Stormy Daniels is crowdfunding to prepare for legal battle with Trump

Anyone who's ever wanted to help a porn star take down a president now has their shot to chip in.

Adult film star Stormy Daniels, who says she had an affair with President Trump in 2006 and received $130,000 at the height of his presidential campaign to stay silent about it, is raising money for her legal fees in anticipation of a lengthy court battle to speak freely about the allegations.

The actress, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, launched an online crowdfunding campaign on Wednesday and promptly raised more than $30,000. The fundraising effort will help fund "attorneys' fees; out-of-pocket costs associated with the lawsuit, arbitration, and my right to speak openly," Daniels says.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Daniels is seeking freedom from the nondisclosure agreement she signed with Trump’s attorney in October 2016. Trump has denied that the affair occurred. His attorney, Michael Cohen, at first denied her allegations, then later said he helped "facilitate" the payment. Daniels offered to return the money in exchange for freedom to speak of the alleged affair, but Cohen did not respond before the offer’s Tuesday deadline. The fundraising campaign itself has a longer-term deadline: Donations will be accepted for another 29 days.