Former First Lady Melania Trump (middle) started selling Mother’s Day necklaces (right) the day before her husband Donald Trump’s )(left) hush money trial went into opening statements (Pictures: AP/melaniatrump.com)
Former First Lady Melania Trump is selling Mother’s Day necklaces to raise money for her husband Donald, who has complained about being stuck in his hush money trial instead of on the campaign trail.
Melania launched the $245 necklaces a day before her husband on Monday slammed his criminal trial following opening arguments.
‘I’m the leading candidate… and this is what they’re trying to take me off the trail for. Checks being paid to a lawyer,’ Trump said in the hallway outside the Manhattan courtroom.
‘It’s a case as to bookkeeping, which is a very minor thing.’
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web
browser that
supports HTML5
video
On Sunday, the necklace ‘designed by Melania Trump to honor all mothers’ went on sale on her personal website. It is made of gold vermeil and features a flower pendant with three heart-shaped petals, each with customizable engravings.
‘Being a mother is one of the most important roles in life,’ stated Melania. ‘For this Mother’s Day, I have designed the “Her Love & Gratitude” necklace to express immense gratitude and honor all mothers.’
She announced the necklace a day after US Federal Election Commission filings showed that Trump’s Save America PAC spent $3.7million on legal expenses in March, which is about three of every four dollars raised. Last month, Trump spent only $3.7million campaigning versus his opponent President Joe Biden, who spent $29.2million.
Hush money trial opening statements
Opening statements were delivered Monday in Trump’s criminal trial centering around a $130,000 hush money payment his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, made to porn star Stormy Daniels to silence her on an alleged affair.
Prosecutors argued that Trump reimbursed Cohen and falsified business records to cover up the transaction. Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records.
The prosecution said a ‘Trump Tower conspiracy’ unfolded involving the ex-president, Cohen and The National Enquirer’s former publisher David Pecker, who allegedly helped broker the hush money payment.
‘This case is about a criminal conspiracy and a coverup,’ one of the prosecutors, Matthew Colangelo, told jurors.
He added that Trump’s willingness to go through the trouble ‘shows just how important it was to him to hide the true nature of Cohen’s illegal payment to Ms Daniels and the overall election conspiracy that they had launched’.
Meanwhile, Trump’s attorney, Todd Blanche, insisted that Trump ‘is innocent’.
‘President Trump did not commit any crimes’, Blanche said after the prosecution’s statements.
Blanche said Cohen lied under oath in revenge and that it was ’34 pieces of paper’ Trump did not have a hand in.
Trump sat without showing any expression during his attorney’s opening statement.
He seemed to have trouble staying awake as the judge read instructions to the jury.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.