Former President Donald Trump criticized Judge Juan Merchan as “highly conflicted” following Michael Cohen’s first day of witness testimony in the NY v. Trump trial on Monday. Trump accused the judge of preventing him from campaigning and called the New York legal system a “scam.”
Trump has been vocal about his disdain for Merchan, claiming the judge is politically biased due to his daughter’s work as a political consultant for Democratic politicians. Trump has also criticized Merchan for issuing a gag order limiting what he can say publicly about the case, resulting in fines for violating the order.
The trial centers around Cohen’s payment of $130,000 to Stormy Daniels to silence her alleged affair with Trump in 2006. Prosecutors allege that the Trump Organization reimbursed Cohen and falsified records to conceal the payments. Cohen testified that he paid Daniels with his own funds and secretly recorded Trump discussing another payment to Karen McDougal.
The trial is set to resume on Tuesday morning, with Cohen expected to return to the stand. Stay tuned for updates on this high-profile case.
