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Over the past few weeks, the name Stormy Daniels has made constant appearances in the news. Daniels, an adult film star whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, claims to have had a year-long affair with Donald Trump beginning shortly after his wife, Melania, gave birth to their son Barron in 2006. The White House has denied the affair ever happened — despite mounting evidence of a nondisclosure agreement and a $130,000 payout — but the story has snowballed into an investigation of potential misuse of campaign funds.
“The coverage of this story has been very focused on this as a sex scandal,” explains Laura McGann, Vox’s politics editor. “But it’s a story about campaign finance, corruption, and how our politics are changing under Donald Trump. Yes, the main character is an adult film actress, but it’s bigger than that.”
Listen to the episode of Today, Explained all about Stormy Daniels — where she came from, why her story matters, and more — below.
Related reading:
- It’s time to start taking the Stormy Daniels scandal seriously (Matt Yglesias)
- Stormy Daniels’s legal battle against Trump, explained (Dylan Matthews)
- Storm Watch: the latest developments in the Stormy Daniels case (Jen Kirby)
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You can get the news we’re reading throughout the day, facts and stats to make you smarter about the world, and behind-the-scenes photos on Twitter at @Today_Explained. You can follow Sean at @Rameswaram and Laura McGann at @LKMcgann.
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