it is freezing in there. let's get it over with right away. shannon, great to have you today. what is coming up sunday? >> shannon: we've got bipartisan representation. j.d. vance and chris murphy to talk about what's going on in the world and i sat down with retired supreme court justice stephen breyer and talked to him what is going on in college campuses and coming up this weekend. >> dana: what's the atmosphere like down there today? is it quiet? >> shannon: we have the occasional f bomb dropping protestors. i told them it's too early in the morning for that. pretty calm otherwise. >> dana: doesn't he know it's shannon bream sitting there? get it together, protestor. >> shannon: take it somewhere else. julie banderas is in for harris. >> julie: thank you guys.

fox news alert. we begin with continuing moment by moment coverage of day eight of former president trump's new york criminal trial. this is "the faulkner focus." hello. happy friday. we have a lot of news packed in for you this hour. court got underway last hour. a loss hat gone on so far. david pecker ends how he started on the witness stand. right now trump's team continues their cross examination. pecker to remind you is the former ceo of american media. his testimony this week mostly focusing on a quote, catch and kill scheme to buy stories about his then friend donald trump without publishing them effectively keeping them hidden. atactic he used for other celebrities, too. separately bragg's team accused former president trump of violating his gag order four

more times. that's in addition to the ten claims already made, by the way. prosecutors meantime want the judge to fine trump and hold him in contempt for every one of those. a hearing on the gag order is set for thursday, may two, trump speaking this morning before entering the courtroom. >> we're doing very well in this trial. everybody knows it. yesterday was a big day. yesterday went very well in this courthouse. it should be over. the case is over. you heard what was said and the case should be over. but you will have to make that determination. i think we have a judge that will never allow this case to be over. he is highly conflicted. the most highly conflicted judge i've ever seen. >> julie: our expert legal panel is standing by. first we'll get right to fox news senior correspondent eric shawn following this outside the

new york state supreme court house in lower manhattan. >> the prosecution case rests on one allegation, that former president trump wanted to buy karen mcdougal's story and keep it hidden so it wouldn't hurt his presidential campaign. it turns out that's not what the president wanted, that then candidate trump did not want to buy karen mcdougal's story is what david pecker testified. he is on stand for a fourth day. he is trump's friend and former publisher of the "national enquirer" describing through the testimony you he and cohen arranged to pay store for east that could hurt trump. he bought the rights to karen mcdougal's claim that she had had a 10-month long affair with trump. he also testified that trump did not want that purchase to go through.

that's a direct conflict with and contradiction of alvin bragg's whole theory that trump orchestrated the alleged election interference scheme to help his presidential prospects. pecker told the jury he told trump that mcdougal's story should be taken off the market. he said that trump told him he doesn't buy stories because trump told him they always get out. pecker then pushed trump so trump said he would talk to michael cohen. there was no direct order from trump to pecker to buy the story and no demand the shut mcdougal up to help protect trump's campaign. pecker said in a later phone call he told him it was mcdougal who did not want her story to come out and signed the contract to restart her career to let her write articles and appear in pecker's other publications and how ami, america media incorporated did just that. they published help tip coll amends and exercise columns and

put her on the cover of men's journal to try to chip away at the prosecution theory that the $150 thousand was only a hush money payment. in this way pecker is showing to the jury that there was actually a payment and that mcdougal actually performed legitimate services for the company and it was not only -- had nothing to do with any type of hush money payment as we get some spectators yelling here, as is their want in front of court sometimes. >> julie: thank you so much, eric shawn. legal panel is here to break it down as it happens for us. andrew cherkasky, former federal prosecutor, leo terrell, attorney and fox news contributor, andy mccarthy former assistance u.s. attorney and fox news contributor, and last but not least phil holloway, former assistant district attorney. thank you for talking to us today. andy, i will start with you.

yesterday some interesting testimony coming from david pecker, former "national enquirer" publisher who admitted the goal was the try to prevent the story with -- from interfering with the trump campaign. he said he was concerned the payment could -- how damming is that statement for trump's team >> not at all. two things. it is not illegal to bury compromised or politically-damaging information. there is nothing criminal about that. non-disclosures agreements are a staple of civil litigation in the united states. civil settlements. and bragg does not have the authority to enforce federal campaign finance law. the federal agencies that do have that authority investigated this thoroughly and decided not to prosecute trump.

