LEVIN AND JEREMY SALA, A CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY. WE BEGIN WITH KATY TUR, OUR FRIEND AND COLLEAGUE AND PARTNER AT THE COURTHOUSE TODAY. TALK ABOUT YOUR -- THE KEY TAKEAWAYS SO FAR FROM THE CLOSING ARGUMENT BY DONALD TRUMP'S LEAD ATTORNEY. >> IT HAS BEEN SO FASCINATING LISTENING TO TODD BLANCHE GIVE HIS FINAL SUMMATION. WHEN HE GOT UP AND FIRST INTRODUCED HIMSELF TO THE JURY, HE THANKED THEM FOR THEIR SERVICE, THE TIME THAT THEY HAVE SPENT ON THIS CASE, THANKED THEM FOR PAYING CLOSE ATTENTION TO THE TESTIMONY AND TO ALL OF THE EVIDENCE. I WAS STRUCK BY HIS TONE AND BY HIS MANNER. HE DIDN'T SEEM FULLY CONFIDENT IN THOSE MOMENTS, DIDN'T SEEM FULLY CONFIDENT IN THE WAY HE WAS DELIVERING HIS THANK YOU. THEN HE HASN'T ENTIRELY SEEMED CONFIDENT THROUGHOUT HIS SUMMATION. HE HAS GOTTEN SOME SPEED HERE AND THERE. HE HAS GOTTEN INTO A RHYTHM AT TIMES. FOR THE MOST PART, IT DOES FEEL LIKE HE IS WINDING HIS WAY THROUGH THIS, AS YOU LISTEN TO IT. THERE WERE MOMENTS WHERE THE ARGUMENTS FELT TIGHTER. THERE WERE MOMENTS WHERE THE ARGUMENTS FELT PRETTY LOOSE, NOT GOING IN A CLEAN SEQUENCE. HE SEEMS TO BE GETTING AT THE NOTHING TO SEE HERE DEFENSE, BY SAYING THAT THESE DOCUMENTS, THESE ALLEGEDLY FALSIFIED DOCUMENTS WEREN'T FALSIFIED AT ALL. THEY WERE DONE LEGALLY BY THE TRUMP ORGANIZATION. HE TRIED TO CLAIM AND TO ARGUE TO THE JURY, WHICH I THINK IS A STRETCH -- YOU WILL SEE IT AS A STRETCH AS WELL -- THAT THE AGREEMENT THAT HE HAD -- THAT DONALD TRUMP HAD WITH AMI IN THE BEGINNING OF THE CAMPAIGN WAS FINE, THAT IT WAS PERFECTLY NORMAL, THAT CANDIDATES AND CAMPAIGNS ALWAYS TRY TO INFLUENCE AND WORK WITH MEDIA OUTLETS TO PLACE POSITIVE STORIES AND TO BURY NEGATIVE STORIES. THAT'S NOT THE WAY IT WORKS WHEN YOU ARE COVERING A PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN OR ANY CAMPAIGN FOR THAT MATTER. OBVIOUSLY, THE CAMPAIGN WILL TRY TO SPIN YOU. THE CANDIDATE WILL TRY TO SPIN YOU. YOU ARE NEVER BUYING A STORY AND COVERING IT UP AND BURYING IT ON BEHALF OF THE CANDIDATE. THERE WAS ONE LINE IN PARTICULAR THAT DREW A GASP AT LEAST FROM THE OVERFLOW ROOM WHERE I WAS. THAT IS, EVERY CAMPAIGN IS A CONSPIRACY BETWEEN TWO PEOPLE TO PROMOTE A CANDIDATE. THAT'S AN EXAGGERATION OF WHAT A CAMPAIGN IS. IT'S AN EXAGGERATION OF WHAT DONALD TRUMP IS -- A DIPLOMATIC EXAGGERATION OF WHAT DONALD TRUMP IS ACCUSED GENEROUS OF DOING HERE IN THIS CASE. REGARDING THE EMAILS BETWEEN MICHAEL COHEN AND WEISSELBERG, THEY SAID THERE WOULDN'T BE EMAILS IF THIS WAS TO COVER SOMETHING UP, BETWEEN DON JUNIOR AND ERIC IF THIS WAS A SCHEME TO COVER SOMETHING ELSE, THERE WOULD BE NO EVIDENCE IF THIS WAS A SCHEME. HE TRIED TO ARGUE TWO POINTS ON DONALD TRUMP. ONE, THAT HE WAS SUCH A MICROMANAGER, SO INVOLVED IN THE PAYMENTS OUT OF HIS ORGANIZATION, THAT HE WOULD NEVER PAY MICHAEL COHEN MORE MONEY THAN MICHAEL COHEN DESERVED IN TALKING ABOUT THE DOUBLING OF THE STORMY DANIELS RATE, SAYING INSTEAD IT WAS JUST A RETAINER AGREEMENT, THAT HE WAS PAID 35 GRAND A MONTH AND A BONUS, BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT DONALD TRUMP AGREED TO HOLD MICHAEL TO AFTER DONALD