Stormy Daniels – a porn star who claims she had an affair with President Donald Trump – said her adult-film career has helped her handle the new-found public scrutiny.
The 39-year-old interviewed for a highly anticipated episode of 60 Minutes, set to air on Sunday, about her whirlwind relationship with the sitting president.
Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, told the Washington Post on the eve of her interview that this media circus has detracted from her daily life as a mother, wife and adult-film director.
But her profession has helped her handle the public scrutiny about her alleged affair with Trump.
Daniels’ admitted that her career in the porn industry has helped her handle the public scrutiny surrounding her alleged affair with President Donald Trump. Pictured is her with Anderson Cooper during her interview for 60 Minutes, which is set to air on Sunday
The constant media storm surrounding the affair has prevented Daniels from participating in some of her hobbies, including horseback riding
‘Being in the adult industry, I’ve developed a thick skin and maybe a little bit of a dark sense of humor,’ she told The Washington Post. ‘But nothing could truly prepare someone for this.’
Daniels alleges that she had an affair with Trump starting in 2006, right around the same time Playboy playmate Karen McDougal says she was seeing him.
The porn star was then paid $130,000 in hush money from Trump’s lawyer before the election in 2016 to not tell her story, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Since then, Daniels has driven the news cycle with countless reports about her alleged affair.
Her lawyer, Michael Avenatti, has helped keep her in the spotlight by sharing hints on social media to help build the anticipation for the 60 Minutes interview.
On Thursday, he tweeted a picture of a DVD that he claims shows evidence of Daniel’s relationship with Trump.
He also previously released a picture of Daniels submitting to a polygraph test in 2011 about the affair and says she passed it.
Daniels admitted to the Post that this current media fame has cut into her other interests.
‘Without a doubt it’s cutting into my horse show time,’ Daniels said. ‘And time with friends.’
She is apparently an avid equestrian in her spare time.
Besides that hobby, most people don’t know that she wanted to be a journalist for some time before she got into the porn industry.
Daniels’ alleges that her affair with Trump started in 2006 and ended in 2007. She was paid $130,000 in 2016 to not tell her story while he was running for president
Daniels’ lawyer, Michael Avenatti, has undertaken a slow-roll PR campaign on her behalf to help build anticipation for her interview with 60 Minutes
Stormy Daniels’ lawyer upped the ante on Donald Trump, tweeting a photo on Thursday that suggests there’s photographic or video evidence of the president’s affair with the porn star
Avenatti previously tweeted this dramatic image of Daniels allegedly passing a polygraph test in 2011, suggesting she was telling the truth about having unprotected sex with Trump
Daniels has been hit with an influx of hate on social media in regards to her affair with the president.
But she says she hasn’t focused too much on the negative publicity because she isn’t looking for ‘approval from anyone or recognition.’
In the midst of the media circus, Daniels is also facing a lawsuit from Trump’s attorney who says the porn star breached her contract more than 20 times.
Attorney Michael Cohen filed court documents last week that claimed each violation of her agreement carries a $1million penalty.
Cohen said he intends to collect more than $20million from the porn star by the time the lawsuit is through.
Daniels seems unconcerned about the potential lawsuit as she prepares up for the unveiling of her interview on Sunday.
But Trump, who has remained quiet about the cheating allegations against him, is reportedly worried about the interview because he has been asking advisers if he should fight the rumors, the Wall Street Journal reported Saturday.
His advisers have reportedly told Trump that commenting on the allegations would be inappropriate for him to do as president.