and the only way that bragg can make this into a federal case, so to speak, is to manipulate the law or distort it so that it says what he wants it to say rather than what it actually says. so i just don't really see it as damaging. >> julie: trump's attorney grilled pecker about his long relationship with trump, which was basically his attempt at showing how he had helped his friend long before the presidential election and spoke how he gave trump a heads-up about a negative story before all of this about his wife marl yeah maples. can the defense prove it is a friend helping a case, not a case of violation of campaign finance law? >> i think the defense will use mr. pecker's testimony to establish mr. trump had purposes other than election-related purposes to kill negative store

eaves about him. he is a celebrity in the public eye. the reputation is outrageously important and how about with his family and wife. now he is sitting on melania's birthday having those stories come forward. he wanted the stories killed. they are extortionist efforts in order to gather money to instead of putting forward these false stories. he wasn't in support of the karen mcdougal scenario he seems -- >> julie: a headline reads alvin] wants the 2016 election on trial. in opening remarks to the jury, prosecutor argued that trump is guilty of falsifying business records with the intent to

conceal an illegal conspiracy to undermine the integrity of a presidential election. your thoughts. >> that statement will come back, julie, and haunt the prosecution. they are unable to prove it. we have been in this trial for four days and my distinguished colleagues on this panel, there is no crime. the one thing a prosecutor has to make sure is not exposed by the defense. when the defense made reference to other celebrities doing the exact same thing you lose credibility with the jury. i had the privilege to talk to president trump this morning. he is in good spirits. the pecker cross examination testimony is beneficial for the defense and i think it tells the jury that the prosecution is not coming clean with the entire story. >> julie: he insisted it was election fraud and deployed the word conspiracy to describe what he called an illegal election

fraud scheme. phil, how hard will this be for the prosecution? this is going to be a dicey one to prove that it was, in fact, election interference and not simply, you know, a catch and kill scheme that was not politically motivated? >> great to be with you, julie. this is a trial that is seemingly in search of a crime. they already started and have one of their star witnesses who hasn't moved the needle at all for the prosecutor. when you are a prosecutor you are supposed to be the good guys and the one with the white hat bringing justice to a courtroom so a jury can lay their own justice. they stumbled out of the gate and might not be able to prove their underlying misdemeanor. this is a business records case. they will have to prove at a minimum that that business records misdemeanor took place so they can then attempt to try to bootstrap the felony to it. if they can't even prove that

there was a bookkeeping violation of some sort, business records violation, they're dead in the water. at least they should be. the open question i have, all of this is playing out in front of a jury selected from people in manhattan who may perhaps even just hate donald trump. so i still have questions about whether or not he is going to get a fair trial despite how well he is doing with these initial witnesses. >> julie: we'll have to wait and see. they're an break and continue our coverage on fox. esteemed legal panel, thank you for talking to us today. fascinating stuff and your insight as well. we have more updates from inside the courtroom straight ahead and just getting started, folks, stay right there. checked youd rates lately? many are over 22%, near 30% if you pay late. why not do what thousands of veteran families have done. call newday and pay off that high rate debt with the lower rate newday 100 va cash out loan.

it lets you pay off your credit cards and car loans with one easy monthly payment. get the cash you need and the peace of mind you deserve.

we pull people off the street and ask them about their hearts. how's your heart? doing good, thank you. is it? i think so. you think so but, how do you know, right? i don't actually know. how do i know? you don't actually know. i'm believing so. with kardio mobile, you can take a medical grade ekg in just 30 seconds from anywhere.

kardia mobile is proven to detect atrial fibrillation, one of the leading causes of stroke. this year give mom peace of mind for mother's day with kardia mobile for just $79, check out our mother's day sale at kardia.com or amazon. my dry eye's made me a burning, stinging, 5-times-a-day,... ...makeup smearing drops user. i want another option that's not another drop. tyrvaya. it's not another drop. it's the first and only nasal spray for dry eye. tyrvaya treats the signs and symptoms

of dry eye disease fast by helping your body produce its own real tears. common side effects include sneezing, cough, and throat and nose irritation. relying only on drops? not me. my own real tears are my relief. ask your eye doctor about tyrvaya.

