Topline
Former President Donald Trump appeared to close his eyes at his criminal hush money trial Tuesday, as former attorney Michael Cohen—whose payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels is at the center of the case—testified in the high-profile trial, marking the latest time Trump has shut his eyes in the trial.
Former President Donald Trump denied sleeping after multiple reports suggested otherwise last week, ... [+]
Timeline
Trump appeared to doze off on the first day of jury selection in the hush money case, where Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, according to reporters in the Manhattan courtroom, who said they observed Trump lean back in his chair with his eyes closed before jolting back awake after his attorneys passed him notes.
The very next day, Trump dropped his head inside the courtroom, keeping his eyes closed before jolting his head upright, drooping it again, jerking up, and slouching for a third time, according to Law360.
Trump’s eyes remained “closed for extended periods” during the final day of jury selection, according to New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman, just before the full 12-member jury and alternates were officially empaneled, following an exhaustive selection process involving rounds of questioning over potential bias.
Before opening statements began, Trump seemed to be “struggling to stay awake,” according to New York Times reporter Susanne Craig,” though he appeared to wake up after a nudge from his attorney Todd Blanche.
Trump appeared to nod off for “significant portions” of witness testimony, Haberman reported, while NBC news reporters noted Trump occasionally “jerked” his head up “in a way consistent with sleeping,” including during his attorneys’ cross-examination of witness Gary Farro, a banker who worked for Cohen.
As Daniels took the witness stand for the second day, Trump’s eyes remained closed for “several minutes,” the Times and ABC News reported, adding that Trump later dozed “on and off” as his defense attorneys and prosecutors debated Blanche’s call for a mistrial.
Trump’s eyes appeared to be closed at various points Monday during Cohen’s testimony, according to The New York Times and CNN—with the Times more directly reporting the ex-president was “asleep” during the trial’s afternoon session—while The New York Post reports Trump “jerk[ed] his head forward slightly” and was “slumped forward in his chair,” noting that is “behavior typically associated with people who are asleep.”
Trump appeared to doze off once again as prosecutors continued to pry information out of Cohen on Tuesday, multiple outlets reported, with the Times’ Jonathan Swan noting Trump’s eyes remained closed and that he seemed to be “dozing peacefully,” and Politico’s Erica Orden observing Trump “slouched in his seat” with his eyes “seemingly closed and his mouth slack” as cross-examination began Tuesday afternoon.
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Chief Critic
Trump, who has berated New York prosecutors for bringing charges against him and slammed the judge overseeing the case, denied reports he was sleeping, saying in a Truth Social post on May 2 he had “simply close[d] my beautiful blue eyes, sometimes.” Trump also took the opportunity to reiterate his repeated criticism of the case as a “witch hunt,” and claimed he listens “intensely and take[s] it ALL in!!!”
News Peg
Cohen took the stand Monday for what’s expected to be multiple days of testimony at the trial, telling jurors about his work with Trump and testifying the ex-president had first-hand knowledge of payments that were being made to “catch and kill” negative stories about him. The ex-lawyer testified he would “lie” and “bully” people on Trump’s behalf, also noting Trump warned him “a lot of women” would likely come forward after he announced his candidacy in the 2016 election. The ex-attorney was the second major witness to testify at the trial, after Daniels took the witness stand last week, fielding questions from Trump’s attorneys about her alleged affair with the former president and the $130,000 hush money payment she took from Cohen before the 2016 election. During cross-examination, Trump attorney Susan Necheles accused Daniels—whose real name is Stephanie Clifford—of attempting to profit off the story of the affair, which Trump denies having with Daniels. The adult film star testified she was not incentivized by the hush money payout, saying she feared Trump could retaliate if the story got out, though she admitted she had wanted to sell the story even before the hush money offer was on the table so she could control the narrative.
Further Reading
