NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas - Monday, April 22, 2024

Episode Date: April 23, 2024

Prosecution, defense paint competing visions of Trump as trial begins; Dozens of pro-Palestinian protesters arrested at Yale; Senate poised to vote on new aid for Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan; and more on tonight’s broadcast.

Tonight, the opening statements and the first witness taking the stand in Donald Trump's historic hush money trial. The former president back in a New York court as both sides laid out their cases. Prosecutors accusing Mr. Trump of a criminal conspiracy to cover up a payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels just before the 2016 election to keep quiet about an affair. The defense calling it merely a legal expense, saying it's not illegal to try to about an affair. The defense calling it merely a legal expense, saying it's not illegal to try to influence an election. And the first witness, the former publisher of the National Enquirer, the key role prosecutors said he plays in the case.

Also tonight, clashes on college campuses. Nearly 50 pro-Palestinian protesters arrested at Yale as another Ivy League university, Columbia, moves classes online, citing safety concerns after a campus rabbi warned Jewish students to go home. The Senate poised to pass a bill that could ban TikTok nationwide. What it means for TikTok's 170 million users in the U.S. That TikTok bill, part of a $95 billion foreign aid package passed in the House after the Speaker Mike Johnson put himself on the line. Will Democrats help him keep his job? NBC News reports the surge at the southern border of migrants from China. And the legendary Barry Manilow. We were backstage at Radio City for his record-breaking night. This is NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt. Good evening and welcome. The prosecution

in Donald Trump's hush money trial drew the sharp outlines of its case against the former president today, telling the Manhattan jury Mr. Trump orchestrated a criminal scheme to corrupt. During a 40-minute opening statement, a prosecutor told the panel hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels to assure her silence over an alleged affair and were illegally disguised as legal expenses were part of a planned long-running conspiracy to influence the 2016 election. In his opening statement, a lawyer for Mr. Trump firing back, saying there was nothing wrong with trying to influence an election. The prosecution putting on the stand as its first witness,

the former publisher of the National Enquirer, who the state says was central to an effort to quash negative stories about Mr. Trump during the 2016 presidential race. Donald Trump denies having had an affair with Ms. Daniels and has pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges. Laura Jarrett was in the courthouse and has the latest. Tonight, prosecutors painting a stark portrait of former President Trump in their opening statements during his hush money trial, a case Mr. Trump has argued is designed to derail his campaign. This is done as election interference. Everybody knows it.

But today, prosecutors said it is Mr. Trump who is guilty of election interference by paying off an adult film star to silence her before the 2016 election, telling the jury this case is about a criminal conspiracy to bury a story that could have cost him the presidency and then lying in his business records over and over again to cover it all up. The alleged scheme stretches back to 2015, a meeting at Trump Tower between Mr. Trump, his former fixer and attorney Michael Cohen, and David Pecker, the longtime publisher of the National Enquirer. This is where prosecutors say the trio hatched a plot for the tabloid to buy and bury any damning

stories about Mr. Trump, a tactic known as catch and kill. Prosecutors say it was the release of the Access Hollywood tape that turned the campaign upside down in October of 2016. Lead prosecutor Matthew Coangelo reading Mr. Trump's most incendiary remarks from that video for the jury today, arguing the former president was so desperate to contain the damage with female voters, he directed Cohen to pay off Stormy Daniels so she couldn't go public about an alleged sexual encounter, which Mr. Trump denies. But it is not the hush money itself that he's charged with in this trial. It's how then President Trump documented his monthly reimbursement

payments to Cohen on internal company records as legal expenses. Prosecutors telling the jury of seven men and five women today it was election fraud, pure and simple. But Mr. Trump is not facing conspiracy or campaign finance violations, something the defense sought to highlight today. In opening statements, Mr. Trump's attorney describing him as a husband and a father, a person just like you and me, and is innocent, saying the payments to Cohen were for legal expenses, arguing there is nothing wrong with trying to influence an election. It's called democracy, not a crime. The alleged crime he is facing, a low-level felony, carrying up to four years in prison if convicted, but the judge could sentence him to probation.