>> julie: we're watching the trump trial. they're on a break now. we'll continue to watch. sometimes the president does tend to come out and issue any statements. yesterday the president was very happy with how things went. he believed testimony fell in his favor. the prosecution on the other hand believed that david pecker's testimony saying he was fearful of making this deal with donald trump and his team allegedly that it would, in fact, perhaps violate campaign finance rules and that was something that he claimed angered the former president. so there are two sides to both stories. we'll continue to watch this unfold. as you can see everyone is coming out of the supreme court there in lower manhattan and resuming the trial in just under an hour. we'll continue to watch that. there is a lot of other news that we need to cover for you. let's move on to that. hundreds of pro-israel demonstrators are holding a

rally outside columbia university. inside another deadline for anti-israel protestors to clear out has come and gone and they are still negotiating with the school administration meantime. hundreds of anti-israel protestors have also occupied george washington university's campus in washington, d.c. we've got dramatic video that shows the protests which have spread to dozens of colleges all across the country. at times they have gotten so chaotic and violent police have had to step in. since april 17th, '34 of the top 50 u.s. universities have seen anti-israel protests on their campuses. i'm talking anti-semitic anger, that includes top schools like harvard, m.i.t. and princeton. c.b. cotton is at columbia with the latest there. >> nice to see you. the crowd just started

dispersing moments ago. 500 people, pro-israel supporters, family members of some of the israeli hostages who gathered together to show solidarity with israel as pro-palestinian demonstrations continue to spread across college campuses across the country. the people here say it is important for them to let the community know calls for a cease-fire should also include calls for hostages to be released. now in the meantime as you mentioned, julie, columbia university is trying to figure out how to clear out the pro-palestinian encampment in time for the undergraduate commencement on may 15th. university spokesperson says there is progress as discussions continue with student demonstrators and those demonstrators have pledged to stay camped out until the university meets their demands. listen. >> we are calling upon columbia university to divest, disclose and provide amnesty for all

students and faculty disciplined in the movement for palestinian liberation. those are central demands. until those are met we won't be going anywhere. we will continue to protest. >> minnesota congresswoman ilhan omar joined the student protestors with her daughter yesterday on campus. she told our fox affiliate all jewish students should be protected regardless of whether they are, quote, pro-genocide or anti-genocide. i will let you listen to her remarks directly from her. >> i think it is really unfortunate that people don't care about the fact that all jewish kids should be kept safe and that we should not have to tolerate anti-semitism or bigotry for all jewish students whether they are pro-genocide or anti-genocide. >> the bottom half of the

statement is what has made this campus feel unsafe for them. there are a lot more developments we're watching for out here on campus and we will be monitoring. back to you. >> julie: i want to get a breakdown how many of these actual protestors are students at these schools. obviously these protests are getting a lot of national coverage because they are at colleges and very controversial what are they doing when they should be learning and educating at these colleges. so could a lot of these protests be led by those who will have nothing to do with the university and they are simply using these campuses as an excuse to get the attention they're clearly getting? >> you know, julie, columbia university said ongoing negotiations with the student demonstrators the people behind this, the students behind this have committed to removing any non-students from the encampment. i can tell you i hear from a lot of jewish students on this

campus who say they still see non-students, grown adults milling on campus every day. you bring up a lot of interesting points. this is why house republicans right now are calling for columbia university's president to resign. the handling of this ongoing encampment. >> julie: that's just a starter. as far as the way these university presidents are handling this, everyone has the right to protest, we understand that. this has got so out of control it has spread like wildfire with dozens of universities taking part and the ivy league schools are supposed to be nurturing and educating some of america's smartest future professionals and this is what it has come down to. at what point do they shut it down or say these protests can happen but need to happen elsewhere, not on our campus? >> and again, you bring up another really valid point. columbia university in its latest update to the community

