To make the content plagiarism-free and unique, I've rewritten it below:
"Donald Trump faces the possibility of further sanctions in his hush money trial as he returns to court on Thursday for another contempt hearing. This will be followed by testimony from a lawyer who represented two women who claimed to have had sexual encounters with the former president. The lawyer, Keith Davidson, is expected to provide crucial testimony for the prosecution's case, which alleges that Trump and his allies conspired to suppress damaging stories in the run-up to the 2016 presidential election.
Prosecutors are seeking $1,000 fines for each of four comments made by Trump that they say violated a judge's gag order. This would be in addition to a $9,000 fine that Judge Juan M. Merchan imposed on Tuesday for nine separate violations of the gag order.
It remains to be seen when Merchan might rule on the request for fresh sanctions, but the prospect of further punishment highlights the challenges Trump faces as a presidential candidate adjusting to the role of a criminal defendant subject to courtroom protocol.
During a break from the trial on Wednesday, Trump continued to condemn the case, though he refrained from comments that might violate the gag order. He told supporters in Waukesha, Wisconsin, "There is no crime. I have a crooked judge, who is totally conflicted."
The trial, now in its second week of testimony, has exposed the underbelly of tabloid journalism practices and the protections afforded to Trump during his 2016 presidential campaign.
The case revolves around hush money paid to suppress embarrassing stories, including from a porn actor and a former Playboy model, and reimbursements by Trump that prosecutors say were fraudulent and designed to conceal the true purpose of the payments and interfere in the election.
The former publisher of the National Enquirer, David Pecker, testified last week that he offered to be the "eyes and ears" of the Trump campaign. He described in detail his role in purchasing a story from a New York City doorman that was later determined to be false, as well as accusations of an extramarital affair with former Playboy model Karen McDougal. The goal, Pecker said, was to prevent the stories from becoming public, especially after the release of a 2005 "Access Hollywood" recording in which Trump was heard describing grabbing women without their permission.
A separate $130,000 payment was made by Trump's former lawyer and personal fixer, Michael Cohen, to porn actor Stormy Daniels to prevent her claims of a 2006 sexual encounter with Trump from surfacing.
Prosecutors have charged Trump with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, punishable by up to four years in prison. Trump's company reimbursed Cohen and recorded the payments as legal expenses.
Keith Davidson, the lawyer representing both Daniels and McDougal in their negotiations with the National Enquirer and Cohen, will return to the stand on Thursday. He testified that he arranged a meeting at his Los Angeles office in the summer of 2016 to see if the tabloid's parent company, American Media, Inc., was interested in McDougal's story. Initially, they declined, citing a lack of evidence. However, at Pecker's insistence, the tabloid eventually bought the rights. Davidson testified that he understood, and McDougal preferred, that the story would never be published. One reason for this, he said, was an "unspoken affiliation" between Pecker and Trump and a desire by the company that owned the Enquirer to avoid publishing stories that would harm Trump.
The morning will begin with another hearing on the gag order. The four statements at issue were made by Trump before Merchan warned on Tuesday that additional violations could result in jail time. They include comments to reporters and in interviews questioning Cohen's integrity."
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