and mcdougal and. the former attorney for stormy daniels and karen mcdougal is on the witness stand in manhattan. he's been on the stand for much of today. keith davidson negotiated the alleged hush money agreements for both women back in 2016. and while his tone on the stand today is not exactly colorful, the evidence jurors are seeing, specifically the text messages between davidson and dylan howard, those text messages are colorful. did he cheat on melania, howard asked davidson in a june 2016 text message, referring to karen mcdougal. do you know if the affair was during his marriage to melania,

another text from howard a few days later. i really can't say yet, sorry. davidson reply. the prosecution asked him if he said that because he didn't know or because he wasn't ready to discuss the details yet. he said it was because i was not prepared to discuss the details at that point. a few weeks later, dylan tells davidson, quote, get me a price on mcdougal. all in. consulting gig programs as a fitness expert thrown into the mix. as davidson said karen mcdougal was torn between a deal with ami or abc, howard texted quote, we are going to lay it on thick for her. davidson responded, good, throw in an ambassadorship for me. i'm thinking aisle of man. so what does this testimony on top of the other testimony we've already heard prove? and what does donald trump have to say? judge merchan warned him this morning he is on thin ice, warning him not the say much.

holding him in contempt and fining him $9,000 for violating the gag order and cautioning while under the circumstances, the court will impose an inkars torre punishment. joining us now from outside the courthouse, vaughn hillyard. a lot going on. a lot of steamy text messages, colorful, raunchy, descriptive. talk to me about what you're seeing. >> exactly. the play-by-play of the karen mcdougal selling of the story culminated in that deal being struck. a $150,000 transfer of money to mcdougal as part of that, there was an agreement in which it was outlined in paragraph three, this was read to davidson here on the stand. that karen grants her life rights to the subject manager regarding an affair she had with a married man.

the question for the prosecutor, was there a particular married man? davidson responded yes. to which the prosecutor asked who. davidson responds, donald trump. that this was intended to hurt donald trump and when he was asked by the prosecutor whether that meant to hurt his campaign, davidson responded yes. again, this is another individual who is testifying in front of this jury that this scheme was intended to hurt donald trump's political campaign. we came into this trial asking is there going to be anybody beyond michael cohen that will attest to that? we now have david pecker and we now have keith davidson all says that this arrangement with mcdougal was done as part of the catch and kill scheme to aid donald trump's political campaign in 2016. and in real time right now, this is coming into us, that they are going to ask him these questions as it pertains to the stormy daniels arrangement there.

particularly the interest increasing after the access hollywood tape drops there at the beginning of october of 2016. that at that point in time, it was a message that was sent from dylan howard, the editor in chief of the national enquirer to keith davidson, who was working as that attorney kind of manager for stormy daniels at the time in which he says this is again, sorry, this is keith davidson to dylan. trump is f-ed. this is what leads to ultimately dylan saying the editor in chief saying quote wave the white flag. it's over, people. the story is already out there. this is where we're watching this all play out. i know you are, too, katy, but they're getting down to the nitty-gritty text messages between the individual who was representing daniels and potentially negotiating the sell of her story in october of 2016 and the editor in chief of the

national enquirer. both men clearly believing the access hollywood tape was doing donald trump's campaign in, yet what we're now watching unfold here is potentially more text messages, getting to the point where an actual transaction took place in order to silence daniels. >> and this could be core to the prosecution's argument in terms of motive. why donald trump and michael cohen would want to try to silence stormy daniels. try to buy her story, bury it. because at the moment in the campaign, late 2016, a month before the election, the access hollywood tape comes out and it looks like he is going to, donald trump hemorrhage suburban women and lose the election. they want to try to stem the bleeding. i'll read you more about what's going on inside the courtroom. davidson says that the access hollywood tape gave her story new life and new value. he says the hot mike recorded statements by both men, meaning donald trump and billy bush,

were troublesome according to davidson. that tape then had tremendous influence on the marketability of stormy's story. there had been very little interest in the agent that was representing daniels selling stormy's story. it was not until that access hollywood tape reached a crescendo, his words. davidson is explaining that even though there was another outlet that we published a 2011 stormy story, we understood it would get worse if she amplified the story by talking about it further. davidson, like david pecker, uses niceties to conceal the unsavory conduct. bringing a story to market, he says, but while credible, he is not charming or conversational like david pecker so it's a good thing for prosecutors that they have texts and other documents to support him. that's the analysis from lisa

