.

Steinglass reads a transcript of Cohen who said to KD: Keith you better settle this goddamn story, bc if he loses the election, and he's going to lose, if he loses this election we lose all fucking leverage, this case is worth zero.

Davidson confirms this was about Daniels.

Steinglass shows a transcript of a call while he plays an excerpt. We hear Cohen's voice:
MC: What would you do if you were me?
KD: I can't even imagine.
MC: Would you write a book? Would you break away from the entire trump doctrine? Would you go completely rogue?...

MC: Would you join w/ bannon? Any thoughts because it's not just me that's being affected—it's my entire family...Theres nobody thinking about Michael...Who else would do that for somebody?...I did because I care about the guy...

KD says yes, mhm, periodically.

It's the first time today we hear Cohen's actual voice.
The recording is crystal clear, at least on Cohen's side, clearer even than the audio from the overflow feed of people speaking in the courtroom.

That's it for Steinglass, and Bove steps up to take another bite at the apple.

Bove asks what date that was, KD isn't sure, and calls into question KD's frame of reference of when that conversation was said in the context of everything else we've talked about today.

As the day grinds on, I have to keep reminding myself to look at Trump for any kind of reaction, or movement even.

At this point, he has almost blended into the furniture.

Steinglass plays a clip btwn KD and Cohen, in which KD says "hypothetically speaking...sometimes people get 'settler's remorse," a "date certain" after which he has no more "leverage."
It's clearly KD, but the tone and swagger of KD on the phone is a far cry from KD on the stand.

Another clip now, we hear KD: The $130k...was there ever indication that Michael Cohen needed authority from Donald Trump before he made that payment? And I said no...They said did you ever discuss where he would get money with MC? I said no...

We hear KD give Cohen a heads up that Rodriguez's boyfriend might appear soon in the media.

As Cohen's voice cuts in on the recording "Can I ask you a question?" for a second it's so clear it sounds like he's in the courtroom here too.

At 3:23 p.m., nothing further from Bove, nor Steinglass, and Davidson steps down.

"People, please call your next witness," Merchan says.

The People call Douglas Daus.

He walks up to the stand wearing a dark suit and dark shirt, with a bright tie.

Daus works in the NY County DA's Office in HTAU (High Technology Analysis Unit).

The unit, at which he has worked for 10 years, processes digital evidence and produces reports.

Daus from HTAU recounts his CV, including a stint embedded with the U.S. military in Iraq, doing "similar type work" as he does here.

As a Supervising Forensic Analyst with HTAU he supervises and analyzes digital evidence... as his title would suggest.

Daus walks through the process of extracting and analyzing evidence from devices, mostly phones, and estimates that he has analyzed 3,392 devices up to this day.

Approximately?, asks Conroy.

Approximately, answers Daus.

What kinds of data can be extracted from a smartphone? Texts, software, call history, log files, anything that is normally on a phone.

Contact lists? Yes. Pictures? Yes. Calendar entires? Yes. Associated phone number? Yes. Username? Yes. Emails? Yes. Downloaded apps? Yes.

Daus was assigned to the Trump investigation, and analyzed two devices belonging to Michael Cohen— an iPhone 6s and iPhone 7 (another throwback).

Recall, during the Sandoval hearing, we learned that Cohen had over 30,000 contacts in his phone. A real man about town.

Daus says that Cohen consented at the time to the data extraction, granting HTAU entry to his phones by giving them his passwords.

(6866 was the passcode to the iPhone 7, if you must know.)

I will spare you some of the gory details here, like whether Cohen's phones were powered on or powered off when they arrived for forensic analysis.

Unfortunately this testimony hasn't made for riveting live tweeting so far, please accept my apologies.

Conroy introduces a slew of exhibits into evidence, without objection: People's 246,247,249,254,256-264,266.

They're text messages that include Michael Cohen, much like many we have already seen during Davidson's testimony.

The first text is from Cohen to Hope Hicks: "Call me"

Let the record show, at 3:42 p.m., Benjamin Wittes, seated next to me, predicts the next witness will be Hope Hicks.

