Attorneys completed a marathon day of closing arguments on Tuesday in former President Trump’s hush money trial, marking the near end of the weeks-long case that saw nearly two dozen witnesses take the stand.
The day began with Trump attorney Todd Blanche delivering about three hours of closing arguments in the morning. He was followed by Joshua Steinglass, a prosecutor in the Manhattan district attorney’s office who stretched his portion of closing statements to nearly five hours.
Court adjourned at roughly 8 p.m., by far the longest day of the trial yet
The final statements from both sides come before the case gets handed to the jury, which will decide whether to make Trump the first convicted president in U.S. history.
Follow below for a recap.
Court adjourns
Court has broken for the day at roughly 8 p.m., by far the longest day of the trial, which normally ended by around 4:30 p.m.
Trump did not stop to speak to the cameras, as he usually does at the end of the day.
Given the late hour, the judge said the proceedings will resume tomorrow a half-hour late at 10 a.m. on Wednesday.
— Zach Schonfeld
Prosecutor concludes by telling jurors evidence is ‘overwhelming’
Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass has concluded his marathon closing argument after more than four hours.
“There is no special standard for this defendant. Donald Trump cannot shoot someone on 5th avenue during rush hour and get away with it,” Steinglass said, drawing an objection from Trump’s lawyer that was sustained.
The prosecutor also told jurors that Trump was “cloaked in lies” and the evidence is “overwhelming.”
“Like in any other case, it can be judged by a jury of his peers based on the evidence and nothing else,” said Steinglass. “Remember, you are the ones who have the opportunity to observe every witness and see each document. You have to put aside the distractions, the press, the politics, the noise. Focus on the evidence.”
— Zach Schonfeld
Prosecutors signal they’ll only argue one ‘bump up’ theory
To secure a conviction, prosecutors must show Trump falsified business records with an intent to commit or aid some other crime.
Prosecutors had long suggested four crimes that could be used as the so-called “bump up.” The judge prevented prosecutors from arguing one of the four at trial but allowed the three others.
But now, Joshua Steinglass is making clear that the district attorney’s office intends to move forward with only one of those remaining theories to the jury: that Trump intended to violate a state election law making it a crime to conspire to promote a political candidate by “unlawful means.”
Those unlawful means, Steinglass said, includes violations of federal campaign finance law, among others.
— Zach Schonfeld
Prosecutor gives three reasons for why Cohen didn’t go ‘rogue’
Steinglass told jurors to reject Trump’s theory that Michael Cohen went “rogue” and is now lying to get revenge at his former boss for three reasons:
First, Steinglass said Trump is a micromanager and it would be “inconceivable” he would stick “his head in the sand” for the payments to Cohen.
Second, Steinglass described Cohen as a self-promoter, insisting he would’ve wanted to keep Trump in the loop for credit.
And third, the prosecutor noted that the alleged scheme benefited Trump.
It “benefitted one person and one person only, and that’s the defendant,” Steinglass said.
— Zach Schonfeld
Prosecutors remind jurors Trump name-called Daniels, Cohen
Steinglass, well beyond his third hour of closing arguments, pulled up one of Trump’s Truth Social posts in which he calls porn actor Stormy Daniels “horseface” and Michael Cohen, Trump’s ex-fixer, “SleazeBag.”
“I did NOTHING wrong in the ‘Horseface’ case,” Trump wrote on Truth Social in March 2023.
The post was issued days before Trump was indicted in the case, and Steinglass said it shows Trump was “clearly trying to pressure both Cohen and Daniels to back off.”
“She knows nothing about me other than her conman lawyer, Avanatti, and convicted liar and felon, jailbird Michael Cohen, may have schemed up. Never had an affair with her, just another false acquisition by a SleazeBag. Witch Hunt!” Trump wrote in the post.
— Zach Schonfeld
Steinglass: ‘Cheating’ is center of case
Joshua Steinglass told jurors that although the campaign component is the “why,” lies in New York business records make up the “what” of the case.”
“You cannot lie in your business records,” Steinglass said. “And that’s what this case is really about at its core, cheating in the defendant’s books, just like hundreds of other cases that have come before.”
At about 6:30 p.m., Steinglass asked if he should stop his summation or “power through.”
“You guys good to go a little bit longer?” Steinglass asked the jury.
“Alright!” he said after the jurors agreed, continuing on.
Steinglass’s argument has now lasted roughly 3.5 hours.
— Zach Schonfeld
Prosecutor shows jury Trump book excerpts
Jurors are again seeing excerpts from Trump’s books, in which the former president suggests he is frugal and monitors even the small-dollar transactions at his business.
“Pay attention to the small numbers in your finances, such as percentages and cents,” reads one excerpt from “Trump: Think Like a Billionaire.”