rubin who's in the courthouse. we were covering trump and this moment of the access hollywood tape in october of 2016, it looked like it was the end for the campaign and a remeender to cohen comes to an agreement with davidson for the story a day after it drops. cohen says he came to this agreement on october 8th. >> reporter: we knew coming into this it was american media, the national enquirer, that it tipped michael cohen off about the daniels story. that's what the text messages that you just read ultimately show here. and these two men sort of acknowledging that this was it for donald trump. his campaign was all but over here at point but that is where we know from david pecker's testimony that he made it clear

that this time around, american media, they weren't going pay for another story. so that's where we begin to watch the scrambling in those day that is follow where michael cohen reinserts himself into this ultimately figure out how to pay them through michael cohen. that's where we have the testimony from earlier today, the former first republic banker in which he talked about setting up the new bank account two weeks after these text exchanges, two weeks after the access hollywood account came to be. and cohen, because he couldn't rely on american media and the national enquirer to pay off daniels, ultimately withdrew a line of credit from his own home equity in order to come up with that $130,000 that is at the core of what has been a wild day for this jury. it's a lot within just a couple of hours here. as you just said, these text messages continue to provide so much insight into the literal

minute by minute, hour by hour in which this went down there in the aftermath of the access hollywood tape. >> our reporters say the jury has been wrapped. they've been paying very close attention to these text messages, watching the screen where they're being revealed. joining us now, criminal defense attorney, danny, and "new york times" investigative reporter, david. david, back to you on this issue of the moment that we were in in the campaign. you broke the access hollywood tape. bring us into how crucial this testimony could be for the prosecution. >> the prosecution has to prove two things here. not just that donald trump lied about the documents that show michael cohen paid somebody off but that he did it for a specific reason. he lied in those documents to help his political campaign.

subvert an election. hide something from the public. that's why it's so important for them to explain the political context and meaning of the paying off of daniels. the day after the story broke, paul ryan, the most prominent republican in the house, was canceling events with donald trump. republican officials were telling their senators hey listen, you want to cut ties from this guy. save yourselves. walk away from him. it was a time of total abandonment. i've never seen a presidential nominee of either party abandoned in the way he was in the late stages of that campaign. so it helps you understand the desperation he was in. not to have another one of these shoes dropped. >> what about the desperation, i'll bring you in on this, for cohen to make this deal because it was going to be an ami deal, a national enquirer deal. but the enquirer says we're not a bank, we can't do this.

then there's a negotiation or plea from dylan howard to davidson to negotiate directly with cohen. he says he was really pushing him to do it. davidson says moral of the story here, no one wanted to talk to cohen. that's illiciting laughter from the room, but why sit important or is it important from the prosecution to make it clear this was not just a deal, or not a deal between ami and daniels but a deal now with cohen? >> absolutely. as david was saying, the core of this case is about falsifying records. about lying on records. so this is setting up the key elements of the crime to come, which is why did cohen and president trump, former president trump engage in these series of lies and so coming on the heels of this testimony, it makes quite clear that what their intent would be in doing that, it was not so much pressure on them to do it

themselves and they had to get around this problem of how do you pay this and hide the payment. so we are really not only talking about the intent to conceal maybe that state election law crime which makes it a crime to unlawfully promote the location of a person through unlawful means, but also setting up the reason why as you suggested in the early part of what you were saying. motive for falsifying those records and we have cohen coming off sometime down the road. this is setting up a really good ramp for cohen, which is you don't really, he is almost just up there and don't really have to think he's a truth teller in order to believe what he is saying because all of this is being set up by other witnesses. >> danny, i know you're thinking about this like a defense attorney is and what we're seeing in the courtroom according to reporters there is

that todd blanche has been enjoying moments of this testimony. moments that describe cohen as somebody who was volatile and angry. stormy daniels says, said jerk called her screaming at her. davidson says he picked up the phone and called cohen and for the first few minutes, all he heard was a stream of vitriol. >> blanche's central theme is going to be to cast out on the accountability of cohen. he's going to skewer him and establish that he has what we've known for a long time, which are credibility problems. but here's the key. look at this example of the davidson testimony then you've got the testimony of david pecker. then you have the banker, gary farro. there seems little doubt this transaction happened. so you see an example of by the time cohen gets to the stand and