Mr. Trump today noting the previous DA and federal prosecutors looked at this case and did not charge him. He had indicted for that. People in the court just said to me, I can't believe it. This is the case. So we did nothing wrong. Mr. Trump's attorney casting Cohen as the prosecution's only real witness out for revenge, saying he's, quote, obsessed with Mr. Trump and wants to see him in an orange jumpsuit because Cohen's entire financial

livelihood depends on Trump's destruction. Cohen has pleaded guilty to campaign finance violations and lying under oath. The prosecutor is preemptively defending him today, saying he made mistakes in the past to protect his boss. And Laura is here with me on the set alongside Hallie Jackson. Laura, let me begin with you. The first witness on the stand right now. Does it give us any hint where all this is leading? Yes. Tabloid mogul David Pecker is at that 2015 meeting at Trump Tower, as we mentioned. He's useful for prosecutors because he puts Mr. Trump in the room for this alleged plot.

He's also useful because his name is not Michael Cohen and his testimony will continue tomorrow. All right, Laura, thank you. And Hallie, this is a partisan prosecution of the opinion of Mr. Trump. Yeah, that's what his campaign's been saying. And in some ways, what we just heard in court, what Laura has laid out echoes what we have also heard from Mr. Trump himself on the campaign trail, his defense casting him as a fighter, aggressively attacking central players in this case. Familiar themes. Now, the Trump campaign is trying to show that the former president can kind of walk and chew gum at the same time

by setting a meeting with the former Japanese prime minister after court wraps tomorrow. But for Mr. Trump, remember, he's a person who used to run his own business. He ran the country from the White House. One thing has been clear in this trial. He does not run this courtroom. He is now finding himself in a position he really doesn't like to be in, a position where he has to give up control. Lester. Hallie and Laura, thank you both. Pro-Palestinian protests spreading to more college campuses across America tonight,

prompting new restrictions and more arrests. Classes moving online at one major campus amid rising concerns over safety. Erin McLaughlin has late developments. Tonight, tension across major American college campuses. If you do not leave, you will be arrested. Students setting up encampments from University of North Carolina to MIT. Harvard's yard closed until Friday. We shall not be moved. All of it as fury over the Israel-Hamas war boils over,

with students expressing fear for their personal safety and concern for anti-Semitic hate speech, raising new questions about the line between hate speech and the First Amendment. We're asking for the school to call for a ceasefire in Gaza. This morning, police say at least 45 pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested at Yale University for violating Yale's policies and instructions. Police say they were later released. In a statement, the university adding that Yale does not tolerate behavior that threatened to harass or intimidated others. Meanwhile, at Columbia, today's classes were online only, with the university's president calling for a reset to de-escalate the rancor, while also adding more than 100 safety personnel to campus after more than 100 protesters were arrested last week. holding a sign pointing in the direction of Jewish students saying al-Qassam's next targets, Hamas's military wing.

Students Andrew Stein and Alicia Baker say they don't feel safe. It was the most terrified I've probably been in my entire life. On Saturday night, Stein says he was on campus for a pro-Israel counter-protest when this happened. You see him in the white sweatshirt filming as a group of pro-Palestinian protesters yell expletives against Israel. They started saying in Arabic, Hamas, Hamas, our beloved, please bomb Tel Aviv. And then they started saying, we're coming for you. No Zionists on this campus. Get off campus. Stein alleges the situation escalated. Me and my friend had water poured, like physically poured in our face.

My friend was actually abused in the middle of campus. On campus Monday, faculty from Bernard and Columbia came out in support of the pro-Palestinian students who were arrested and suspended last week. We are calling for divestment. We're calling for a ceasefire. Students inside the encampment told NBC News they were unaware of any physical or verbal threats toward students on Saturday night. Anyone who makes any threat to any Jewish student, we oppose you. We do not associate with you. Meanwhile, at Rutgers University, police announcing a man has been charged with a federal hate crime for breaking into the university's Center for Islamic Life and destroying property earlier this month. Tonight on college campuses across the country, students saying they don't feel safe. And Aaron, tonight the White House is weighing in on all this.

