Trump wins small victory when judge rules infamous 2005 Access Hollywood tape can’t be played and jury won’t hear 2016 sexual assault allegations because they’re ‘complete hearsay’

Donald Trump scored a small victory in his historic hush money trial in Manhattan when the judge ruled that the infamous Access Hollywood tape will not be played for jurors.

However, prosecutors will be able to present a full transcript and read it aloud word for word.

Judge Juan Merchán also rejected any mention of sexual assault accusations made in the final weeks of the 2016 campaign because they are “complete rumors.”

The Access Hollywood clip is from 2005 and in it Trump, then a reality TV star, described to NBC host Billy Bush how he met and seduced women.

He said: ‘I don’t even wait. And when you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do everything. …Grab them by the p****.’

The tape became public before the 2016 election and hurt Trump in the polls, but he won the election against Hillary Clinton.

Judge Merchan ruled that a transcript of the tape could be read to the jury, but said the tape itself would not be played.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass, arguing for representation at trial, said it was “inflammatory” and an “admission, or at least a description of sexual assault.”

Steinglass said that This “is more than just comments of a sexual nature.”

He said prosecutors would present 2016 emails from Steve Bannon to Michael Cohen that said the Access Hollywood tape was “all over the place.”

Steinglass said that was “powerful evidence of the campaign’s reaction to the inflammatory evidence and explains why the campaign was so eager to explain away its words as “locker room talk.”

Daniels was “living proof that the defendant was not all words,” Steinglass said.

In another ruling, Judge Merchan denied a request to introduce reports that were released after the Access Hollywood tape surfaced about three other women accusing Trump.

Judge Merchan said they were “very, very damaging” and “just gossip”.