he's called a lying liar and his pants are on fire, then you can say as the prosecution, well, all right, you may find him less than credible but look at all those other corroborating things. we have documents, wire transfers, the banker. he had no reason to lie. davidson, by the way, when it gets to cross, they're probably going to explore davidson, the idea that hey, this was kind of a sleazy arrangement, wasn't it? or they might even suggest aren't you in the business of essentially extortioning people? but that may not go far with davidson so challenge what he's there for. which is to bookend this underlying transaction. he doesn't establish that donald trump was heavily involved. he establishes that cohen was involved. so the people have gone a long way to establish the stormy daniels transaction. the payment. they're going to need more evidence to bring in donald

trump. we've heard some of it. some suggestions by david pecker for example that donald trump cared about the campaign. we've heard that there's also circumstantial evidence that the involve. of catch and kill may have increase as it came closer to the campaign, but the people know they need to do more on donald trump's involvement and intent. >> davidson understood that in dealing with cohen, he was dealing with donald trump. he did not question that. that is still one removed from donald trump. you don't have him saying he knew about what he was paying for. he knew about this deal. so far, you don't have that. you have a lot of people testifying they talked to him about it. they heard him talk saying it or they heard him, he was in on these conversations. they understood cohen was acting on his behalf but as danny was mentioning, still one step removed from him. we'll see how close the prosecution gets as this testimony continues. we're going to keep our eyes and ears on the hush money trial all our. we're going to bring you the

latest as we learn it. but first, another story that is making headlines. live to columbia university where students have stormed an occupied a building on the school's main campus. what school officials are saying they will do. we're back in 90 seconds. e sayig they will do we're back in 90 seconds >> tech: need to get your windshield fixed? safelite makes it easy. you can schedule in just a few clicks. and we'll come to you with a replacement you can trust. >> vo: schedule free mobile service now at safelite.com. ♪ safelite repair, safelite replace. ♪ ohhh crap. now we gotta get france something. wait! we can use etsy's new gift mode! alright. done. ♪♪ plateau de fromage! oh la la! don't panic. gift easy with gift mode, new on etsy. hi. i use febreze fade defy plug. and i use this. febreze has a microchip to control scent release so it smells first-day fresh for 50 days. 50 days!? and its refill reminder light means i'll never miss a day of freshness.

♪ (ella) fashion moves fast. (jen) so we partner with verizon means i'll never miss a day of freshness. to take our operations to the next level. (marquis) with a custom private 5g network. (ella) we get more control of production, efficiencies, and greater agility. (jen) that's enterprise intelligence. (vo) it's your vision, it's your verizon. when you own a small business every second counts. save time marketing with constant contact. with email, sms and social posts all in one place. so you still have time to make someone's day. start today at constantcontact.com. columbia university started

sending students, today, the ones who were occupying hamilton hall will place expulsion. they smashed windows to break into that campus building overnight and barricaded themselves inside with stacked vending machines, tables and metal police barriers. at one point, at least one of them right here, got into a physical confrontation with a maintenance worker on duty inside. here's a few more. the students are comparing their takeover of hamilton hall to the historic 1968 protest against the vietnam war in that very building. they say they will not leave until all of their demands are met. joining us now from the campus of columbia university is antonia hilton. so expulsion. >> reporter: that's right and that hasn't deterred the students. there are still dozens of them

inside hamilton hall and now there are even more students on the street who have joined members of the public in a protest right outside those windows to show support for the students who are still inside protesting. what we've heard from the unit is that they are planning expulsion for the students involved and they're going to have to be removed from the building. the one point of agreement everyone seems to have is that the administration is in a way at fault for this. take a listen to a conversation i had with one jewish student who's been part of the community that's spoken out about the protest who witnessed this unfold last night. >> they put in these deadlines. the problem is, they're toothless, they refuse the follow through. that's allowed it to fester and get to this point. last night as the riot was ongoing, as students were being assaulted, the police were called. i called the police personally and there was no response.