That's right, Lester. Tonight, President Biden saying he condemns both anti-Semitic protests and those who, quote, don't understand what's going on with the Palestinians. Lester. All right, Erin, thank you. In Washington, the future of TikTok is very much up in the air tonight after a bill passed by the House could result in an eventual ban of the platform. Savannah Sellers reports on what could happen next. Tonight, TikTok, the closest it's been to a national ban, becoming a reality. The Senate expected to vote as soon as tomorrow on the bill the House passed over the weekend.

The bill has passed without objection. It appears likely to pass in the Senate, too. And President Biden has said he will sign the bill the House passed over the weekend. The bill is passed without objection. It appears likely to pass in the Senate, too. And President Biden has said he will sign the bill, which would require TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to sell its stake in the platform within a year or face a national ban. An earlier bill would have required a sale within six months. TikTok is really built as a massive data collection machine. Congress looking to address national security concerns with worries China could access the sensitive data of the app's 170 million American users.

According to the app's privacy policy, they automatically collect geolocation related data and browsing history. The problem is that when ByteDance decides to create a wall to block U.S. data from leaving the United States. It's like asking the wolf to build a safer hen house. TikTok has denied sharing data with the Chinese government. In a statement, TikTok said the bill would trample the free speech rights of 170 million Americans and devastate 7 million small businesses, vowing in an internal memo obtained by NBC News to fight the legislation in court if passed, encouraging employees to stay composed and its users to fight

hard against a possible ban. Deborah Mayer relies on TikTok for her business selling handbags. She says it's added upwards of six figures in sales. The numbers just keep growing month over month. What percentage of your sales would you lose if TikTok were to be banned in the U.S.? Overnight, probably about 60 percent. One of millions of users who will be watching this week's vote very carefully. Savannah Sellers, NBC News. And at the same time, congressional leaders are working to get billions of dollars in American aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan as quickly as possible. Ryan Nobles is tracking this force. Ryan, what can we expect?

Lester, the Senate could vote on this package as soon as tomorrow. It is expected to pass. It is a $95 billion total package, more than $26 billion in funding for Israel. That includes more than $9 billion in humanitarian aid for Gaza. And it comes at a time when Israel is facing increased pressure for its prosecution of the war with Hamas. Now, the package also allocates more than $60 billion for Ukraine. This despite protests from House conservatives who felt that money should be spent here at home. They are now threatening to remove Speaker Mike Johnson from his job. If they try, House Democrats have said that they will consider

helping Johnson remain in the speakership. Lesser. All right, Ryan Nobles, thank you. And we'll talk more about the potential risks of international and domestic security threats, TikTok and much more when I sit down one on one-one with the FBI Director Christopher Ray tomorrow on Nightly News. We'll turn now to Minnesota and the house explosion that rocked the neighborhood just outside Minneapolis. First responders rescuing a woman trapped under the rubble, though her condition this hour is unclear. Fire officials say the debris is consistent with a natural gas explosion. In 60 seconds, the surprising vote to unionize by workers at a major car assembly plant is at a sea change moment

for how cars are made across America. Right after this. The United Auto Workers are claiming a major victory after workers at a Volkswagen assembly plant in Chattanooga voted to unionize. Priya Shrether reports from Tennessee on whether it's a sign of things to come. Tonight, the United Auto Workers Union has its eyes on the South after a major victory at a Volkswagen assembly plant in Chattanooga, where workers voted to unionize. On Friday, the UAW won in a stunning 73 percent vote after losing elections here in 2014 and 2019. It's the union's first win in a Southern Assembly plant owned by a foreign automaker. We hugged each other. We cried. I got on my knees. I thank the Lord. In three weeks, UAW is taking their fight to Alabama, where workers at two Mercedes-Benz plants in Tuscaloosa will vote to unionize.