said there will not be bringing the nypd in to clear out the encampment. you heard from one of the student organizers, they say -- i think this is almost sort has fueled the encampment. they know the administration is not going to bring in the police to clear them out. who knows how long this will continue? they've already been camped out for more than a week. there have been pro-israel jewish students and again house republicans who have said order needs to be restored to this campus. we know house speaker mike johnson called for the national guard to be brought in. whether it happens has yet to be seen. >> julie: thank you very much. great job as always. t.w. shannon, and matt bennett are here and join me now. thank you for talking to me about this. okay. first of all, i have to ask, as far as the university is concerned, at what point do

local politicians get involved or local law enforcement? the mayor, for example and say enough is enough. arrests are going to happen. the protests are not only, you know, an amendment of your free speech but they are also becoming violent. at what point do you see this as potential hate crimes when people have to hide if they are jewish in their dorm rooms and fear to go outside? >> the constitution does not protect your right to hate and to make people scared, which is exactly what the curriculum of hate is spawning across the college campuses. let's ask the question where did this come from and how did we get to this point in the united states of america? the reason we're here, we have a president of the united states who has equivocated on so many issues. we need to speak with a firm, clear voice that hatred in america won't be tolerated. the radical left. hamas caucus of the democrat party has taken over this party and this is just the end result.

a symptom of a much larger problem and the hatred being spewed from the democrat party. >> julie: the "wall street journal" coming out saying this, the former new york governor cuomo writes an op-ed titled anti-semitism at columbia university is a disgrace. imagine if in the wake of 9/11 pro-al qaeda protestors chased new yorkers out of the city? that's such an incredible point to add out. remember, after 9/11 everyone was pro-american. it didn't matter whether you were jewish or christian. but now that sentiment has completely changed. this would be unacceptable because we were under attack by terrorists. why is it acceptable now? >> it is not acceptable. i have to go back and just say that is ridiculous to blame this on joe biden. it is an appalling lie to blame this on joe biden. >> joe biden hasn't spoken with clarity. >> i let you talk. >> you let me talk.

i spoke. >> they are protesting the president who has stood with israel from the beginning and they are not democrats. these are people who are radicals. >> democrats, make no doubt about it. the people who lead the universities are democrats. be honest. >> if i could finish my comment. these are people who have said very clearly they have no intention of voting for joe biden and we don't want people like this in the democratic party and they are not part of the democratic party. they protesting the democratic party. omar's remarks about genocide are disgusting. >> a democrat. >> she had the decency -- yes, she is a democrat and people in our party saying things that are both not true and not fair. but at least she had the decency to say anti-semitism. >> she is the lead he shall of the hamas caucus. >> julie: a lot of leftist leaders in constitution now that aren't necessarily condemning

the anti-semitism in this country. so there is a double standard here. if we were talking in the days after 9/11, they -- it would be a bipartisan outcry. why is this political? i don't understand it. >> it is disingenuous for democrats to try to run from the protests. they have embraced hamas within the democrat party. embraced it totally and people at the demonstration are shouting we are hamas. that's a fact you can't change it. >> julie: thank you both of you. actually you will stay with me and tell you about the breaking news. i thought we could cut away. president biden is in new york city talking about that being interviewed by howard stern. the president said about debating trump moments ago let's listen. >> i don't know if you will debate your opponent. >> president biden: i am somewhere. i don't know when. i'm happy to debate him. >> julie: there you go. the president has basically been calling out biden for not

wanting to go toe-to-toe with him. the first time we heard biden say let's debate. i don't know where and when. what do you think? >> well, biden has been clear from the beginning he would gladly participate in normal debates we have in general elections and presidential campaigns run by the presidential debate commission, a neutral organization. the only reason that he was saying he doesn't know where or when is because the trump camp has said they won't participation in the presidential debate commission debates. trump said he wants to debate biden and they will find a way to do it. i don't know as biden said where or when it will be? >> nobody in america believes joe biden is willing to debate trump. this is the first time he whispered it in howard stern. he is incapable of debating president trump by leading this country. 70% americans agree with the

fact. there is a problem. all of america knows it. the enemies of america know it across the globe as well. >> julie: thank you both for coming on. we're monitoring trump's criminal trial in new york city. it is in a short break and they are coming back any moment and we'll bring you more after this. i hear it all the time. people tell me they'd love to buy gold. but because it's gold - they think it must be complicated. it isn't. not with rosland capital.