nothing. total radio silence from university, from law enforcement as these group of rioters were allowed to come deer hamilton hall. it was shocking. >> i have to tell you this idea of a lack of leadership, a lack of response is coming from every corner. from pro palestinian students and professors who are enraged that the nypd came on to the campus and talks with the administration fell apart. then from students like david who you met there, said the school hasn't done enough to keep them safe, to make it possible for them to have a fun and peaceful commencement here in about two weeks. from all sides, there's this feeling the columbia administration has been sort of caught flat footed at every turn and they haven't been able to take control of the situation or at least make clear what to do next with this community that seems to show no signs of stopping their protest and central demands. >> let me ask you one more question. what are they demanding? they say they want all of their

demands met. what are they exactly? >> reporter: well, the central most important demand for people to understand is a call for a divestment. that means to cut ties with organizations with businesses in israel. for example, program, dual degree program in tel aviv or defense contractors who are involved in dealings with the u.s. government supporting and providing arms to israel. so that's the most important call. but when you talk to individuals who are involved in the movement, many of them come from different perspectives. many are actually jewish themselves. they have family members in many cases who live in israel. some who are even serving in the idf. so sometimes when you talk to them at that level you get a slightly different take. for some, the main motivation is an antiwar, a peaceful ask. they really are hoping there is a cease fire and that columbia's actions could make set an example that they'd like to see spread to other schools and all the way up to joe biden's

office. so you know, it looks different when you talk to different students but i think the common ground here is a desire for there to be economic pressure on the state of israel and for there to be a cease fire and certainly no further action into rafah. >> what about the sign that was streamed down the building? it means something specific to israelis. >> reporter: it means something specific to israelis. it means a history of violence of even suicide bombings. something many of the students here have described is fearful for them. when you talk to muslim students, they tell you the translation is uprising. a reference to them making their voices heard and pushing back on the u.s. government's plans and their relationship with israel. so there are a lot of words in this debate you know that i think it's important to acknowledge that people on either side of this see them very differently. same thing goes for the phrase from the river to the sea. when you speak to jewish

students, they hear a call for violence for their annihilation. when you talk to muslim or palestinian american students, they say that's about freedom for them in between those two borders. so it's really hard to have only one working definition here for any of those terms. >> thank you so much. we're going talk to a columbia university professor in a few minutes but we want to get back to the trial here in new york city. we're going to introduce you when we come back in just a second to peggy peterson and david denison. don't go anywhere. d denison. don't go anywhere. nd save hundreds on car insurance with liberty mutual. we got a bit of a situation. [ metal groans] sure, i can hold. ♪ liberty liberty liberty liberty ♪ in theaters now. we love being outside, but the sun makes our deck and patio too hot to enjoy. now thanks to our new sunsetter retractable awning, we can select full sun or instant shade in just 60 seconds. it's 20 degrees cooler under the sunsetter and we get instant protection

from harmful uv rays and sun glare. for pricing starting at less than $1,000, transform your outdoor living space into a shaded retreat your family will love! when you call, we'll rush you a special $200 discount certificate with your free awning idea kit! you'll get your sunsetter for as little as $799. but, this is a limited time offer! for over 20 years, sunsetter has been the bestselling retractable awning in america! call now for this free awning idea kit packed with great awning solutions that will let you enjoy your deck or patio much more often. plus, get this $200 discount certificate that will bring you your sunsetter for as little as $799. but this is a limited time offer. call now! sunsetters are backed with up to a 10-year limited warranty! more than 1 million families in america own and love their sunsetter. now, you too can discover why “life is better under a sunsetter...” it's like putting an extension on your home. and talk about options: choose motorized or manual

and for just a little extra, add led lighting for evening enjoyment. there are so many incredible styles to choose from in our free awning idea kit. get a custom-built awning, without the custom-built price! call now to get the whole sunsetter story. you'll get this free awning idea kit. plus, a $200 discount certificate and there's no obligation. with sunsetter, you'll create the ultimate outdoor living space. perfect for entertaining friends. call now for your free awning idea kit, with local dealer info and $200 discount certificate. “life is better under a sunsetter!”act now and save! (ella) fashion moves fast. (jen) so we partner with verizon with local dealer info and $200 discount certificate. to take our operations to the next level. (marquis) with a custom private 5g network. (ella) we get more control of production, efficiencies, and greater agility. (jen) that's enterprise intelligence. (vo) it's your vision, it's your verizon.

when others divide. we unite.

with real solutions to help our kids. like community schools. neighborhood hubs that provide everything from mental health services to food pantries. academic tutoring to prom dresses. healthcare to after care. community schools can wrap so much around public schools. ...and through meaningful partnerships with families, they become centers of their communities. real solutions for kids and communities at aft.org he's still on the stand, talking about the pseudonyms that the contract to pay daniels used for daniels and for him. david denison, peggy peterson, i'm sorry. denison was for keith davidson. back with me are rebecca and danny. danny, what's the deal with using pseudonyms? why make up fun names with ill

>> to conceal. at least the prosecution's going to argue. it's interesting they use the peggy peterson and denison. if this case was a court case, but these fictional names are used to hide the actual identities of the people involved. now, is that concealment of the other crime that the people need to get to that felony level of falsification of business records? maybe not, but it sets stage. creates the atmosphere that this was done on the hush hush, therefore making it easier, at least the people will argue, to believe that this was, that transaction was an order to conceal the or to influence the election and that they made out their concealment element.