“Numbers that seem trivial add up and have enormous implications,” it continued. “My parents hammered frugality into me at an early age, and it’s the most important money management skill a person can use. Call it penny-pinching if you want to; I call it financial smarts.”
— Zach Schonfeld
Jury begins seeing 34 records corresponding to Trump’s charges
Steinglass has moved on to the 34 records that each correspond to one of Trump’s charges of falsifying business records.
They comprise a series of invoices from Michael Cohen for $35,000 each month, general ledger entries reflecting the transactions and checks used to pay him.
“I know what you’re thinking,” Steinglass said. “Is this guy going to go through every single month’s worth of checks? The answer is no.”
— Zach Schonfeld
Prosecutor notes Trump admitted reimbursing Cohen in 2018
Steinglass again showed jurors one of Trump’s tweets soon after news of the Stormy Daniels hush money deal went public, admitting the payments to Michael Cohen were a reimbursement.
“Mr. Cohen, an attorney, received a monthly retainer, not from the campaign and having nothing to do with the campaign, from which he entered into, through reimbursement, a private contract between two parties, known as a non-disclosure agreement, or NDA,” Trump wrote on Twitter, now known as X, in May 2018.
— Zach Schonfeld
Prosecutor ‘almost speechless’ over defense claims on Cohen payments
Steinglass is repeatedly rejecting the defense’s theory that the $420,000 paid to Cohen in 2017 was for legal services and not actually reimbursement for the hush money payment.
The prosecutor gave out a slight laugh at times, saying he was “almost speechless” that Trump’s lawyers had not given up on the point.
“I guess if they admit that this was truly a reimbursement, then they have to admit the business records were false in the first place,” Steinglass said.
Moments later, Steinglass noted that Cohen testified he only did about 10 hours of legal work for Trump that year.
“Do you think there’s any chance that Trump would have paid 42,000 an hour for legal work by Michael Cohen? Now that’d be a pretty smooth rate,” the prosecutor joked.
The jurors laughed at some of Steinglass’s comments.
— Zach Schonfeld
Prosecutor walking through alleged conspiracy day-by-day
Joshua Steinglass has been presenting his closing argument in a chronological format, reminding jurors about dozens of phone calls, texts and emails sent between the August 2015 Trump Tower meeting prosecutors claim kick-started the conspiracy and the 2016 election.
Just before the latest break, Steinglass reached Election Day 2016 after walking through each of the three hush money deals.
Judge Juan Merchan has indicated he intends to continue moving ahead, noting that some jurors have made child care arrangements for the evening.
“I was watching the jurors. They look pretty alert to me. I don’t think we’re losing anyone,” Merchan said.
— Zach Schonfeld
It could be a long night
Court is going late today.
After more than 90 minutes of argument, prosecutor Joshua Steinglass told the judge he was only about one-third of the way through his summation.
At that pace, Steinglass would not finish until well into the evening.
The judge, who has long signaled reluctance to breaking up the summations, said they will take another break at 5 p.m. and see how the jury is doing.
— Zach Schonfeld
Jurors’ energy appears depleted
The jurors hearing Trump’s case appear to be losing energy as closing arguments drag on.
Several jurors have begun peering around the courtroom as prosecutor Joshua Steinglass makes his final pitch.
At least one juror is struggling to keep her eyes open, putting her head in her hands. Another has rested his eyes for several seconds at a time. And jokes from the prosecutor have received fewer laughs than similar defense jest received.
Despite that, most jurors appear to be trying their best to remain engaged. Even through fluttering eyes, they are looking at the screens in front of them or Steinglass.
— Ella Lee
Prosecutor walks through text, call logs
Steinglass, the prosecutor, is walking through various calls and texts between key players in case at length, even as Steinglass told jurors he would “try not to bore you.”
Steinglass is returning to the phone records as he again explains the so-called “catch-and-kill” agreement that led to payouts to three people to stay quiet about salacious accusations against Trump during his 2016 campaign.
Jurors have again seen phone records involving Michael Cohen, employees at the National Enquirer and its parent company and Trump’s bodyguard.
— Zach Schonfeld
Prosecutor says conspiracy was election subversion
Steinglass pushed back on assertions from Trump attorney Todd Blanche, who told jurors earlier in the day that prosecutors’ theory of a criminal conspiracy was simply the democratic process and standard campaigning.
“In reality, this agreement at Trump Tower was the exact opposite. It was the subversion of democracy,” Steinglass said.
“Democracy gives people the right to elect their leaders, but that rests on the premise that voters have access to accurate information about the candidates,” he continued. “The entire purpose of this meeting at Trump Tower was to deny that access. To manipulate and defraud the voters. To pull the wool over their eyes in a coordinated fashion.”
