The trial of former President Donald Trump in New York took a surprising turn on Thursday as his ex-assistant, Madeleine Westerhout, testified about discussions among Republican officials in 2016 to replace Trump as the party’s candidate after a leaked tape showed him making derogatory remarks about women to an “Access Hollywood” anchor. Westerhout, who worked at the Republican National Committee during the election, revealed that officials had considered how to replace Trump “if it came to that.” The tape, which was first reported by The Washington Post in October 2016, captured Trump making comments about women and talking about grabbing them by the genitals. This tape has become a central piece of evidence in Trump’s criminal trial.
The trial has also highlighted the pressure on Trump and his former attorney, Michael Cohen, to pay adult film actress Stormy Daniels to cover up her allegations of an affair with Trump, which they believed would be damaging to his campaign. Trump is facing charges of falsifying records in connection with reimbursing Cohen for the payment to Daniels. Witnesses at the trial have discussed how the release of the “Access Hollywood” tape shook the Trump campaign and caused concern among officials. Hope Hicks, a former press manager for the campaign, testified that she was “very concerned” and believed it was a damaging development that was pulling the campaign backwards.
Madeleine Westerhout, who served as Trump’s executive assistant and director of Oval Office operations, was fired from the White House in 2019 after making off-the-record remarks criticizing Trump’s daughters. Despite this, she remained complimentary towards Trump in her book, “Off the Record: My Dream Job at the White House, How I Lost It, and What I Learned.” Westerhout has also provided insights into Trump’s process for publishing tweets during his presidency, revealing that he would dictate the tweets to her, she would type them and present printed copies for him to make handwritten edits. She noted that Trump had specific preferences for certain words and liked to capitalize certain words, as well as using exclamation points and the Oxford comma.
The trial is expected to continue on Friday with Westerhout’s further testimony. There are approximately three weeks left in the trial, with potential witnesses including Trump’s children and his ex-attorney, Rudy Giuliani, yet to testify. Trump has pleaded not guilty to the 34 felony charges against him for falsifying business records related to the payment to Stormy Daniels. The prosecution alleges that the reimbursement payments to Cohen were falsely labeled as legal expenses. The revelations from the trial provide a deep dive into the inner workings and pressures faced by the Trump campaign during the tumultuous 2016 election, offering a behind-the-scenes look at the events that shaped Trump’s presidency and subsequent legal challenges.
