--- title: Stormy Daniels Borrows From Donald Trump's Playbook description: Stormy Daniels Daniels has found ever-more creative ways to stay in the news, despite a nondisclosure agreement. canonical: https://time.com/5196438/stormy-daniels-donald-trump-playbook/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-03-12T21:33:56.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T19:37:35.940Z article:section: Politics og:title: Stormy Daniels Is Borrowing From Donald Trump's Playbook og:description: From tweets to lawsuits, she's using his techniques against him. og:url: https://time.com/5196438/stormy-daniels-donald-trump-playbook/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c3c868207ddbd20/69892a4c656a3f4f03bd3d07/stormy-daniels.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4949 og:image:height: 2784 og:image:alt: 2018 Adult Video News Awards - Arrivals og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Stormy Daniels Is Borrowing From Donald Trump's Playbook twitter:description: From tweets to lawsuits, she's using his techniques against him. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c3c868207ddbd20/69892a4c656a3f4f03bd3d07/stormy-daniels.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Stormy Daniels Is Borrowing From Donald Trump's Playbook > Sponsored content. 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Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. It reaches 85,000 subscribers with a 37.0% open rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. by [Ryan Teague Beckwith](https://time.com/author/ryan-teague-beckwith/) ## Ryan Teague Beckwith Mar 12, 2018 9:33 PM UTC  LAS VEGAS, NV - JANUARY 27: Adult film actress/director Stormy Daniels attends the 2018 Adult Video News Awards at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino on January 27, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Gabe Ginsberg/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - JANUARY 27: Adult film actress/director Stormy Daniels attends the 2018 Adult Video News Awards at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino on January 27, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Gabe Ginsberg/Getty Images) Gabe Ginsberg—Getty Images by [Ryan Teague Beckwith](https://time.com/author/ryan-teague-beckwith/) ## Ryan Teague Beckwith Mar 12, 2018 9:33 PM UTC When reports of an alleged affair with [porn star Stormy Daniels](http://time.com/5104242/donald-trump-stormy-daniels-porn-star/) first broke in mid-January, Donald Trump managed to avoid the worst of it, with other news stories crowding it out. But as the weeks have gone on, Daniels has found ever-more creative ways to stay in the news, despite a nondisclosure agreement which bars her from speaking publicly about the alleged affair. Along the way, she seems to have picked up a few techniques from the President’s media playbook to use against him. Here’s a closer look at how she’s done that. ## Allude to things you cannot say After receiving his first classified briefing as a presidential candidate, Trump [said at a town hall meeting](http://time.com/4483924/hillary-clinton-donald-trump-security-briefing/) that he could tell from “the body language” of the experts that they did not agree with President Obama’s decisions. But he was cryptic about why. “Our leadership, Barack Obama, did not follow,” he said. “They call it intelligence, it’s there for a reason — what our experts said to do.” Trump was criticized for what was seen as a breach of protocol on classified briefings, which are supposed to remain confidential. But it was a classic Trump move: alluding to things that he can’t say publicly as a way of bolstering his argument. In the case of Daniels, whose given name is Stephanie Clifford, she literally can’t say what she wants to, because the agreement she signed before the election with Trump lawyer Michael Cohen bars her from speaking about it. But her [appearance on Jimmy Kimmel](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/31/arts/television/stormy-daniels-jimmy-kimmel-denial.html) in late January was a classic example of saying things you can’t say: --- > “” --- ## Use a lawsuit (or the threat of one) When Trump faced accusations of sexual misconduct and harassment from [18 women during his campaign](http://time.com/5058646/donald-trump-accusers/), he called the women “liars” and [threatened to take them to court](https://www.cnn.com/2016/10/22/politics/trump-says-hell-sue-sexual-misconduct-accusers/index.html). “All of these liars will be sued after the election is over,” he told a rally in Pennsylvania. That was another classic Trump move. He’s long used empty threats of lawsuits to counter bad publicity, though in this case he [never filed](http://thehill.com/homenews/media/360975-cbss-major-garrett-why-hasnt-trump-sued-his-sexual-misconduct-accusers) a lawsuit. (In fact, when one of his accusers filed one, his lawyers argued he was [too busy](https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-lawyers-say-hes-too-busy-to-face-lawsuit-filed-by-apprentice-contestant/) to respond.) Unable to speak about her experiences with Trump due to the nondisclosure agreement she signed, Daniels took a similar approach, [filing a