When we started this campaign, we had kind of that little bit of a pride. You know, we wanted to be the first. You know, we're now a shining example to these other plants. Experts say this win could be a watershed moment in the labor movement, which has already picked up momentum in the last year in industries like health care and Hollywood. UAW won major contracts in Michigan last year with the country's big three automakers. President Biden, who stood alongside auto workers in Michigan during their strike, congratulated the workers in Tennessee and criticized six Republican governors,

including Tennessee Governor Bill Lee, who tried to convince workers not to unionize. I think it was a mistake, but that's their choice. In a statement, Volkswagen thanked its workers for participating in the election and said they're waiting for the results to be certified. That could come in a matter of days as UAW rallies across the South. Priya Shrader, NBC News, Chattanooga, Tennessee. And coming up for us as we continue tonight, why Chinese migrants are increasingly crossing the southern border. We'll ask DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas how the Biden administration is responding. Next. We're back now with a crisis at the border. We have reported on the record number of migrants

from across the world illegally crossing into the U.S. And now there is a spike in migrants coming across the border from a place that may surprise you. Here's David Noriega. Tonight, among the unprecedented number of migrants illegally crossing into the U.S. from Mexico, a dramatic surge in people from China. We're on the border east of San Diego. This is a group that crossed a few minutes ago. Border Patrol just directed them to the open-air detention site. They tell us they're fleeing poverty and political repression, including the aftermath of COVID.

Why did you leave China? Freedom. Was there something specific that happened? Yes. COVID-19. My work is gone. What did you used to do? Engineer. Electronic engineer. Three years ago, 689 Chinese migrants crossed the southern border. Last year, that number soared to over 37,000,

part of an explosion of migrants coming here from all over the globe. Currently, most migrants are released into the U.S. to wait, often years, for asylum hearings. Critics say that encourages migrants to come, and President Biden should change course through executive action. The system has been broken for decades. Why not take executive action right now? Why not do more right now to address this? What executive action are you suggesting that we take that we haven't taken that would survive court scrutiny? Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas telling us he's working with China,

which currently refuses to take back Chinese migrants who are deported from the U.S. Well, that may be changing. We have been working with the People's Republic of China to actually receive individuals whom we have determined are not eligible to remain in the United States. And do you expect that to change soon? We are hopeful that it will.

Back on the border, we meet this father and son who say their journey was facilitated by a Chinese smuggler they call a snakehead. The snakehead would contact him through WeChat and give him directions on where to go and where to stay. How did you pay this person? Everything was done online. We obtained exclusive private messages from one snakehead who claims to have brought more than 100 people to the U.S. this year. On social media, he posts these proof-of-life videos of Chinese clients traveling toward the border with help from Mexican smugglers. They serve as ads for his concierge service.

Ticket price, $10,000 a head. Once they set foot on American soil, the smugglers' work is done, with many more customers ready to go. David Noriega, NBC News, Hacumba, California. And after a short break, we're behind the scenes with music legend Barry Manilow on his record-setting night. Finally, the legendary Barry Manilow and his record-breaking performance at one of America's greatest venues, Radio City Music Hall. Chloe Malas has your Backstage Pass.

At 80 years old, Barry Manilow is still breaking records. I just love making music. I love creating. Holding the title of the most performances by an artist at Radio City after his 40-second show over the weekend. What does it feel like every time you walk out on this stage? Can you imagine? This is what I see when I walk out. You'd think it would panic me, but it doesn't anymore. It's exciting.

I never even thought I would have any kind of career in music because where I come from, nobody ever wound up in music or theater or anything like that. But the music was coming out of my ears. Manilow has sold more than 85 million records. When do you know that this song is a hit? I never do. You never do? I never do. No, I just write them. And if I'm lucky, I make a great record out of it. But there was one song he didn't think would take off. We never thought it would ever get played on the radio, but we took it to a disco when there were discos and we asked the DJ to play it. And everybody ran to the dance

floor and started to dance like they were back in the 1940s. He has no plans on slowing down with a London residency and arena tour planned for the summer. Every night when there's an audience out there, I say to Ken, my stage manager, I say, is there anybody out there? And I mean it. And I'm so grateful that they still have a good time with me. I'll just keep going until I can't do it anymore. This is just playtime now. Chloe Malas, NBC News, New York. And that is nightly news for this Monday. Thank you for watching, everyone. I'm Lester Holt. Please take care of yourself and each other.

Good night.