Donald Trump 'paid porn star Stormy Daniels $130,000 to hide affair'
Stormy Daniels was among the adult film industry鈥檚 biggest stars when she met Mr Trump in 2006.
Sunday 14 January 2018 09:17, UK
Donald Trump has denied reports he had an affair with a porn star and then paid her to keep quiet.
Adult film star Stormy Daniels received a payment of $130,000 (£95,000) from Mr Trump's personal lawyer to prevent her from publicly discussing the alleged sexual encounter, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.
Attorney Michael Cohen - who has previously called himself 'the fix-it guy' - arranged for the payment through the actress' lawyer, the Journal reports.
The paper cites unnamed "people familiar with the matter" as its source.
The actress, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, met Mr Trump at a golf event in 2006 - one year after his marriage to Melania.
According to the Journal, Daniels had been in talks with ABC News in 2016, ahead of the election.
However, the report alleges a nondisclosure agreement was reached one month before the election, preventing her from going public.
The New York Times also reported she had been in talks with online magazine Slate over the alleged affair.
Daniels has previously denied any relationship with Mr Trump.
A statement sent to BuzzFeed News by her lawyer calls the claims of both the affair and payment of silence money "false".
The actress has starred in more than 150 adult movies and was considered one of the adult film industry's biggest stars when she met Mr Trump in 2006.
In a statement sent to the Journal, Mr Cohen said Mr Trump denied a relationship with Daniels, but did not address his role in negotiating the alleged payment.
The White House has refuted the Journal's story, calling it "old, recycled reports, which were published and strongly denied prior to the election".
The Journal had previously printed a story stating that former Playboy Playmate Karen McDougal was paid $150,000 (£109,000) to remain silent over a sexual relationship she allegedly had with Mr Trump a decade ago.
In October 2016, just days before the election, a 2005 videotape emerged in which Mr Trump bragged about being able grope women because of his fame.
He later apologised, calling his remarks "locker room banter".