lawsuit](http://time.com/5188928/stormy-daniels-suing-donald-trump-over-nondisclosure/) to have the nondisclosure agreement declared invalid because Trump never signed it. Because litigants are allowed to explain their case, Daniels was able — again — to [allude to her experiences](http://www.businessinsider.com/stormy-daniels-pictures-texts-from-trump-affair-nda-lawsuit-2018-3) with Trump, even citing “certain still images and/or text messages” that might involve the president, regardless of [the merits of her case](http://time.com/5191344/stormy-daniels-donald-trump-confidentiality-agreement-lawsuit-strength/). ## Make an offer they’ll probably refuse With special counsel Robert Mueller seeking to interview the President as part of his probe into Russia’s election meddling, Trump’s lawyers reportedly considered [offering a sit-down](https://www.cnbc.com/2018/03/09/trump-lawyers-want-to-offer-mueller-interview-with-president-to-help-bring-probe-to-quick-end-wsj.html) as long as the probe then ends within 60 days. There’s no reason that prosecutors would agree to a deal like this, since it would tie their hands and allow some witnesses to simply wait out the clock rather than cooperate. But it was another typical Trump stratagem: Push things forward by making an offer that you know the other side will refuse. Daniels’ lawyer made a similar move last week when he offered to [return the $130,000 payment](http://time.com/5189218/stormy-daniels-porn-star-donald-trump-affair-confirmed/) in exchange for releasing her from the nondisclosure agreement — something Trump’s lawyer would have no reason to agree to. In another Trumpian move, Daniels’ lawyer then basically [repeated the already-ignored offer](http://time.com/5195786/stormy-daniels-hush-money/) in a letter to Cohen, sparking another round of publicity. ## Go after your critics on Twitter Trump has long used his Twitter account to go after the “haters and losers,” often bestowing on his critics, opponents and even former allies mean-spirited nicknames like “sloppy Steve,” “crazy Mika” and “crooked Hillary.” > [](https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/947592785519173637) But Daniels is no slouch, either. Although she still can’t tweet about her alleged affair, she has [used Twitter](https://www.thedailybeast.com/stormy-daniels-slays-trump-trolls-on-twitter) to go after Trump supporters who criticize her online with a savage wit. > [](https://twitter.com/StormyDaniels/status/971950666653536257) ## Remember that all publicity is good publicity In his 1987 book “The Art of the Deal,” Trump [outlined his approach](https://www.axios.com/how-9-art-of-the-deal-quotes-explain-the-trump-presidency-1513300122-183eaed4-4c48-4527-a7ed-c57dd143865a.html) to publicity, which involves more than a little sensationalism. “One thing I’ve learned about the press is that they’re always hungry for a good story, and the more sensational the better,” he wrote. “It’s in the nature of the job, and I understand that. The point is that if you are a little different, or a little outrageous, or if you do things that are bold or controversial, the press is going to write about you.” In the wake of reports of the alleged affair and the nondisclosure agreement, Daniels took that advice to heart, [making appearances at strip clubs](https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/11/politics/stormy-daniels-shows-boost/index.html) around the country—including one just south of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort. The appearances have even borrowed from Trump’s campaign, using the slogans “#MAGA — Make Adult Great Again” and [“Make America Horny Again”](https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2018/01/22/stormy-daniels-trumps-alleged-former-mistress-performs-south-carolina-strip-club/1053087001/) as slogans. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5196438/stormy-daniels-donald-trump-playbook/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5196438/stormy-daniels-donald-trump-playbook/"},"headline":"Stormy Daniels Is Borrowing From Donald Trump's Playbook","datePublished":"2018-03-12T21:33:56.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T19:37:35.940Z","description":"Stormy Daniels Daniels has found ever-more creative ways to stay in the news, despite a nondisclosure agreement.","url":"https://time.com/5196438/stormy-daniels-donald-trump-playbook/","keywords":["stormy daniels","Donald Trump"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c3c868207ddbd20/69892a4c656a3f4f03bd3d07/stormy-daniels.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Ryan Teague Beckwith","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/ryan-teague-beckwith/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c3c868207ddbd20/69892a4c656a3f4f03bd3d07/stormy-daniels.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"2018 Adult Video News Awards - Arrivals","caption":"2018 Adult Video News Awards - Arrivals","creditText":"Gabe Ginsberg—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/stormy-daniels/","name":"stormy daniels"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5196438/stormy-daniels-donald-trump-playbook/","name":"Stormy Daniels Is Borrowing From Donald Trump's Playbook"}}]}] ```