>> i think we understand clearly the contours the argument they're making. i understand the moment in time they're talking about but even i can get lost in the forest here. how's the prosecution doing in reminding the jurors what they are there specifically to decide? >> the fact is so far the evidence that has come in that's gone to the central game here about the falsification of business records has been fairly boring documents and banker's testimony that i imagine is hard for the jurors to follow at this particular moment. and that's not unusual in a case like this. the prosecution's going to have to bring all of this together at the end so so far, they've done a really good job about telling a story and the question is whether they will enough threads to pull together at the end to make it very clear how this story all hangs together on the hooks of the elements of this

crime. >> so david, danny, david denison, keith davidson. all the names are in my head. let me ask you about blanche and donald trump's relationship with him. blanche is a well respected lawyer here in new york. he's got a really good reputation. but it seem like there may be some tension. "the new york times" reported today that mr. trump views himself as his own best legal strategist. he has cast about for lawyers who will do what he wanted including helping him stay in office after he lost the 2020 election. he has vented to others that he does not have his roy cohn, his ruthless former lawyer. we know who he is after all this time and he's not exactly happy with the way blanche has been performing during this trial. >> criminal defense attorneys will tell you that during the course of the trial, their clients will get ideas and opinions about how their

attorney is handling the case and that's funny because they're missing the irony that doing things the client's way is why they're sitting in a courtroom in a criminal trial. i think most defense attorneys take that with a grain of salt. we've prepped all the witnesses. gotten all the exhibits ready. at least for me when the client wants to tell you something important, i think blanche is doing what the rest of us do, which is smile politely and keep doing what you're there to do, which is try the case. so being a criminal defense attorney especially for a well heeled defendant like trump is a lot of saying sure, we'll take a look at that, then moving on and doing what he knows best to do during a trial. he's been there before. >> we'll see what blanche does when he presents his case, the defense's case, but so far, there's been a lot of testimony from people close to trump about

or david pecker specifically, about what donald trump and he and michael cohen agreed to. also news today that the judge held donald trump in contempt of court for violating the gag order. $9,000 fine and a threat to put him in jail if he doesn't start to respect the rules, the lawful orders of the court. more on that in a moment. don't go anywhere. e court. more on that in a moment don't go anywhere. (ella) fashion moves fast. (jen) so we partner with verizon to take our operations to the next level. (marquis) with a custom private 5g network. (ella) we get more control of production, efficiencies, and greater agility. (jen) that's enterprise intelligence. (vo) it's your vision, it's your verizon.

dad and i finally had that talk. no, not that talk. about what the future looks like. for me.

i may have trouble getting around, but i want to live in my home where i'm comfortable and my friends are nearby. i can do it with the help of a barber, personal shopper and exercise buddy. someone who can help me live right at home. life's good. when you have a plan. ♪ ♪

breaking news out of the court of new york. the motion to suspend these proceedings to stay this trial from donald trump's attorney to the supreme court has been denied. now upon reading and filing the papers with respect to the motion and due deliberation having been had there on, it is ordered that the motion is denied. this was entered today by the clerk of the supreme court here in new york state. back with me is nbc news correspondent, vaughn hillyard. so he's not getting a delay from the supreme court. it will continue on. there was just some interesting testimony from keith davidson about cohen and the delayed payment to stormy daniels. what can you tell us? >> reporter: right. he said something right now about how they went from agreement between daniels and michael cohen on october 11th to

ultimately, more than two-week delay of that actual $120,000 transfer being executed. $130,000 actually being executed on october 27th. what he is laying out here was the extent to which he had repeated phone calls and communication with michael cohen in which cohen had made the commitment that the payment would be made by october 14th, but then october 14th came and gone. then october 15th went by and he gave excuse after excuse after excuse. this is according to keith davidson who was the attorney representing stormy daniels. on october 17th, he said at this point, he sent an e-mail to cohen saying the agreement between cohen and daniels was void. that it was no longer going to be taking place. and this is where ultimately we are about to get to the point where how is this, how is this resurrected. because keith davidson was just