— Zach Schonfeld
Steinglass: ‘We didn’t choose Michael Cohen’
Steinglass, who is delivering closing remarks on behalf of the prosecution, is continuing to focus on Michael Cohen, saying Trump had used Cohen to have plausible deniability about the hush money payment and other matters Cohen handled.
“Mr. Blanche actually said this is not the type of witness you want,” Steinglass said.
“We didn’t choose Michael Cohen. We didn’t pick him up at the witness store,” he continued. “The defendant chose Michael Cohen!”
— Zach Schonfeld
Prosecutor returns to disputed phone call
Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass brought up a key phone call Michael Cohen claims to have had with Trump in October 2016, when Trump allegedly greenlighted paying porn actor Stormy Daniels $130,000 in exchange for her silence.
On cross-examination, Trump’s lawyers poked holes in Cohen’s story, insisting he had instead spoken with Trump’s bodyguard about harassing phone calls Cohen was receiving at the time.
“To them, that is the big lie,” Steinglass said, using the slogan that has been used to describe Trump’s baseless claims of mass fraud in the 2020 presidential election.
At one point, Steinglass appeared to mock Trump attorney Todd Blanche, who earlier in the day claimed that Cohen committed perjury, enunciating each syllable for emphasis.
“Defense says, ‘Aha! That’s per-jur-y,’” Steinglass joked, reciting the word in the same exaggerated fashion as Blanche.
— Zach Schonfeld
Prosecutor says defense trying to have it both ways
Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass accused the defense of having it both ways when they zeroed in on Michael Cohen’s admission that he stole from the Trump Organization.
Prosecutors claim the $420,000 paid to Cohen, which corresponds to Trump’s charges, included reimbursement for the Stormy Daniels hush money payment as well as other items, including reimbursement for a bill Cohen paid to a tech firm.
On the stand, Cohen acknowledged having told the Trump Organization the tech firm had billed him $50,000 despite only paying them $20,000.
Trump’s attorneys have latched onto the acknowledgment to insist Cohen is a thief who cannot be trusted. But Steinglass reminded jurors the defense’s primary argument is that the payment to Cohen was for legal services, not a reimbursement.
“Well that means the defense wants to have it both ways,” Steinglass said. “They’re denying the $420,000 was a reimbursement at all … but if that’s true, there’s no theft.”
— Zach Schonfeld
Prosecutor: Michael Cohen is ‘understandably angry’
Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass is delivering the closing argument for the district attorney’s office.
Attempting to rehabilitate their star witness after the defense pummeled him for hours, Steinglass told the jurors that they need to use their “common sense” when it comes to Michael Cohen.
“Michael Cohen is understandably angry that, to date, he’s the only one who’s paid the price for his role in this conspiracy,” Steinglass said.
— Zach Schonfeld
Judge gives jury instruction after Trump attorney mentions jail
Following the lunch break, Judge Juan Merchan agreed to give the jury a curative instruction after prosecutors raised issue with the end of Trump attorney Todd Blanche’s closing argument, when he brought up Trump’s possible sentence if the jury convicts him.
“You cannot send somebody to prison … based upon the words of Michael Cohen,” Blanche began as prosecutors objected.
Merchan told jurors that Trump’s charges would not require imprisonment, if convicted, and they should not consider it.
“During the defense summation you heard Mr. Blanche ask in substance that you not send the defendant to prison,” Merchan said.
“That comment was improper and you must disregard it. In your deliberations, you may not discuss, consider or speculate about matters related to punishment,” the judge continued.
— Zach Schonfeld
Court resumes
Court proceedings resumed after a lunch break Tuesday just after 2 p.m.
Trump’s kids speak outside courthouse
Three of the former president’s children spoke to reporters gathered outside the courthouse to rail against the case and defend their father as the prosecution readied its closing arguments.
Eric Trump, Donald Trump Jr. and Lara Trump each spoke. Tiffany Trump, who attended court with her father, did not address reporters. Neither Ivanka Trump nor Barron Trump, neither of whom have attended the trial, were in attendance at all Tuesday.
“After all of the evidence has been presented now, we can very clearly see — this was never a case about seeking justice, prosecuting an actual crime or protecting the citizens of New York. This is a case about politics — pure and simple,” said Lara Trump, who is the co-chair of the Republican National Committee.
Donald Trump Jr. called the trial “a sham,” while Eric Trump called it “legal lawfare.”
— Brett Samuels
Blanche blasts Cohen as ‘MVP of liars’
Just before he ended his closing arguments, Trump attorney Todd Blanche hammered Michael Cohen as an “MVP of liars.”
“He’s literally like an MVP of liars,” Blanche said. “He lies constantly. He’s lied to Congress, he lied to prosecutors, he lied to his family, business associates.”