with rosland... the entire process from start to finish is built on one concept... one... keep... it... simple. rosland capital - a trusted leader in helping people acquire precious metals. gold bullion, lady liberty gold and silver proofs, and our premium coins, can help you preserve your wealth. call rosland capital at 800-630-8900 to receive your free rosland guide to gold, gold & precious metals ira, and silver brochures. with rosland, there are no hassles, no gimmicks, and our shipping is fast and reliable. remember. keep it simple. make gold your new standard. call rosland capital today at 800-630-8900, 800-630-8900. that's 800-630-8900. if you're a grandparent, you know what i'm talking about when your little grandchild starts talking to you. something i couldn't hear for a long time. it's funny how something like just a hearing loss

can have an effect on a relationship. somebody would ask her something and she would just walk right past them ( laughs. i just could not hear. these are real people who are now living life to the fullest, thanks to miracle-ear. call our toll-free number to schedule a free hearing evaluation and start your risk-free trial at your neighborhood miracle-ear. when someone new comes in, i take the time to listen to what's important to them. then i run a comprehensive hearing test to find out if they even have hearing loss. if they do? i'll custom fit a hearing aid that fits their lifestyle and their budget. with miracle-ear it's all about service. they're personable, they're friendly. i'm very happy with them. when i finally had miracle-ear and i could hear for the first time, i started crying. i could hear everything. i went to miracle-ear. i went to miracle-ear. but i told you to go to miracle-ear. call our toll-free number today to start your risk-free trial at your neighborhood miracle-ear. i was hesitant to get the hearing aids

because of my short hair, but nobody even sees them. featuring our latest technology, our hearing aids are nearly invisible so no one will notice. and they're so comfortable, you might forget you're wearing them. now i can hear my grandson again. call our toll-free number today to start your risk-free trial at your neighborhood miracle-ear store. your risk-free trial is only the beginning. we also provide you with a lifetime of checkups, cleanings,and adjustments,free. it's why we've been trusted for over 75 years. and we have over 1500 locations nationwide. i see someone new. someone happy. it's really made a difference. (laughing) call 1-800-miracle to schedule a free hearing evaluation and start your risk-free trial at miracle-ear today.

sara federico: at st. jude, we don't care who cures cancer. we just need to advance the cure. it's a bold initiative to try and bump cure rates all around the world, but we should. it is our commitment. we need to do this. oh... stuffed up again? so congested! you need sinex saline from vicks. just sinex, breathe, ahhhh! what is — wow!

sinex. breathe. ahhhhhh! there's an old saying in the navy that the toughest job in the navy is a navy wife. and if you've made the deployments and you've been the wife at home, or you've been the spouse at home, you understand what i'm talking about. your spouse has earned the right to apply for a va home loan. the newday 100 loan allows you to borrow up to 100% of your home's value. so if you're in a situation where you need some help financially, give us a call. >> julie: trump's new york

criminal trial has resumed and the supreme court is looking at a rule for the ages, whether and to what extent former president trump gets immunity from criminal prosecution for actions his attorneys say he took in his official capacity. not personal. when the special counsel says he tried to overturn the 2020 election. the rule, of course, will also apply to future presidents. the justices meet today to talk about yesterday's oral arguments which lasted nearly three hours. here are some of the highlights. >> prosecuting the president for his official acts is an innovation with no foothold in history or tradition. and incompatible with our constitutional structure. >> i'm having a hard time thinking that creating false documents, that submitting false documents, ordering the assassination of a rival. that accepting a bribe and a countless other laws that could

