Harvard Law-trained legal analyst Norm Eisen is one of the media personalities attending the criminal trial of former President Donald Trump in Manhattan, where the presumptive GOP presidential nominee faces 34 felony counts for allegedly falsifying business documents to cover up payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels prior to the 2016 presidential election. (Daniels claims to have had a sexual encounter with Trump.)
Trump’s former lawyer and so-called “fixer” Michael Cohen, who testified that he arranged for the “hush money” payments to Daniels, was cross-examined by Trump’s lawyer Todd Blanche on Tuesday after being questioned by the prosecution.
Cohen talking directly to the jury & they are looking directly at him & listening about the Stormy NDA litigation–even the ones who usually write
— Norm Eisen (#TryingTrump out now!) (@NormEisen) May 14, 2024
Haven't seen exactly that with anyone in this trial. He & they have bonded
Blanche sees it too, immediately objects to disrupt
Eisen, reporting his observations about the courtroom dynamics, wrote: “Cohen talking directly to the jury & they are looking directly at him & listening about the Stormy NDA litigation–even the ones who usually write… Haven’t seen exactly that with anyone in this trial. He & they have bonded… Blanche sees it too, immediately objects to disrupt.”
Attorney Thomas J. Crane replied to Eisen: “A good witness makes as much eye contact with the jury as possible.”
Eisen added: “Blanche is doing something no other lawyer has done on direct or cross so far — Boring the jury — Problem is we can’t see where he is going at times.”
Note: Eisen was co-counsel for the House Judiciary Committee during the first impeachment and trial of President Trump in 2020 and, as a co-founder of the States United Democracy Center in 2021, he signed complaints against former Trump attorneys John Eastman and Jenna Ellis for their roles in undermining the 2020 presidential election results. Both have faced disciplinary charges and potential disbarment.
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