Just hours after appearing in a Manhattan courtroom for his arraignment, Donald Trump announced that he had taken home a legal victory over “horse face” Stormy Daniels. The porn star–who stands at the center of the former president’s unprecedented indictment–was ordered by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday to pay Trump $121,972 in legal fees stemming from her failed 2018 defamation lawsuit.
Trump celebrated the court ruling on Tuesday, blasting Daniels and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg,
“Alvin Bragg shut down New York City, brought in 38,000 NYPD officers, and will spend an estimated $200,000,000 of NYC funds, for a totally legal $130,000 NDA. On top of all that, the 9th Circuit Court just awarded me $122,000 — over the $500,000 already awarded, from Stormy ‘Horseface’ Daniels!”
Trump previously criticized Daniels in March after reports suggested that a criminal indictment by the Manhattan grand jury was imminent. The former president characterized his years-long legal battle with the porn star as an “extortion plot,” before coining the nickname “Horse Face.”
“Whether it’s the Mar-a-Lago raid, or the unselect committee hoax, the perfect Georgia phone call – it was absolutely perfect – or the Stormy ‘Horse Face’ Daniels extortion plot, they are all sick.”
While the appeals court ruling is not technically connected to the ongoing criminal proceedings in Manhattan, it relates to the same hush money payment made by former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen in 2016.
Daniels claimed in an unpublished 2011 interview that after having an affair with Trump years earlier, she was threatened by an unnamed man. Daniels claimed that the stranger approached her and threateningly told her, “leave Trump alone, forget the story,” before being told “that’s a beautiful little girl. It’d be a shame if something happened to her mom,” in reference to her daughter.
Trump vehemently denied the allegations and in 2018 described the story as a “total con job” about a “nonexistent man.”
Daniels fired back with a defamation lawsuit, but the case was dead on arrival. She tried to appeal the ruling in 2022, claiming that her lawyer Michael Avenatti filed the suit “without [her] permission and against [her] wishes,” but ultimately failed. Since then, she has been on the hook for upwards of $600,000 in legal fees.
Subscribe to Florida Jolt Newsletter!
Donald Trump Jr. offered his take on Twitter, and joined in his father’s celebration.
“BREAKING!!! the 9th Circuit just awarded Trump $121,962.56 in attorney fees from Stormy Daniels. Order just released. This in addition to the roughly $500k she already owes him. LOL glad she’s out there saying her T-shirt sales are booming she’ll be able to afford to pay Trump!”
BREAKING!!! the 9th Circuit just awarded Trump $121,962.56 in attorney fees from Stormy Daniels. Order just released. This in addition to the roughly $500k she already owes him.
LOL glad she’s out there saying her T-shirt sales are booming she’ll be able to afford to pay Trump!
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) April 4, 2023
Join your fellow patriots and subscribe to our Youtube Channel.
Former Trump attorney Harmeet Dillon also offered her congratulations in a tweet,
“Congratulations to President Trump on this final attorney fee victory in his favor this morning. Collectively, our firm obtained over $600,000 in attorney fee awards in his favor in the meritless litigation initiated by Stormy Daniels.”
Congratulations to President Trump on this final attorney fee victory in his favor this morning. Collectively, our firm obtained over $600,000 in attorney fee awards in his favor in the meritless litigation initiated by Stormy Daniels. https://t.co/ld7SVvZOp6 pic.twitter.com/1b5P3flxFb
— Harmeet K. Dhillon (@pnjaban) April 4, 2023
A court filing with the Ninth Circuit described the fees demanded by Trump as “reasonable.” Daniels, however, vowed last year, “I will go to jail before I pay a penny,” after the court ruled her liable for an initial $300,000.
Other stories you may want to read:
Trump Defiant After Arrest, Rips ‘Trump-Hating’ Judge, Prosecutor, AND Their Wives
Even a Federal Judge Thinks Boca Raton Mayor Scott Singer is a Liar
- Chuck Millar Stands Out as Palm Beach Gardens’ Most Seasoned Leader - February 24, 2025
- Navy Vet Thomas Turkin Fights for a Better Boynton - February 10, 2025
- Rebecca Shelton’s Vision to Revitalize Boynton Beach - January 29, 2025