Live coverage: Michael Cohen testifies at Trump trial for second day

The first day of testimony from Donald Trump’s former attorney Michael Cohen didn’t deliver any real surprises. That’s a good thing.

Prosecutors had already gone through many of the events Cohen discussed during the testimony of National Enquirer publisher David Pecker, entertainment attorney Keith Davidson, and former Trump assistant Hope Hicks. When Cohen took the stand, his account of the events perfectly meshed with those previously given.

Cohen echoed the description of the “catch-and-kill” scheme Pecker described. He repeated the events of the negotiations detailed by Davidson. And he showed his close involvement with the campaign that had already been part of Hicks’ testimony. This repetition reinforced the chain of events jurors had already heard and bolstered the believability of Cohen’s testimony when speaking about events not previously covered.

Near the end of the day, prosecutor Susan Hoffinger led Cohen quickly through the scheme in which he, Trump, and former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg created a series of payments to reimburse Cohen for the money he spent silencing adult film actress Stormy Daniels. These payments are the heart of the indictments against Trump. Prosecutors are expected to continue moving through how Cohen was paid and Trump’s knowledge of these events when testimony continues on Tuesday.