In New York City, former US President Donald Trump faces 34 counts of falsifying business records involving payments to his then-attorney, Michael Cohen. A key point is also that Donald Trump is said to have paid hush money to porn actress Stormy Daniels before the presidential campaign in 2016. The background is said to have been an affair between the two.
Cohen is said to have paid the porn actress around $130,000 to stop her claims that she had sex with Donald Trump. Trump later repaid the money to Cohen. Although hush money payments of this kind are not punishable, Trump declared the payment incorrectly, which is why he now has to answer for it.
In the TV format “Uncensored” with moderator Piers Morgan, 44-year-old Stormy Daniels expresses himself in detail for the first time since the indictment. A question right at the beginning of Morgan’s almost 90-minute interview classifies Stormy’s situation: “What did you feel when you saw him in the courtroom (…)?” Daniel’s response reflects the emotions of many Trump opponents: “The king has been dethroned and he is no longer untouchable, no one should be untouchable, no matter what the job description is, whether you are the president, you must take responsibility for your actions. On the other hand, I thought, ‘This is someone our country chose and chose – wasn’t there a better option?’ There was a range of emotions, but sadness was the most prominent.”
Moderator Piers Morgan analyzes that the Presidents John F. Kennedy, Bill Clinton and the presidential candidate John Edwards caused similar scandals in the past without having such consequences. He asks if Trump could be politically biased. However, Stormy Daniels sees the answer more in the changing times: “That is one view of things, another is that we have made progress in our system, in our country, for women. The other presidents would probably have something similar these days (…).”
Morgan adds that we are now in a post-MeToo era and that it is likely that past political scandals of a similar nature will be unfolded in the present day. Daniels also says that she doesn’t believe when Trump supporters say, “It’s only because he is,” but that the handling of such allegations has changed. As a further example, she cites how racism is dealt with today, which has also changed compared to earlier times.
When Morgan asked if she would like to see Trump in jail for his actions, she says that if he is guilty, he should be punished, otherwise you give a false image of justice. However, Stormy Daniels takes a more complex view of the case as a whole and adds: “In my case in particular, I don’t think his crimes against me are worth imprisonment.”
The interview was supposed to take place weeks ago, but lately threats against Daniels from Trump supporters have intensified. Every tenth message is said to contain a death threat. One of many reasons why she answered Morgan’s question: “Do you wish you had never met Donald Trump?” has a clear answer: “Of course (…)”.