We now get the full number of contacts in one of Michael Cohen's phones: 39,740.

Is that unusual? asks Conroy.

That is unusual, says Daus, who usually sees phones with contacts in the hundreds.

We see some of the contacts (with sensitive information redacted) David Pecker is there. Hope Hicks. Alan Weisselberg. 10 pages of contacts for Donald Trump. Rona Graff, Larry Rosen, Daniel Rothstein, Gary Farro.

Cohen's other phone, aka "CP2" has a more "normal" 382 contacts.

The next evidence on screen is a photo of Michael Cohen, pulled off of Cohen's phone CP1, beaming at a podium with the White House seal behind him.

Daus doesn't know Cohen, but says he recognizes him in the photo because, "I watch a lotta news."

The metadata suggests the photo of a beaming Cohen at the White House was created on Feb 8, 2017 at approximately 5:39 p.m.

For anyone who would like to see the photo, you're in luck! It will likely be available on the court's docket soon, with metadata stripped, I'm guessing.

Another piece of evidence shows a calendar entry from Cohen's phone, called "Meeting with POTUS" for the same date—Feb 8, 2017.

Cohen also had two encrypted apps on his phone, Telegram and Signal, in addition to messaging app Whatsapp.

We're rapidly moving through the prosecution's exhibits now. In other words, the contents of Michael Cohen's phones: iPhone recordings, Whatsapp messages, calendar entries, and the like.

Conroy plays one of the clips.

We hear rustling, as if in Cohen's pocket, and what sounds like Trump's voice. It's difficult to make out exactly what's being said and the context.

We hear Cohen now talking to Trump about the NYTimes and unsealed divorce papers with Ivana.

We're pulling up the transcript, thankfully.

"My name is Emil Bove, and I represent President Trump," Bove says to Daus as he starts the cross.

Bove wants to clarify the difference between intel collection in the military—on a "battlefield" essentially in Iraq—vs. context of a criminal case.

"I do the same thing on any case," Daus says.

The integrity of the data matters more in a criminal case, Bove says, because different rights are at stake, and Daus says sure.

As Bove asks Daus to walk through the "processes and procedures designed to maintain the integrity of the data," Blanche leans over and discusses something with Trump in his ear.

From the standpoint of pure forensics, once acquired, a device goes immediately in a vault, unable to potentially be remotely manipulated, right? Yes, says Daus. But unfortunately, that can't always happen, says Bove. True, there can be delays, risks for manipulation in transit.

Bove explains the finer points of chain of custody—the process by which who handles the device is tracked, e.g. who brought it to the office and who participated in intake. Links in the chain.

A break in the chain of custody presents a risk—could be big, could be little.

Much of the press's attention seems to be elsewhere. From the few laptop screens I can see of fellow reporters, some are filing stories, or reading other things. Many more laptops are closed entirely. It's been a long day, and the technical minutae is making lids heavy.

The artifacts extracted from Cohen's phones are excerpts but not the whole phone, Bove says, excerpts that prosecutors directed Daus to pull. Daus doesn't know why prosecutors asked for some but not others but then again he wouldn't—he's not part of the investigative team.

Bove seems to be raising the possibility or risk that some of the data from Cohen's phones are corrupted, or not what they seem, perhaps calling into question the documentary evidence itself.

Merchan stops it right there.

Tomorrow, we will break a bit early, at 3:45 p.m., to accommodate a juror's important appointment.

Merchan delivers his familiar parting instructions to the jury.

Trump discusses something with Bove, now seated, as Merchan continues his instructions to the jury. Blanche is leaned over the table, his elbows on top, fingers interlaced, his head rested on top of his hands.

At 4:24 p.m., Merchan wishes everyone a good night, and a "see you tomorrow."

All rise.

That's it for Day 10.

Thank you, as always, for tagging along with me. For everyone who has already contributed so that we can do what we do, we are very appreciative. To everyone else, we hope you'll consider doing so as well.

And see you at 5:30 p.m. ET for the live recap!

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