Update 3/15/18 9:45 am: In just one day, Stormy Daniels has raised nearly as much money in her efforts to talk about what happened between her and Donald Trump as she was paid to shut up. With more than 4,000 people pledging support on her crowdfunding page in its first 24 hours, the porn star has raised $123,819 as of Thursday morning.
Previously: Meteorologists always say that storms are unpredictable, and this Stormy Daniels one is taking twists and turns no one could have seen coming.
The latest one sees the porn star, who had an alleged affair with Donald Trump back in 2006, turning to a crowdfunding website Wednesday to raise money for a potential legal battle with the president and his personal attorney, Michael Cohen, who paid her $130,000 in 2016 in exchange for her silence.
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View Story"I am attempting to speak honestly and openly to the American people about my relationship with now President Donald Trump, as well as the intimidation and tactics that he, together with his attorney Michael Cohen, have used to silence me," Daniels wrote in her CrowdJustice pitch.
Her attorney Michael Avanetti tweeted the link, verifying its legitimacy.
Here is a link to the official site. All others are imposters. https://t.co/6uvLrBqc8v#basta
@MichaelAvenatti
Daniels has filed a civil suit in an attempt to have the non-disclosure agreement she signed rendered void because Trump never signed it. Cohen, though, did sign and has countered that the NDA is enforceable, filing arbitration to silence her from talking about Trump at all. Daniels, though, claims that the entire NDA is bogus without Trump's signature. It's a sticky situation without a clear answer, thus the possible legal battle that Cohen and Trump are trying to stop from coming together at all.
What is known about this bizarre story -- that seems to get stranger by the week -- is that Stormy Daniels received a $130,000 payment from Cohen to keep quiet about an alleged affair he claims she didn't have with Donald Trump in 2006. Daniels has not said anything, per the NDA, though she played coy with Jimmy Kimmel leading the late-night host to believe the affair had happened.
There are also multiple reports from people she's talked to over the years across the media that offer details of the alleged affair, including an interview Daniels conducted with InTouch magazine back in 2011, before signing the NDA.
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View StoryMost recently, Daniels made an offer to return the $130,000 in exchange for the freedom to speak her truth. That offer went unanswered. "Rather than agree that the NDA is invalid, thus allowing me to talk, Mr. Trump and Mr. Cohen have instead attempted to hide the facts from the public using a bogus arbitration proceeding and have threatened me with millions of dollars in damages ($1M each time I speak out) if I tell the truth about what happened," Daniels wrote on CrowdJustice.
She further added, "I need funds to pay for: attorneys' fees; out-of-pocket costs associated with the lawsuit, arbitration, and my right to speak openly; security expenses; and damages that may be awarded against me if I speak out and ultimately lose to Mr. Trump and Mr. Cohen.
"I am more fortunate than many, many people in this country. And for that I am grateful. But unfortunately, I do not have the vast resources to fight Mr. Trump and Mr. Cohen alone. Thank you for supporting me."
The page was launched Wednesday morning and the number of pledges is growing quickly, with Daniels having raised nearly $16,000 by early afternoon. There are 29 days left to go in her pledge drive.