asked by the prosecution whether he ever believed that michael cohen would be the one himself actually executing and paying these funds. the ultimate source of the funds to which davidson responded never. so this is where we will now get from keith davidson an understanding of what went into ultimately how they resurrected this deal and come october 27th whether donald trump was explicitly involved and what those conversations from his end looked like in order to ultimately pay daniels that $130,000 and silence her story from getting publicly out there before the 2016 election. >> really important context there. about what happened at the supreme court in new york state just now. donald trump's team was trying to get merchan recused, to get the case stayed, because they believe that merchan should have recused himself. that he was acting allegedly in excess of the supreme court's jurisdiction and restricting donald trump's ability to file

motions in these proceedings and include rulings and submissions in the public record. again, supreme court denying this and the trial will proceed. joining us now from the dispatch senior writer and author of interim shadow, david. the trial is ongoing. donald trump is not on the campaign trial, but this is usually a pretty quiet time on the campaign trial regardless before the conventions. this is a fund raising moment for the campaign. getting your ducks in order before the general election begins over the summer. donald trump is sending out fund raising e-mails based on what's happening in court. here's one of them. breaking from trump, rigged democrat judge rules against me. democrat judge just held me in contempt of court. i was fined 9,000 for gag order violations and it's a link asking for fund raising from the people at the e-mail is sent to. how is the campaign from your

understanding handling all of this? do they see this as a potential gift or are they worried about the implications of donald trump being in court? >> well, i think it's a little bit of both. certainly they're using the trial as an opportunity to energize the former president's base. it's this base that has often donated tens of millions of dollars in small donations. donald trump really is the best online fund-raiser the republican party has had. over the last couple of years, we have seen him less effective in doing so. we've seen republican grass roots donors giving a lot less than democratic grass roots donors. so the online platform act blue that collects a bunch of donations for democratic committees, state parties and candidates, continues to perform like gang busters. win red, the republican insular which came online during the trump presidency, grew then

things stalled out. this is not just a trump thing. this is republican candidates and committees across the board. we saw particularly in the 2022 election cycle and this sort of malaise has continued. ultimately, the question is will donald trump raise enough. he doesn't need to raise more than joe biden. he probably won't. he just needs to raise enough. we'll see if he does. >> in terms of enthusiasm, is that a red flag for enthusiasm for republicans in general? in 2022, republicans didn't do well and they haven't since donald trump lost the election. before that, since to 2018 when democrats won back the house. it's been, they've been on a downward slope in terms of gaining backseats and momentum. >> right. so there are two ways to look at that. you raised some good points. let's look at 2020. i think it's pretty clear and i talked to mr. trump about this after the 2020 election. that he cost republicans control

of the senate particularly by telling voters in georgia not to vote in those two special runoff elections on january 5th, 2021, but the turnout he was able to generate in the november election helped republicans lift 14 house seats. so their house, their collection of house races grew even though they lost senate seats and even though donald trump lost that election to joe biden, turnout for him was still pretty darn good. so i think the question is will he get the turnout he needs and the votes. sometimes the money doesn't come in because maybe people are looking at their finances, looking at inflation. that's one of the things republicans have talked to me about that they blame for this down tick in donations. when he's been on the ballot, he's been able to generate a lot of turnout from voters that don't normally show up if he's not on the ballot. so i don't think we can say either way that what we're

seeing now is going to translate into a negative turnout on election day. >> that's true. but i think democrats might argue the opposite, which is that all of the fund raising they're seeing from small donors is showing enthusiasm on their side and when it comes to the economy and inflation, everyone's facing the same things and democrats will say the economy is doing quite well. david, really good to have you. thanks for joining us. >> thanks. more coverage of trump's trial is ahead, but after this break, we're going to be back at columbia university where students are still occupying a building on campus. a professor will join us to tell us what he thinks about how the university is handling all of this. w the university is handling all of this

