According to a bombshell report from the Wall Street Journal, Donald Trump’s attorney arranged for a $130,000 payment to a porn star to get her to keep quiet about a sexual encounter she had with Trump back in 2006.
Trump attorney Michael Cohen reportedly arranged the payment to porn star Stephanie Clifford, a.k.a. “Stormy Daniels,” a month before the 2016 election. The encounter with Trump allegedly took place in 2006 after Trump married his third wife Melania and allegedly happened at a July 2006 Lake Tahoe golf tournament.
These are old, recycled reports, which were published and strongly denied prior to the election,” a White House official said, responding to the WSJ report.
Cohen also released a statement, saying “President Trump once again vehemently denies any such occurrence as has Ms. Daniels.” He did not acknowledge the payment that allegedly took place.
Addressing the Wall Street Journal, Cohen said: “This is now the second time that you are raising outlandish allegations against my client. You have attempted to perpetuate this false narrative for over a year; a narrative that has been consistently denied by all parties since at least 2011.”
From WSJ:
The Journal previously reported that Ms. Clifford, 38 years old, had been in talks with ABC’s “Good Morning America” in the fall of 2016 about an appearance to discuss Mr. Trump, according to people familiar with the matter. In that article, the Journal reported the company that owns the National Enquirer agreed to pay $150,000 to a former Playboy centerfold model three months before the election for her story of an affair a decade earlier with the Republican presidential nominee, which the tabloid newspaper didn’t publish. The company said she was paid to write fitness columns and appear on magazine covers.
In a statement relayed by Cohen, Clifford denied receiving any hush money.
After the agreement, Ms. Clifford’s camp complained the payment wasn’t being made quickly enough and threatened to cancel the deal, some of the people familiar with the matter said.
The payment was made to Ms. Clifford through her lawyer in the matter, Keith Davidson, with funds sent to Mr. Davidson’s client-trust account at City National Bank in Los Angeles, according to the people.
The payment to Clifford was allegedly made during a time when allegations of Trump’s unwanted sexual advances towards women were reaching a fever pitch in the media.
As the Wall Street Journal points out, Clifford has appeared in about 150 adult films and was considered among the industry’s biggest stars when she met Trump at the American Century Championship in 2006, held at Edgewood Tahoe golf course in Nevada. She was 27-years-old at the time of the alleged encounter.
You can read the WSJ’s full report here.
Featured image via Flickr/imdb.com
