Chris Lange, FISM News
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In a case of supreme irony amid the political theater surrounding Donald Trump’s arraignment Tuesday, an appeals court has ordered the woman at the center of the scandal to pay the former president nearly $122,000 in legal fees.
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals issued the ruling just hours after Trump entered “not guilty” pleas to a 34-count felony indictment in a Manhattan courthouse yesterday. The charges are linked to an alleged hush money payment made to ex-porn actress Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election in an effort to conceal an alleged tryst between the two dating back to 2006.
According to The New York Post, Daniels was ordered to pay Trump an additional $121,972 in legal costs stemming from a defamation lawsuit she filed against him in 2018. That case, filed on behalf of Daniels by disgraced lawyer-turned convict Michael Avenatti, was eventually tossed by a judge who ordered Daniels to pay Trump $500,000 in legal fees, per CNN.
Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, claimed in the civil suit that she was threatened by an unnamed man at Trump’s behest after she disclosed an alleged affair with the billionaire real estate developer during a 2011 interview. Daniels sued Trump for defamation over a tweet in which he called the allegation a “total con job.”
Trump responded to the appeals court decision with characteristic acerbity.
“Alvin Bragg shut down New York City, brought in 38,000 NYPD officers, and will spend an estimated $200,000,000 of NYC funds, for a totally legal $130,000 [non-disclosure agreement],” the former president wrote in a Truth Social post on Tuesday.
“On top of all that, the 9th Circuit Court just awarded me $122,000 — over the $500,000 already awarded, from Stormy ‘Horseface’ Daniels!” he added.
TRUMP SEES BOOST IN DONATIONS, POLLING FOLLOWING INDICTMENT
Trump’s campaign coffers and poll numbers have both experienced a boost in the wake of his historic arrest. Trump adviser Jason Miller posted on Twitter Monday that the campaign had received more than $8 million in donations since last Thursday, when the indictment was announced.
Trump’s official store, meanwhile, has begun selling tee shirts featuring a mugshot of the former president, though it was not taken during his booking. The shirt, which sells for a cool $36, features a photo of Trump superimposed against the backdrop of a mugshot height chart. The words “not guilty” are emblazoned in large, block letters below the image.
The 45th U.S. president, who announced his bid for a second term in the White House last November, has also seen a bump in the polls over the past several days. A Yahoo News/YouGov survey conducted after the indictment was announced showed the largest surge to date in Trump’s lead over declared and potential rivals for the Republican presidential nomination.
The poll shows Trump outpacing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis by 26 percentage points (57% to 31%) in a head-to-head matchup, though the Sunshine State Republican has yet to officially declare his anticipated candidacy. Against the larger field of 10 declared and potential competitors for the GOP nomination, the former president has gained majority support at 52%, up from 44% previously, while support for DeSantis fell to 21%, down from 28%.