Who is Stormy Daniels?

Adult film star Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday in former president Donald Trump’s first criminal trial that is investigating the alleged hush money payment the billionaire paid to the actor in 2016.

Trump was indicted last year in March on 34 counts of felony as he is accused of falsifying business records to silence Stormy Daniels with a payment of $130,000. 

The Republican pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

What do we know about Stormy Daniels?

The real name of Stormy Daniels is Stephanie Clifford and she is from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The 45-year-old had been a popular name in the adult entertainment industry.

Daniels said that she and Donald Trump had consensual sexual intercourse in 2006 after the former president was married to Melania Trump.

The Republican presumptive nominee paid her hush money for not revealing their encounter in 2016 when he was bidding for the Oval Office.

However, the actor-turned-president brushed aside the allegations saying that Daniels was paid so that she could stop "false and extortionist accusations."

In 2023, the star said she does not think Trump should go to prison if convicted.

What happened between Donald Trump and Stormy Daniels?

According to the latest testimony, Daniels was introduced to Trump in July 2006 at a celebrity golf tournament in Lake Tahoe.

She was invited by Trump to dinner and they dined at his hotel suite, where the criminally charged former president showed her a copy of a golf magazine with his picture on the cover.

Daniels said Trump asked her about herself and whether she would like to appear on his TV show "Celebrity Apprentice."

"He was like, 'Wow, you — you are special. You remind me of my daughter.' You know, he was like, 'You're smart and beautiful, and a woman to be reckoned with, and I like you. I like you,'" Daniels was quoted as saying by Reuters.

According to her, Trump contacted Daniels in the following year at the Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles to discuss her possible appearance on "Celebrity Apprentice." A month later, Trump told her that she could not get her booked on the show.

Hush money payment and non-disclosure agreement

On October 28, 2016, days before the presidential election that Trump won, Daniels signed a non-disclosure agreement in which she pledged not to discuss publicly her relationship in exchange for $130,000.

The pact was signed by Keith Davidson, her lawyer at the time, and Michael Cohen, then Trump's lawyer. The document included a spot for Trump's signature which he never signed.