Trump Claims doorman was silenced over tycoon’s fling with housekeeper
IT has been the blackest week of Donald Trump’s presidency and yesterday the crisis took another sensational turn.
Former Trump Tower doorman Dino Sajudin heaped on extra pressure by claiming the President had tried to hush up details of a love child he fathered with a housekeeper.
Calls for Mr Trump to be impeached are growing amid allegations he was embroiled in a plot to silence a string of ex-lovers who could have damaged his 2016 election campaign.
His former lawyer, Michael Cohen, and former campaign chief, Paul Manafort, are both facing jail.
But his former friend, David Pecker, head of American Media Inc, has been granted immunity by prosecutors in exchange for information.
AMI owns tabloid National Enquirer, which is accused of a “catch and kill” policy towards negative stories about Mr Trump.
Sajudin was reportedly paid $30,000 for the exclusive rights to his story, which was never published. It is now believed the deal was made to gag the doorman, who would have faced a $1million penalty if he spoke of his claims to any other media outlet.
Ruined
His lawyer, Marc Held, said: “Mr Sajudin has been unable to discuss the circumstances regarding his deal with AMI and the story he sold to them. He’s a blue collar worker and a million dollars would have ruined him for life.”
The magazine says it did not publish the story as it could not prove Sajudin’s claims that he was told not to criticise another employee who had given birth to Mr Trump’s child.
Yet American media reported that the doorman passed a lie detector test.
Following a legal wrangle, Sajudin was released from his contract this week and can now speak out.
Mr Held added: “Just recently, AMI released Mr Sajudin from the terms of his agreement and he is now able to speak about his experience with them, as well as his story, which is now known to be one of the ‘catch and kill’ pieces. Mr Sajudin hopes the truth will come out in the near future.”
Cohen has admitted discussing the doorman’s story with the mag but denied knowledge of the payment.
He faces jail after he was this week convicted of offences including campaign finance violations relating to his work with Mr Trump campaign.
This included his role in a $150,000 payment to Karen Mcdougal, a former Playboy model who says she bedded Trump between 2006 and 2007.
Smear
She was given the money as part of a National Enquirer contract, which stopped her speaking to anyone else, but her story also never ran. The magazine supported Mr Trump in the election and published smear stories about Democrat rival Hillary Clinton.
It is claimed AMI held so much damning information on Mr Trump it was kept in a locked safe.
Cohen also arranged $130,000 “hush money” for porn star Stormy Daniels, who claims a 2006 fling with Mr Trump. Mr Trump has vehemently denied Cohen’s claims. Yesterday, he tweeted that suggestions he knew about the plot to silence the women were “just another phony story by the fake news media”.
But the storm is sure to influence November’s midterms. The Democrats look likely to gain ground in the House of Representatives, where any bid to impeach will begin.
If the majority votes in favour, the vote goes to the Senate, where it must get two-thirds backing.
No President has ever been impeached, as Richard Nixon resigned over the Watergate scandal before a vote could be cast.
But, as this week proved, Donald Trump is a President like none who has gone before him.