'Critical' recording played at hush money trial shows Trump's criminal intent: expert

Jurors heard former President Donald Trump's voice on Thursday. An audio recording played of Trump talking with his former fixer and attorney, Michael Cohen, about buying the silence of an alleged affair.

And for CNN legal analyst Joey Jackson that audio evidence is "critical" for the prosecution to hit home that Trump wasn't oblivious to the suspected scheme to quiet former Playmate Karen McDougal (alleging they carried on a love affair) before Americans voted for president in the 2016 election.

"This is critical information," Jackson said. "What's critical with respect to Donald Trump's knowledge and that conversation between Cohen and Donald Trump, why is that?... they were talking about the Karen McDougal deal, correct? The Karen McDougal — the Playboy [sic] playmate; but what it does is it gives Trump some knowledge with respect to what Cohen is doing."

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The 2016 recording that Cohen captured in secret runs about two minutes long and has them talking specifically about dealing with the McDougal deal.

"I need to open up a company for the transfer for all of that info regarding our friend David," Cohen said in the secretly recorded phone call. "I am all over that, and I spoke to Allen [Weisselberg] about it when it comes time for the financing."

"What financing?" Trump counters.

"We'll have to pay him something," Cohen said.

Cohen was explaining in cryptic terms the purchase the rights to McDougal’s story from The National Enquirer parent company American Media Inc., (AMI).

"Pay with cash ... check," Trump stated, according to the transcript.

Cohen cautions: “No, no!”

This exchange between Cohen and his client for Jackson proves that it is going to be hard sell to suggest Trump was in the dark.

He said, "It gives Trump some knowledge with regard to what his fixer is up to. It gives Trump some knowledge with respect to deals like this being made."

Jackson believes the recording spells out how Trump "knew about the McDougal deal" and therefore he couldn't have been blindsided when it comes to the $130,000 that Cohen arranged to quiet Stormy Daniels.

"[Trump] spoke with you with regard to how it would be finance hit you had every conversation with him about that, but he knew nothing about Stormy Daniels," Jackson inferred in his made-up banter. "He had no knowledge as to what was going on there? That's just not a reasonable inference."

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