TRUMP BECAME PRESIDENT AND RETAINED MICHAEL COHEN AS HIS PERSONAL LAWYER, THAT THAT 35 GRAND A MONTH WAS A NORMAL FEE, THAT DONALD TRUMP KNEW THAT WAS GOING OUT. AT THE SAME TIME THEY WERE ARGUING HE WAS SO BUSY AT WHITE HOUSE, HE WASN'T PAYING CLOSE ATTENTION TO EACH AND EVERY INVOICE. HE HAD SO MUCH GOING ON. IN TWO WAYS, TRYING TO SAY DONALD TRUMP WAS A MICROMANAGER, HE UNDERSTOOD EVERYTHING, BUT THEN WAS SO BUSY, HE COULDN'T POSSIBLY HAVE OVERSEEN ALL OF THE DETAILS OF WHAT THIS PAYMENT INVOLVED AND WHAT MICHAEL COHEN ALLEGES. AS WE EXPECTED, THEY REALLY WENT AFTER MICHAEL COHEN. TODD BLANCHE IS GOING AFTER MICHAEL COHEN AS HARD AS HE CAN SAYING MICHAEL COHEN WAS OUT FOR HIMSELF, HE IS A LIAR, YOU CAN'T TRUST ANYTHING HE SAYS, TRYING TO LESSEN THE MEANINGFULNESS OF THE TESTIMONY FROM DAVID PECKER AND OTHERS, INSTEAD TRYING TO FOCUS THIS CASE ON THE WORDS OF MICHAEL COHEN, WHO THEY BELIEVE THEY HAVE THE BEST CHANCE OF DISCREDITING. >> KATY, NOW, AS TODD BLANCHE IS TALKING ABOUT STORMY DANIELS, HE IS PAINTING HER AS A LIAR AND EXTORTIONIST. SINCE YOU COVERED THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN, I WANT TO ASK YOU ABOUT SOMETHING THAT JUST WENT INTO THE DOCUMENT. TODD BLANCHE TALKING ABOUT THE "ACCESS HOLLYWOOD" TAPE. THE GOVERNMENT WANTS YOU TO BELIEVE, SAYS TODD BLANCHE, IT WAS SO CATASTROPHIC THAT IT PROVIDED A MOTIVE FOR PRESIDENT TRUMP TO DO SOMETHING CRIMINAL. PRESIDENT TRUMP DID NOT REACT TO THE TAPE IN ANY WAY THAT THE GOVERNMENT IS SUGGESTING. I WANT TO GET YOUR TAKE ON THAT STATEMENT BY TODD BLANCHE AS SOMEONE WHO LIVED IT. >> I'M CURIOUS WHAT THE PROSECUTION WILL ARGUE HERE. AS SOMEBODY WHO WAS COVERING THE CAMPAIGN IN THE MOMENT, THE "ACCESS HOLLYWOOD" TAPE, FROM THE OUTSIDE LOOKING IN AND FROM CONVERSATIONS IN THE CAMPAIGN AND THOSE IN THE RNC, THAT WAS CATASTROPHIC. DONALD TRUMP'S CAMPAIGN THOUGHT IT WAS OVER AT THAT MOMENT. THERE WERE A COUPLE PEOPLE WHO THOUGHT HE COULD POWER THROUGH. STEVE BANNON, MAYBE DONALD TRUMP HIMSELF AND A COUPLE OTHERS. FOR THE MOST PART, THE CAMPAIGN WENT SILENT. THE TOP AIDES WERE NOT TO BE FOUND. THE CAMPAIGN TEAM COULDN'T EVEN REACH THESE TOP AIDES. TRUMP TOWER -- I WENT TO TRUMP TOWER AFTER THIS TAPE CAME OUT. IT WAS EMPTY. THERE WAS NOBODY INSIDE, SAVE FOR STEVE BANNON. THERE WAS AN ABANDONING OF THE SHIP. PAUL RYAN WAS TELLING LAWMAKERS, GO WITH YOUR HEART, DO WHATEVER YOU CAN. SENATOR LEE FROM UTAH WAS CRYING ON CAMERA SAYING HE COULD NEVER SUPPORT SOMEBODY LIKE DONALD TRUMP. IT SEEMED LIKE IT WAS THE END. THAT'S HOW THE RNC SAW IT AS WELL, FROM MY CONVERSATIONS WITH SOURCES AT THE TIME. TO SAY IT DIDN'T MATTER, I THINK IT'S NOT ACCURATE. IT DID MATTER TO THE CAMPAIGN. THE PROSECUTION NOW HAS THE TASK OF TRYING TO PROVE TO THE JURY THAT THAT WAS A MOTIVATION FOR DONALD TRUMP TO CONCEAL THESE RECORDS, TO CONCEAL THIS PAYMENT AND TO MISLEAD THE PUBLIC ABOUT WHAT HE WAS ACTUALLY PAYING FOR, BECAUSE A HUSH MONEY PAYMENT TO AN ADULT FILM STAR THAT HE HAD SEX WITH WHILE HE WAS MARRIED COULD POTENTIALLY, THE PROSECUTION WILL ARGUE, BE THE NAIL IN DONALD TRUMP'S CAMPAIGN, THE NAIL IN THE COFFIN FOR HIS