be broken for personal gain, that anyone would say that it would be reasonable for a president or any public official to do that. >> president is not above the law. the president is not a king. the founders thought that. i think your point in response to that is the president is subject to prosecution for all personal acts just like every other american for personal acts. the question is, acts taken in an official capacity. >> the framers knew too well the dangers of a king who could do no wrong. we aren't endorsing a regime who we think would expose former presidents to criminal prosecutions without adequate evidence. >> if an incumbent who loses a very close, hotly contested election, knows that a real possibility after leaving office is not that the president is

going to be able to go off into a peaceful retirement, but that the president may be criminally prosecuted by a bitter political opponent, will that not lead us into a cycle that destabilizes the functioning of our country as a democracy? >> julie: the supreme court focuses on the presidency, not trump. jonathan turley says they are about to plunge into a constitutional abyss with the case. our legal panel back with us as we follow trump's new york criminal trial moment by moment. andrew cherkasky, leo terrell, andy mccarthy and phil holloway again. andy, i want to ask you about the hours long arguments yesterday, three hours. kagan drilling trump's attorney questioning him on what qualifies a former president for

immunity. that's the question of the hour. telling john sauer the framers did not put an immunity clause into the constitution. they were reacting against a monarchy who claimed to be above the law adding, wasn't the whole point that the president was not a monarch and that the president was not supposed to be above the law? the president's team says there should be immunity. a sitting president or former president should not be prosecuted. what takeaway do you have of these justices' comments on immunity? >> well, i think, julie, they pinned down dreeben, making the argument for jack smith team. they pinned him down to a concession there is a bit of presidential immunity that goes around the core of the president's duties. justice kagan is correct they didn't use the word immunity. trump's team pushes back the vesting of executive power in

the president itself imply indicates immunity because congress cannot enact a law that criminalizes the president's performance with his core responsibilities. so i think what will happen here is two-fold. one is you have to decide how far outside the core of the president's duties the immunity extends. and the second thing is because the d.c. circuit did not go through the mental acrobatics of trying to figure out which acts in the indictment are private and don't have immunity and which are official and do, that has to be done. so i would anticipate that they may send the case back to the judge with instructions to sort out what's official and what is not? >> julie: i get word they have resumed the trial. david pecker on the stand, the former publisher for the "national enquirer." first let's talk about his testimony yesterday because this

is where the prosecution must prove that this money that was paid was, in fact, intentionally requested by the trump camp to interfere in the 2016 election. that is something that has been going back and forth, andrew. where does the defense need to fill the holes in order to disprove that or did the prosecution get the testimony they needed yesterday from pecker to prove, in fact, that this was election interference and this was a violation of campaign finance law? >> just to be clear, they need to establish that there was an intent to illegally interfere with the election. there is not right now under the new theory it seems the prosecution is moving forward with a direct allegation that it is an interference with election campaign finance law but this broad new york statute that says it is illegal to conspire with others to unlawfully interfere with an election. that goes back to the original allegation that deals with the

idea that it is a fraud that's being committed by writing a check and entering into the register this legal services description of the campaign -- of the hush money payments. so it turned into the circular argument where the original catch and kill plan seems to only be there to embarrass donald trump and establish what essentially was the beginning of this. not that something going on with david pecker was inherently illegal in the first place. the illegal action doesn't take place until the checks are cut and register entry is put in there and the conspiracy with i guess the person who is actually writing the physical check as well as michael cohen seems to be related to that. the david pecker piece is an introduction to the overall scheme not illegal conduct in its own right. >> julie: phil, if you were to try this case, where would you find the illegal conduct here? do you believe there is enough evidence to get a conviction on a number of these accusations?

