Top 3 takeaways from Day 6 of Trump's hush money trial
Day 6 of former President Trump's criminal hush money trial featured testimony from David Pecker, the veteran tabloid editor, who described in detail the "catch-and-kill" arrangement he struck with Trump and his then-attorney Michael Cohen during the 2016 presidential election.The former president is on trial in New York on felony charges of falsifying business records to hide the reimbursement of a hush money payment Cohen made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in order to boost his electoral prospects in the 2016 presidential election.Here are the top takeaways from Day 6 of Trump's criminal trial.Pecker delves into "catch-and-kill" arrangementDavid Pecker on Tuesday let jurors in on the secret "catch-and-kill" arrangement at the heart of prosecutors' case, describing the very first story he "caught and killed" pursuant to his agreement with Trump and Cohen: a false story from a Trump Tower doorman in 2015.The former National Enquirer publisher described the allegation: that "Donald Trump fathered an illegitimate girl with a maid at Trump Tower."Pecker testified that he "immediately called Michael Cohen" when his team got wind of those allegations being shopped by the doorman, Dino Sajudin.Cohen told him it was "absolutely not true" -- but Pecker testified that he ultimately moved forward with buying the exclusive rights to the story for $30,000 so he could "lock it up."Pecker also revealed that his tabloid had never had a "catch-and-kill" agreement with Trump prior to his candidacy for president -- a key piece of testimony as prosecutors seek to connect Trump's efforts to bury negative stories to his electoral ambitions.Judge weighs whether to hold Trump in contemptBefore trial proceedings got underway Tuesday, Judge Juan Merchan convened a hearing to address whether Trump had violated the judge's limited gag order by targeting prospective witnesses, including Cohen and Daniels.Judge Merchan expressed skepticism when Trump attorney Todd Blanche defended Trump'...