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Former Playboy Model Suing To Speak Freely About Alleged Affair With Trump

Photo: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Playboy)

Jena Greene Reporter
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Former Playboy model Karen McDougal is suing American Media Inc., the company that owns National Enquirer, so she can speak freely about her alleged affair with Donald Trump.

McDougal claims she had a nine month affair with Trump around the time he was filming “The Apprentice” in 2006. She says they met when he was filming an episode for the show and “immediately” took a liking to her. She writes that they “talked for a couple hours–then, it was ‘ON!’ We got naked + had sex,” She later claims Trump offered her money. “I looked at him (+ felt sad) + said, ‘No thanks – I’m not ‘that girl.’ I slept w/you because I like you – NOT for money’ – He told me ‘you are special.’”

McDougal claims the company paid her $150,000 to remain silent about the affair, which supposedly took place in 2016 after Trump secured the Republican nomination. According to The New York Times, David J. Pecker, the CEO of American Media Inc., is close friends with President Trump and worked diligently to buy her silence via a legal agreement.

McDougal isn’t the only woman suing to discuss her alleged affair with the president. Former porn star Stormy Daniels is currently embroiled in a legal battle of her own. Stormy Daniels — whose real name is Stephanie Clifford — is involved in a high profile campaign to return $130,000 to Trump’s personal lawyer so she can talk openly about an alleged affair she had with Trump in 2006.

The New York Times reports that McDougal filed her lawsuit on Tuesday with the Los Angeles Superior Court, claiming American Media Inc. misled her about the deal she signed. Her lawyer Peter K. Stris said in a statement, “The lawsuit filed today aims to restore her right to her own voice. We intend to invalidate the so-called contract that American Media Inc. imposed on Karen so she can move forward with the private life she deserves.”

After she spoke to The New Yorker about her alleged affair with Trump, McDougal says she received an additional threat from AMI, telling her that “any further disclosures would breach Karen’s contract” and “cause considerable monetary damages.”

But McDougal is moving forward with her suit and plans to speak freely about the affair as soon as possible. It’s unclear whether she faces additional legal repercussions if she pays the $150,000 legal agreement off.

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