On Friday, former President Donald Trump’s aide Hope Hicks gave testimony in a 20-minute cross-examination by Trump’s attorney Emil Bove, related to a hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels. The prosecution called Hicks on the 11th day of Trump’s New York hush money trial.

Trump is on trial for 34 counts of falsifying business records to cover up a hush money payment of $130,000 to Daniels. According to the prosecution, Trump’s lawyer, Michael Cohen, made the payment to Daniels, and Trump falsely recorded his reimbursement of Cohen as legal expenses. Cohen denied this allegation in the opening statement.

Bove obtained testimony from Hicks that Cohen sometimes went “rogue” in his service to Trump and that he was never officially part of the campaign. However, he attempted to insert himself into campaign matters. 

 In Hicks’ statement, she said she was stunned by the “Access Hollywood” video and worried about what Trump’s recorded comments about grabbing women’s genitalia could mean for his campaign. She was also questioned about former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who also received hush money to stay quiet about alleged sexual favors with the former president. 

Judge Merchan denied a request made by the prosecutors that they be allowed to question Trump if he chooses to testify about being held in contempt of court for gag order violations in the criminal trial. Merchan responded that such questioning on the matter would be prejudicial, being very difficult for the jury to look past. 

Leaving the courtroom on Friday, Trump spoke to reporters publicly denouncing the prosecutors in this case and the other criminal and civil cases he has previously faced. In this interaction with the press, he was questioned about Hicks’ testimony but refused to respond solely saying, “I was very interested in what took place today.”