>> well for the same reasons that andrew just pointed out, they're having a very difficult time finding anything that was actually illegal. they are doing things that may be unseemly and talking about things that might be embarrassing but they have to find there was criminal intent not only with respect to the entry in the business records, but to further it with their newly-announced. they didn't include this in the indictment. they are traveling under this other new york law that deals with conspiracy. but under that conspiracy statute you have to do something illegal. because interfering with an election is what -- that's the term they use. but another term could be running a campaign because that's what campaigns do. campaigns by their very nature and definition, their job is to influence the outcome of an election. what they are doing is taking normal campaign conduct, things that happen all the time with all these campaigns, and they

are using a different monarcher calling it election interference, as if there is such a crime or anything like that. they are reaching, i think this is an overblown case from the very beginning. never should have been brought. if i were defense counsel i would find one or two or three jurors on that panel that i could argue my case to. i don't think i will get 12 that will unanimously to acquit my client. if i can focus on one, two, three saying there is no crime here even if everything they are saying we did actually happened, it is not a crime. if you can get open minded individuals, the best that he might be able to hope for, i think, is a hung jury. i don't see this particular new york panel, this new york jury acquitting him. but a hung jury is certainly in the cards. >> julie: one of the catch and kill stories was going to feature karen mcdougal who thought she had a future in journalism by trading her story

for a job. let's talk about the prosecution essentially getting david pecker to talk about this, this so-called meeting that was called on by the former president for hope hicks and sarah huckabee sanders to get on the phone with david pecker after mcdougal appeared on a cnn interview talking. this so-called conference that they had, this conference call, if it can be proven. how damning is that. >> if it can be proven. we're giving the prosecution that they have created criminal conduct on the part of president trump. i want to repeat what my colleague says. hope hicks has no personal knowledge of any misconduct of a criminal nature involving president trump. she has not testified. and what you have heard is hearsay. nothing more than, nothing less.

david pecker has no evidence of any criminal misconduct on the part of trump because he has no personal knowledge. all you have is a repeat of misconduct in the sense of embarrassment, trying to hurt president trump's reputation. i will tell you right now, where this case is going is michael cohen. michael cohen will be the key witness. you can expect a grilling of michael cohen by the prosecution -- by the defense team after he gets up there and basically in my opinion misrepresents his interactions with president trump. >> julie: all right, yeah. legal panel, thank you very much. we'll continue to watch as trump on trial continues. david pecker currently back on the stand after taking a short break. he is the former ceo of american media, publisher of the "national enquirer" and the center of it all whether this catch and kill was in fact a violation of multiple laws.

so far the evidence just isn't there according to our panel. michael cohen will be the man of the hour when he takes the stand. we'll continue to watch it with you and we'll be right back after this short break. when dehydration gets real... (♪) hey, that's mine! i'll buy you a pony. advanced hydration isn't just for kids. pedialyte helps you hydrate during recovery. (♪)

(vo) if you have graves' disease, your eye symptoms could mean something more. that gritty feeling can't be brushed away. even a little blurry vision can distort things. and something serious may be behind those itchy eyes. up to 50% of people with graves'

could develop a different condition called thyroid eye disease, which should be treated by a different doctor. see an expert. find a t-e-d eye specialist at isitted.com we pulled people off the street, and asked them about their hearts. -how's your heart? -doing good. -is it? -i think so. -you think so. but how do you know, right? -how do i know... -i don't actually know. -you don't actually know. -i'm believing so. if there was only a way the heart could tell you — hey, i'm doing okay, or uh... i could use a little attention. let me show you something. put two fingers right on those pads. -look at that. that's your heart! -that is pretty awesome. winner gets to check your heart. ready? one, two, three, heart! with kardiamobile, you can take a medical-grade ekg in just 30 seconds, from anywhere. kardiamobile is proven to detect atrial fibrillation, one of the leading causes of stroke. and it's the only personal ekg that's fda-cleared to detect normal heart rhythm, bradycardia and tachycardia. -you know, mother's day is coming up. right? -yeah. -give that as a gift to your mom.

-great idea. -i like it. this year, give mom peace of mind for mother's day with kardiamobile for just $79. check out our mother's day sale at kardia.com or amazon. you know, when i take the bike out like this, all my stresses just melt away. i hear that. this bad boy can fix anything. yep, tough day at work, nice cruise will sort you right out. when i'm riding, i'm not even thinking about my painful cavity. well, you shouldn't ignore that. and every time i get stressed about having to pay my bills, i just hop on the bike, man. oh, come on, man, you got to pay your bills. you don't have to worry about anything when you're protected by america's number-one motorcycle insurer. well, you definitely do. those things aren't related, so... ah, yee! oh, that is a vibrating pain.

