Former President Donald Trump’s former top aide Hope Hicks broke down on the witness stand Friday at his hush money trial, during testimony where she also defended the former president’s relationship with wife Melania via NY Post.
Hicks, former press secretary and then top White House spokesperson to the ex-president began crying after the first few questions by Emil Bove, a lawyer for the presumptive Republican presidential nominee.
It has been noted that during the emotional moment, Hicks dabbed her eyes with a tissue as Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan offered her a short break, which she accepted.
it is not clear why she started to cry but Hicks had first become visibly flustered at the end of questioning by the prosecution while answering questions about the $130,000 payment to adult star Stormy Daniels which is at the center of the trial.
She had testified that she thought Trump thought felt “it was better to be dealing” with the situation in 2018 than before the 2016 presidential election.
Hicks also stopped up when she got back on the witness stand while recalling her time working for the Trump Organization. Hicks had been on the stand for almost four hours displaying composure while prosecutors questioned her on her time working for the ex-president beginning in 2015 and ending in 2022 — which she said is the last time she saw him.
Earlier, Hicks told jurors that Trump tried to ensure a Wall Street Journal article from Nov. 4, 2016 detailing allegations of an affair with Playboy Playmate Karen McDougal wouldn’t be seen by Melania.
“He was concerned about the story. He was concerned how it would be viewed by his wife,” Hicks said. “And he wanted to make sure the newspapers weren’t delivered to his residence that morning.”
Later, during a follow-up by Bove, Hicks explained the reason Trump didn’t want Melania to see the McDougal article was because of how much he cared for and respects her.
“President Trump really values Mrs. Trump’s opinion and she doesn’t weigh in all the time but when she does it’s really meaningful to him,” Hicks said.
“He really, really respects what she has to say. I think he was really concerned about what the perception of this would be and, yeah, I know that was weighing on him.”
Hicks added Trump didn’t want anyone from his family to “be hurt” by stories that were “going on in his campaign.”
