McCarthy downplays Trump’s hush money payments: “It was personal money”

Anderson Cooper 360

CNN

News

4.1 • 3.7K Ratings

🗓️ 22 March 2023

⏱️ 42 minutes

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Summary

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is downplaying allegations that former President Trump’s may have been involved in a scheme to pay hush money to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in an attempt to cover up an alleged affair. McCarthy said “this was personal money” and accused the Manhattan district attorney of “playing in presidential politics.” Some of the former President’s Republican allies in the House are attempting to use government power to try and keep his legal threats at bay. Former Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger tells AC360 he thinks the interference his former colleagues are running is “pretty chilling.”

Plus, South Carolina authorities are now saying Stephen Smith’s death was a homicide. CNN National Correspondent Randi Kaye tells AC360 where the investigation goes from here.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Today, the NYPD said they have police ready to respond to protests should former President
0:06.2	Trump become the first former president to be criminally indicted.
0:10.4	It's a question of when and also if.
0:13.2	I'm John Berman, Infra Anderson.
0:15.0	Remember, according to the former president's own social media post this weekend, the
0:18.9	indictment was supposed to happen today.
0:20.8	But he had no proof of that.
0:22.8	And so here we are.
0:24.6	Yet all indications are that something is in the pipeline, but among the litany of things
0:28.7	we still don't know about this indictment apart from if it will actually happen is how
0:33.5	we will find out about it.
0:35.0	How will Trump will he be arrested?
0:37.1	Will there be a mug shot?
0:38.4	Will he appear in court?
0:39.7	What will the actual charges be?
0:42.0	Will it be a misdemeanor about trying to keep it a fair with an adult film star secret
0:45.7	buy-in?
0:46.7	And this would be the potentially legal part, falsifying business records.
0:50.4	Or does the Manhattan DA's office believe it has the evidence to sustain a felony conviction
0:55.1	about this alleged payoff being part of a much broader charge about trying to influence
0:59.6	the election?
1:00.6	So, that is what we don't know.
	...

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