Legal expert details why Hope Hicks will be such a 'compelling' witness in hush money case
Former Donald Trump adviser Hope Hicks will testify in his New York election interference case involving the alleged hush money given to Stormy Daniels, reports show.
The court proceeding is set to begin jury selection on April 15, with Hick's name was added to a list of witnesses on Monday. Trump's onetime lawyer Michael Cohen is also reportedly among the witnesses called.
Responding to the news Monday, MSNBC legal analyst Lisa Rubin said Hicks' transcribed interview with Jan. 6 committee shows she's been willing to break with Trump in the past.
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"She didn't leave as acrimoniously as other people did, at the same time, she didn't share his belief that the election had been stolen," Rubin said. "That, at the time, was headline-making news, that Hope Hicks had essentially said to him, 'Mr. President, you and I don't see this the same way.'"
Rubin argued Hicks' cordial departure, paired with her contrasting view on the 2020 presidential election, render the character of her upcoming testimony an open question.
"It remains to be seen what Hope Hicks will be like in a courtroom if she testifies," Rubin said, "what her demeanor is like with Donald Trump the defendant sitting right in front of her."
But Rubin said she also believes Hicks will appear credible in the courtroom.
"I would liken her to Ivanka [Trump], who, when she testified at the civil fraud trial, because she is no longer a participant in her father's political life, because she was known to have advised him in the days after Jan. 6th to be contrite, to do things that he didn't do," Rubin assessed. "Although she was evasive, although Judge [Arthur] Engoron did take issue with the testimony, she was a much more credible witness as someone who's sitting in the courtroom, to me, than both of her brothers, for example, were."
The legal expert also explained that Hicks may have been engaged in conversations with Trump and Cohen at the crucial time makes her a very important witness.
"One of the shortcomings of the D.A.'s case is that, in many respects, it will strike the public as he said, he said," Rubin noted.
"To the extent that Hope Hicks can say, 'This conversation happened, I was privy to it,' that, in and of itself, is a very big deal and a score for the Manhattan D.A.'s office," Rubin closed.
See the full conversation in the video below or at the link here.