Blanche concludes closing with 10 reasons for reasonable doubt
Todd Blanche concluded his closing argument by giving jurors 10 reasons the attorney said should give them reasonable doubt of Trump’s guilt.
Among other arguments, Blanche said there was no evidence Trump had an intent to defraud and that Cohen was the “embodiment” of reasonable doubt.
The jury was then dismissed for its lunch break, though the parties are debating a legal issue before they leave.
— Zach Schonfeld
Blanche raises disputed call, says Cohen perjured himself
As he prepares to finish his summation, Todd Blanche returned to one of his biggest blows on Michael Cohen during cross-examination earlier in the trial.
Blanche had questioned Cohen’s claims that Trump greenlighted the hush money payment to Stormy Daniels during an October 2016 phone call. Blanche suggested Cohen had instead spoken with Trump’s bodyguard, Keith Schiller, about harassing phone calls.
“That was a lie and he got caught red-handed,” Blanche said. “We all know that he called Keith Schiller to talk about the fact that a 14-year-old had been harassing him for several days and forgot to block his number, and Mr. Cohen wanted to fix that.”
Moments later, Blanche accused Cohen of violating his oath to tell the truth during his testimony.
“That is per-jur-y,” Blanche said slowly, enunciating every syllable.
— Zach Schonfeld
Trump attorney brings up primary defense witness
More than two hours into his closing argument, Todd Blanche finally mentioned the defense’s primary witness: Robert Costello.
The defense had brought in Costello to rebut the testimony of Michael Cohen, prosecutors’ star witness. Costello had been advising Cohen as federal prosecutors closed in on him in 2018.
But Costello’s testimony turned chaotic as he made audible comments at lawyers’ objections, causing the judge to clear the courtroom in an abrupt turn of events and raising questions as to how the jury would perceive the witness.
On Tuesday, Blanche claimed Cohen lied when he testified that he never had an attorney-client relationship with Costello.
“I don’t know how many lies are enough lies just to reject Mr. Cohen’s testimony — big or small, meaningful or unmeaningful — but that was a lie. You know there was an attorney-client relationship,” Blanche said.
— Zach Schonfeld
Trump attorney says ‘Access Hollywood’ tape was not ‘a doomsday event’
Todd Blanche argued that prosecutors were overselling the importance of the infamous “Access Hollywood” tape that emerged in October 2016, in which Trump is heard bragging about sexually assaulting women.
As part of efforts to connect the hush money payment to Trump’s campaign, prosecutors claim Trump especially wanted to keep Stormy Daniels quiet after the tape’s release. But Blanche contended the tape was “not a doomsday event” for the campaign, as prosecutors suggest.
“The ‘Access Hollywood’ tape is being set up in this trial to be something that it’s not,” Blanche told jurors.
The attorney stressed that “nobody wants their family to be subjected to that sort of thing,” suggesting Daniels was not paid for political reasons but instead to prevent embarrassment to Trump’s family.
— Zach Schonfeld
Trump intently watches attorney
Trump is closely watching his attorney make the defense’s final case to the jury.
His body is fully turned toward Todd Blanche, giving reporters in the gallery a view of his side profile. His brows are furrowed into a scowl and his cheeks appear hollowed. Occasionally, he has tilted his head from side to side, and, at one point, scanned his attorney from head to toe.
As Blanche suggested to jurors that “nobody” wants their family “subjected” to stories like the ones in question during the trial, Trump stole a glance at his several family members seated in the front row of the gallery and pursed his lips.
— Ella Lee
Trump attorney points to missing witnesses
Throughout the defense’s closing remarks, Todd Blanche has pointed to several individuals whose role in the alleged plot to cover up hush money payments and clear Trump’s path to the White House was prominent but who did not testify.
He noted that Allen Weisselberg, the Trump Organization’s then-chief financial officer, had not testified. Neither had Keith Schiller, Trump’s then-bodyguard who was present at key moments in the prosecution’s case.
Gina Rodriguez, Stormy Daniels’s manager, and ex-National Enquirer editor Dylan Howard also did not testify but played a large role in the alleged catch-and-kill schemes.
— Ella Lee
Defense turns to Stormy Daniels
Todd Blanche suggested that Michael Cohen went out on his own to pay Stormy Daniels to stay quiet about her alleged affair with Trump, seeking “credit” for the transaction with his then-boss.
“It was another opportunity for Mr. Cohen to take advantage,” Blanche said.
“There’s no way that you can find that President Trump knew about the payment at the time it was made without believing the words of Michael Cohen. Period,” the Trump attorney added. “And you cannot believe his words, you cannot.”
Despite efforts to keep Daniels quiet about her onetime tryst with Trump, Blanche reminded the jury that her story had already been published online in 2011. He suggested that prosecutors’ contention that news of the alleged affair caused panic in 2016 was “just not true.”
— Ella Lee