Trump Lawyer Arranged $130,000 Payment for Adult-Film Star’s Silence
Tehran(KNA) : A lawyer for President Donald Trump arranged a $130,000 payment to a former adult-film star a month before the 2016 election as part of an agreement that precluded her from publicly discussing an alleged sexual encounter with Mr. Trump, according to people familiar with the matter.
Donald Trump's lawyer has denied the president had an affair with an adult film star 12 years ago, but did not address a specific allegation that Trump paid her $130,000 to prevent her from discussing the encounter.
Cohen did not address that claim in a statement to the Journal, but he denied the allegation that Trump and Stephanie Clifford, who performs under the name Stormy Daniels, had a sexual encounter in 2006, the year after he married Melania.
Cohen also showed the journal an email, apparently signed by "Stormy Daniels," that reportedly read: "Rumors that I have received hush money from Donald Trump are completely false." The statement denied that Clifford and Trump had a "sexual and/or romantic affair".
The Journal based its report on interviews with "people familiar with the matter" and did not claim to have seen any documents substantiating the agreement.
An attorney for Clifford did not immediately respond to questions, but sent a full copy of Clifford's statement denying the affair to BuzzFeed, dated 10 January.
White House official told the Guardian: "These are old, recycled reports, which were published and strongly denied prior to the election."
In the tumultuous last days of the presidential race, Clifford was reported to have been in discussions with Good Morning America to disclose an alleged affair with Trump. At the time, Trump was under intense scrutiny for a series of sexual assault allegations and claims of sexism.
Source: Guardian