Stormy Daniels' Outfit Arriving To Trump Trial Caused Quite The Buzz
If Donald Trump had a courtroom frequent flyer account, he could have flown around the globe twice by now. But then, Trump already owns a luxury $100 million Boeing 757 private jet, so it's safe to assume he's okay on that front. Trump's latest trial is regarding the "hush money" he reportedly ordered Michael Cohen to take from campaign funds to cover up an alleged affair he had with Stormy Daniels — whose real name is Stephanie Clifford. The adult star caused quite a stir with her scathing testimony, but it was what Daniels wore to the courthouse that caused a real buzz.
The fervor wasn't because it was another example of the inappropriate outfits that Daniels has worn over the years. Nope. It was the bulletproof vest she was forced to wear under her clothes during her two days of testifying.
"She was really scared. She had a lot of fear. She was concerned about the security coming into New York," Daniels' attorney, Clark Brewster, said in an interview with "Anderson Cooper 360" on CNN. "She wore a bulletproof vest every day until she got to the courthouse." Brewster claimed that Daniels "cried herself to sleep" the day before her first court appearance, and that she was absolutely petrified she'd be shot by a MAGA fanatic. He said she wasn't worried about taking the stand to testify; it was the walk from the car to the courtroom that terrified her. Brewster admitted he'd also been concerned for Daniels' safety.
Stormy Daniels' brutal ordeal would terrify anyone
It's hardly surprising that walking into the courtroom was a scary experience for Stormy Daniels. The NYPD had been forced to erect barriers in a bid to keep the angry mob at bay. Although some Daniels supporters were in the crowd, it seemed the most vocal and visible were the hardcore MAGA fans and some of Donald's most loyal political allies and wannabe VPs.
Daniels made some brutal digs at Donald from the witness stand, and her testimony infuriated Eric and Donald Trump Jr. Eric, who had a front-row seat to the proceedings, brushed off Daniels' claims as "garbage" in a post on X, formerly Twitter. Meanwhile, Don Jr. accused Daniels of flip-flopping and accused her of straight-up lying on X.
Daniels' life was transformed for the worse forever in January 2018 after The Wall Street Journal reported on her alleged affair with Donald Trump, as well as the attempted cover-up. She detailed a fraction of the horrendous ordeal she'd been through in the Peacock documentary "Stormy." In it, Daniels explained, "I am here today to tell my story, and even if I just change a few people's minds, it's fine. If not, at least my daughter can look back on this and know the truth." She claimed somebody shot at one of her horses with rubber bullets and said she's been subjected to increasingly obscene insults, messages, and even death threats, ranging from being called a "liar, s***, gold digger" to "I'm going to come to your house and slit your throat." It's no wonder, then, that a bulletproof vest seemed like the best attire for her walk the courtroom.
Trump's attorneys tried using Daniels' adult film career against her
Defense attorney Susan Necheles tried connecting Stormy Daniels' career as an adult actor to making allegations against Trump. "You have a lot of experience of making phony stories about sex appear to be real," Necheles charged (via The Sun). "The sex in those films was very much real, just like what happened to me in that [hotel] room," Daniels replied. "The character themes might be different, but the sex is very real. That's why it's pornography, not a B movie." Necheles also consistently accused Daniels of trying to make money by shopping her story around. "I was asking to sell my story to publications to get the truth out," Daniels countered, explaining she knew it would place a target on her back (via La Monde).
In an interview with Fox News, Jerry Saland, a former Manhattan assistant DA, praised the prosecution, claiming they did an excellent job of "humanizing" Daniels. In contrast, he claimed Trump's defense team messed up by demanding mistrials and not raising anywhere near enough objections during Daniels' testimony.
Meanwhile, despite facing 34 felony counts of falsifying business records over the hush-money payment Michael Cohen admitted he made to Daniels, Trump has remained uncharacteristically stoic and quiet throughout the proceedings. "Donald Trump was in his customary position: eyes closed, suit jacket splayed open, paunch sagging, arms crossed in a pose of utter boredom and contempt," The New Yorker wrote. "Some said he was sleeping. I'd say more like anti-woke."