(ella) fashion moves fast. (jen) so we partner with verizon to take our operations to the next level. (marquis) with a custom private 5g network. (ella) we get more control of production, efficiencies, and greater agility. (jen) that's enterprise intelligence. (vo) it's your vision, it's your verizon. it's time. yes, the time has come for a fresh approach to dog food. everyday, more dog people are deciding it's time to quit the kibble and feed their dogs fresh food from the farmer's dog. made by vets and delivered right to your door precisely portioned for your dog's needs. it's an idea whose time has come. ♪♪

we put our heart into celebrating moms. we are local farmers, bakers, florists and makers who grow and create with a passion. 1-800 flowers. for mom, with love. what will you do when the power goes out? power outages can be unpredictable and inconvenient. but with a generac home standby generator, your life goes on uninterrupted. because when your generac detects a power outage it automatically powers up, giving your family the security and peace of mind they deserve. we don't have to worry about whether we lose power or not. if the utility company does not come through, our generac does. after the hurricane happened, we just want to be prepared for anything. 8 out of 10 home generators are generac with thousands of satisfied customers. the number one thing to prepare for is extended power outages. don't make it so hard on yourself. have a generac home standby generator. and owning a generator is easier than ever.

special financing and low monthly payment options are available. and if you call now, you will also receive a free seven-year warranty valued at over $700.00. call or go online now to request your free quote. my mental health was better. but uncontrollable movements called td, tardive dyskinesia, started disrupting my day. td felt embarrassing. i felt like disconnecting. i asked my doctor about treating my td, and learned about ingrezza. ♪ ingrezza ♪ ingrezza is clinically proven for reducing td. most people saw results in just two weeks. people taking ingrezza can stay on most mental health meds. only number-one prescribed ingrezza has simple dosing for td: always one pill, once daily. ingrezza can cause depression, suicidal thoughts, or actions in patients with huntington's disease. pay close attention to and call your doctor if you become depressed, have sudden changes in mood, behaviors, feelings, or have thoughts of suicide. don't take ingrezza if you're allergic to its ingredients. ingrezza may cause serious side effects,

including angioedema, potential heart rhythm problems, and abnormal movements. report fevers, stiff muscles, or problems thinking as these may be life threatening. sleepiness is the most common side effect. take control by asking your doctor about ingrezza. ♪ ingrezza ♪ (vo) sail through the heart of historic cities about ingrezza. and unforgettable scenery with viking. unpack once and get closer to iconic landmarks, local life and cultural treasures. because when you experience europe on a viking longship, you'll spend less time getting there and more time being there. viking. exploring the world in comfort.

i'd like to think that what the students feel about the university is important enough that maybe we could reorder its priorities but at the moment, it doesn't seem this is possible at all. we may halt classes for a few days or a spring, but ultimately, we don't change the foundation of this university which is essentially an enormous business corporation. >> there was a columbia university student speaking to nbc news in 1968 at the ongoing protest about the vietnam war. today, students are protesting another war, occupying the same

building under the threat of expulsion. some columbia alumni are concerned that the safety and well-being of jewish students and faculty and they say enough is enough professor, thanks for being with us. how do you feel about what you're seeing on campus? >> the antisemitism that we have seen in recent weeks has been horrifying. from students saying things like zionists don't deserve to leave to pointing to jewish students saying -- next target. there have been dozens of episodes of antisemitism that have been recorded and documented but really, what's happening now is not about israel or palestine. not about

israel or palestine. i've been disappointed the administration has not stepped in more vigorously to enforce the rules. i understand that there has been tremendous faculty opposition and i understand as a faculty member myself why it is exhilarating to see your students engaged with issues like the war in gaza. but vandalizing buildings, disrupting exams, taking over territory and campus property, that's not free speech and academic debate. >> let me ask you about the sound bite we played at the top of the segment from the student in 1968 who was talking about

the protests there against the vietnam war. some of the students right now are saying that this is a strong parallel to what students were doing back then. do you see that? >> it was a in a moment in columbia's history, a painful moment, and one that took decades to recover from. i recognize that what's motivating a lot of these students is the desire to change the world as they see it. and i think that passion is admirable. it's what i see in my students when i look out at that sea of faces at the beginning of the semester. there's something about that spark in a young person that makes it really for me worthwhile to get up every day as a faculty member and teach them. but i also think part of growing

up on campus is learning how to channel that energy in ways that effective. i think it's incumbent on us to teach them in channelling that energy they have in ways that are productive in engaging with public policy in constructive ways. it's our responsibility as faculty to show students how to do that. >> what do you make of all the students who are covering themselves up using the scarf to hide their identity, wearing masks, medical masks or sunglasses. in the '60s, you didn't really see that as much. they say it's to protect their identity. how do you feel about the disguising of their identities as they protest the war in gaza. protest the existence of israel in some cases? cases?