>> julie: fox news alert. the trial has resumed. david pecker is now on the stand once again, former publisher for the "national enquirer." our legal panel is back with us as well as we follow trump's new york criminal trial moment by moment. andrew, cherkasky, leo terrell. andy mccarthy and phil holloway joint me now. let me start with you, andy. right now we hear from david pecker on the stand confirming what the prosecution would like

to prove, that he in fact did do dealings with the former president. the question, though, is were they criminal? he had done former dealings before where he had caught stories to protect his friend, donald trump. the timing in all of this. he buried a couple stories that, in fact, involved women that could have potentially hurt donald trump's chances winning the election. some may say it's election interference and any money exchanged could be campaign violation law. if you were to look at the facts before you, what does the prosecution need to do to effectively prove their case here? it sounds so far like they haven't. >> well, we have to be careful, julie, that the fact that we are a bunch of lawyers who understand what the weaknesses are here doesn't mean it is being communicated to the jury in the courtroom where they will be taking their queues from the

judge, very friendly toward the prosecution. let me give you an example of that. evidently one of the things they are honing in on the testimony is pecker had some concern about whether the payment to karen mcdougal was a violation of campaign finance laws, the federal laws. david pecker's state of mind regarding the federal campaign laws is not relevant to prove donald trump's either guilt or not guilt with respect to the campaign laws or his state of mind. this is the same game that bragg played with respect to michael cohen where he wanted to get in front of the jury the fact that cohen pled guilty to campaign finance violations. one of the few rulings merchan in trump's favor saying that guilty plea is not admissible evidence against trump with respect to campaign laws.

so i think that they are creeping that in again and want to ask the jury to conclude that trump must have thought that he was guilty of campaign laws because pecker was worried that he was getting in hot water on campaign laws. >> julie: okay. i want to give you a little minute by minute play-by-play. we have producers in the courtroom constantly emailing us. they brought up. as soon as his attorney asks about stormy daniels, trump leans over to say something to his attorney, todd blanch, basically pecker confirming when he heard about stormy daniels' allegations he wanted nothing to do with it. the defense attorney asked with the negotiations for stormy and her story and pecker explains again we're just being told that ami, where he was a ceo, had nothing to do with it. they wanted nothing on the stormy daniels story.

that is eye opening. leo. >> if he didn't have anything to do with the stormy daniels and didn't want anything to do with it, what's the relevance of his testimony? think about what is being said right now. what is the relevance of david pecker's testimony for the last three days? nothing. it does not push the needle to identify criminal intent on the part of president trump. i want to be very clear about this. normally most trial attorneys don't want lawyers in the jury box. there are two of them. i have think you have a panel of great lawyers on this air right now and i think they see the same problem and weaknesses of the prosecution case. >> julie: that's all the time we have this hour. so glad you guys came on. expert panel coming on, thank you for watching "the faulkner focus." "outnumbered" right after the break.

i would like to take a moment to address my fellow veterans, because i know there are so many of you who have served your country honorably, whether it's two years, four years, or thirty-two years, like myself. one of the benefits that we as a country give you as a veteran is your eligibility for a va loan. not 80 percent but 100 percent the value of your home and that's what you can get at newday usa.

a test or approve a medication. we didn't have to worry about any of those things thanks to the donations. and our family is forever grateful because it's completely changed our lives.

sometimes jonah wrestles with falling asleep... ...so he takes zzzquil. the world's #1 sleep aid brand. and wakes up feeling like himself. get the rest to be your best with non-habit forming zzzquil. ♪ ♪ - it's apparent. not me. - yeah. nice going lou! nothing like a little confidence boost to help ease you back in to the dating scene.

that includes having a smile you feel good about. fortunately, aspen dental specializes in dentures and implants made just for you. and with flexible financing, you don't need to sacrifice quality work for a price that fits your budget. at $0 down plus 0% interest if paid in full in 18 months. helping our patients put their best smile forward. it's one more way aspen dental is in your corner.