Despite repeatedly acknowledging that both parties “vehemently denied” accusations that Donald Trump had an affair with adult film star Stormy Daniels over a decade ago, on Tuesday, NBC News Megyn Kelly still devoted half of her 9:00 a.m. ET hour show to the claims. She even suggested that the disputed rumors somehow proved allegations against Trump featured in the discredited DNC-funded Russian dossier.
“Did he or didn't he? President Trump denying reports that in 2006 he cheated on wife, Melania. And reports that his lawyer paid to cover it up,” Kelly breathlessly proclaimed at the top of the show. After noting that Daniels “denies any relationship with Mr. Trump” and that Trump “vehemently denies any encounter with Daniels,” the host invited the porn star’s adult film colleague Alana Evans on the program to confirm the affair.
“But there is more to this story, including one woman who says she heard directly from Mr. Trump, while he was in a hotel room with Stormy Daniels,” Kelly announced. Evans recalled posting her claims on social media just before the 2016 election: “I posted my Facebook post without naming Stormy by name.” However, she complained: “But I’ll be honest, nobody really cared. It was brushed over again with Hillary’s e-mails. I really think that that was the next story that flooded because this was not, you know, far, really, before the election....I’m pretty sure it was October of 2016.”
At that point, Kelly mentioned Evans’ liberal political affiliation: “And we should note, you – politically, you’re a Democrat.” Evans replied:
I am a Democrat. But I’m a Bernie Sanders supporter. And so, you know, Hillary Clinton got my vote because it was the lesser of two evils. Sorry. But, you know, go Bernie! It wasn’t politically motivated whatsoever.
That assurance was good enough for Kelly, who then touted exclusive details from an upcoming story to be published on left-wing website Slate.com:
I want to tell our viewers that we have had a conversation with Jacob Weisberg of Slate. He’s the editor-in-chief of Slate, Slate.com. And he tells us he had a long conversation, multiple conversations, with Stormy Daniels just before the presidential election in 2016. And that Stormy Daniels told him, Jacob Weisberg of Slate, that – on the record – that she did have an affair with Donald Trump, that it lasted just under one year, and that they had at least four sexual encounters with one another after that July 2016 encounter at the Tahoe celebrity golf tournament.
Mr. Trump, again, has denied this through a spokesperson and the White House has denied it. But Slate will be putting that article up, we understand, later today. And Jacob Weisberg has given it to us here at Megyn Kelly Today on the record this morning. Some more details will follow there.
Weisberg has a long history of hurling nasty invective at conservatives and the GOP.
Turning back to Evans, Kelly asked: “You have no personal knowledge of that, the extent of that alleged affair?” Evans responded: “No, I never saw any evidence in Stormy’s life that things had changed, you know, dramatically or, you know, that she was being courted by anyone of that fashion.” Instead, Kelly relied on innuendo to make the case: “Would you be surprised if that were the case?” Evans remarked: “No, I wouldn’t be surprised. It’s Donald Trump, you know?” Kelly asserted: “I think a lot of people are surprised out there right now.” She begrudgingly added: “And again, on the record, he’s denied it.”
After conducting two lengthy interview segments with Evans, Kelly offered a third one to discuss the topic with New York Times reporters Jim Rutenberg and Megan Twohey. She asked Rutneberg: “Why should people care about this? I mean, should they care?”
The media columnist justified covering the story:
I mean, I’ll answer that as a journalist. We care because part of our job is who do politicians say they are when they run for president or any office. And if money was paid to hush up an affair, that’s something we need to know as journalists. The American public has to decide whether it cares. And that’s kind of – we can’t be part of that – that’s up to the public.
During the conversation, the Kelly tried to give credibility to “that infamous dossier, you know, the Russian dossier that made all that news” with unsubstantiated claims about Trump:
Trump’s denied that thing is real at all. But that thing suggested that Donald Trump engaged in unorthodox sexual behavior followed by silencing – followed by silencing. And also alleged that he participated in sex parties, all of which he adamantly, vehemently denied. What we heard today from Alana would tend to undermine the notion that he’s never attended a sex party or that he wouldn’t attend a party along those lines.
Twohey cautioned: “I don’t think you can make a leap from one particular encounter to confirming something in a dossier, in which many stuff – many of the things in that dossier have not been proven yet, you know, a year later after they were – after it was released.” Though she observed that “it really does raise important questions about whether this was part of a larger pattern in which Donald Trump or his affiliates paid money.”
Wrapping up the exchange, Kelly suggested Trump’s denials were lies: “It wouldn’t be the first time we’ve seen – it’s not – you know, the American public does not know one way or the other – but it wouldn’t be the first time we’ve seen somebody involved in a situation like this deny on the record that anything happened, only for us to find out later it did.”
While admitting that the truth was unknown, it seemed clear that Kelly had already decided that Trump was guilty.