>> one of the basic principles that our society is organized around is accountability for your actions. and you know, the great heroes of civil disobedience throughout the generations, martin luther king jr., others did not hide their identity. it is in fact the very willingless to bear the consequences of our actions that has been a defining characteristic of civil disobedience over time. so i think the question that we should all be asking is if one is in fact willing to engage in this sort of activity because of the cause, because the passion for the cause is burning so strongly, then why not bear the consequences for those decisions? and let me just say the

consequences impact other students. you know, this generation, this class of 2024 that's graduating, they didn't have a high school graduation and because of the actions of some of these protestors, university commencement may very well be at risk. and i think what these protestors who are vandalizing buildings and taking over territory, what they should ask themselves is am i willing to look my own fellow students in the eye and take responsibility for maybe canceling their commencement? thousands of students and family members are waiting to come to columbia just two weeks from now to celebrate the class of 2024. let's make that possible for them. s make that possible for them >> 700 students were arrested. thank you very much. when we come back, we're going

to talk more about what's happening in the courtroom here in new york. judge merchan is back in the courtroom. they're about to start proceedings once again. start testimony once again. don't go anywhere. in start testimony once again don't go anywhere. >> tech: does your windshield have a crack? trust safelite. this customer had auto glass damage, but he was busy working from home... ...so he scheduled with safelite in just a few clicks. we came to his house... then we got to work. we replaced his windshield... ...and installed new wipers to protect his new glass. >> customer: looks great. thank you. >> tech: my pleasure. >> vo: we come to you for free. schedule now for free mobile service at safelite.com. ♪ safelite repair, safelite replace. ♪ anthony: this making you uncomfortable? at safelite.com. good. when you've got type 2 diabetes like me, you have up to 4 times greater risk of stroke, heart attack or worse death. even when meeting your a1c goal. discomfort can help you act. i'm not trying to scare you. i'm empowering you...

to get real with your health care provider. talk to them about lowering your risk of stroke, heart attack or death. alice loves the scent of gain so much, she wished there was a way to make it last longer. say hello to your fairy godmother alice and long-lasting gain scent beads. part of the irresistible scent collection from gain! ( ♪♪ ) i thought water would help with these dry spots. that's lawn disease. but scotts healthy plus will cure it! lawn disease? been going around. so like other people have it and it's not... pick up a bag of the new scotts turf builder healthy plus lawn food today. feed your lawn. feed it. (ella) fashion moves fast. (jen) so we partner with verizon scotts turf builder healthy plus lawn food today. to take our operations to the next level. (marquis) with a custom private 5g network. (ella) we get more control of production, efficiencies, and greater agility. (jen) that's enterprise intelligence. (vo) it's your vision, it's your verizon.

norman, bad news... i never graduated from med school. what? but the good news is... xfinity mobile just got even better! now, you can automatically connect to wifi speeds up to a gig on the go. plus, buy one unlimited line and get one free for a year. i gotta get this deal... that's like $20 a month per unlimited line...

i don't want to miss that. that's amazing doc. mobile savings are calling. visit xfinitymobile.com to learn more. doc? all right, let's go back into the courtroom. and danny is back with me so keith davidson is back on the stand. we have a minute left. i want to ask you about michael cohen a moment ago saying that he would pay the money back himself. getting frustrated because keith davidson was demanding the money sooner nan he wanted to pay it. why would the prosecution bring that up. >> they want to get it out in the open because the defense defense will explore that on cross. that this was michael cohen on his own and his own mission and he didn't have authority to do anything. you better believe that the defense will hit that hard. >> and taking the air out of the balloon. >> exactly right. it lands with less of a thud

when it happens on cross-examination. >> and michael cohen will say that donald trump will pay him the money back and that is why the legal services money that he wrote a check for while he was in the oval office, that donald trump knew it was to pay him back for paying stormy daniels to keep her story quiet ahead of the 2016 election, right after the access hollywood tape dropped which we heard about today in court as well. that will do it for me this hour. court is ongoing, but nicolle wallace has it all handled. "deadline: white house" starts right now. hi, everyone. it is a big day. 4:00 in new york. quote, i have a blockbuster trump story. six words that would put in motion just about everything that happened next. a scramble from trump allies to suppress a story that could have landed like a