Donald Trumpreportedly got a bit "physical" with one of his attorneys, Susan Necheles, during the bombshell testimony of Stormy Daniels in his New York hush money trial, RadarOnline.com has learned.
The trial took a stunning turn on Tuesday as the adult film star was unexpectedly called to the witness stand to answer questions about the alleged $130k hush money payment she claimed to have received in 2016. Trump's former attorney and "fixer," Michael Cohen, reportedly paid her the sum in exchange for her silence about an affair she allegedly had with the former president.
CNN covered the latest court developments during a break for lunch on Tuesday, and host Anderson Cooper commented on "how upset Donald Trump seems to be," per Mediaite. His assessment was based on the network's reporting of the trial, where cameras are not allowed to record proceedings.
Cooper said he suspected the former president was "urging his attorneys to be interjecting more, to object more" as Daniels addressed the court.
"I’ve little doubt he is giving them an earful right now about what he wants to see moving forward," he said
CNN's Chief Legal Correspondent Paula Reid agreed, saying that Trump was "really scrutinizing his defense lawyers."
She pointed out that during the previous day's cross-examination of an accounting official from the Trump Organization, the former president "twisted his entire body and was watching everything Todd said."
Reid claimed, "He's gotten a little physical with Susan Necheles, one of his lawyers, sort of hitting her on the arm, prompting her to object."
"He's had these spirited conversations with all three of them," the correspondent continued, referring to Trump's legal team. "He clearly has a lot of ideas about exactly how this defense should be carried out."
While it remained unclear which defense team member would question Daniels, Reid assumed that "whoever does it" was "getting an earful from their client right now."
As RadarOnline.com reported, Daniels testified that Trump brought up his wife, Melania Trump, shortly after they met at his Lake Tahoe hotel room in July of 2006.
When Trump showed Daniels a photo of Melania, the witness said that she called his wife “very beautiful,” to which Trump allegedly replied that they “don’t even sleep in the same room," CNN’s Kaitlan Collins reported from inside the courtroom.
“Trump shook his head and muttered something to his legal team as she said this,” Collins wrote of Trump’s reaction to the testimony. “He appears increasingly irritated as she testifies.”