Um… this is just… I can’t even… oh, goodness. Whatever you do, don’t take any sips of ANYTHING before reading the cover sheet of Friday’s new court filing from Donald Trump stooge Michael Cohen in the Stormy Daniels case. (AND DON’T MISS THE BLUE HIGHLIGHTS)
Does that make “David Dennison” Trump’s porn name?
Ok, just to be clear, that’s Trump’s lawyer admitting that “David Dennison”—who didn’t actually sign the Nondisclosure Agreement (NDA) with adult film star and alleged Trump mistress Stormy Daniels—is indeed the Pr*sident of the United States. That’s a problem for Trump, explained here.
Surely there’s more to be said about this in the days to come. It’s an attempt to move the case from California State court to federal court, which would be more friendly to confidential arbitration proceedings (i.e. away from the public, thereby silencing Daniels).
Federal courts tend to more strictly enforce arbitration agreements, which could lead to Daniels being forced into a closed-door legal forum where an arbitrator has already issued an injunction against her. California courts tend to to be less friendly to arbitration.
In the filing, Trump’s lawyers also charged that Daniels has violated that NDA to the tune of $20 million in damages.
CORRECTION: Up top I assumed that the listing of defendants on this Notice of Removal from Trump’s lawyers was an admission that Trump is “David Dennison,” the alias used on the Nondisclosure Agreement (NDA) that Trump never signed. This may or may not be an admission in and of itself (Daily Kos readers will note some confusion on this point in the comments, with some smart lawyers weighing in on both sides). However, one astute commenter notes below that, on Page 5 of the notice, Trump’s lawyers claim that because Daniels breached the NDA by speaking up:
“EC and/or Defendant Trump have the right to seek liquidated damages against Clifford for her numerous breaches...”
“EC” stands for Essential Consultants, the company Cohen set up to pay Daniels. In any case, stating that “Defendant Trump” has the right to seek damages could actually be a problematic admission for Trump and his lawyers.
If you want to know more about this filing, Politico and the Washington Post have written on it.
Trump is also seeking to join to the petition.