Trump 'cracks a smile' as publisher recounts joke made at high-profile national security meeting

Justice Juan Merchan was hoping that opening arguments in Donald Trump's hush money/falsifying business records trial would begin on Monday morning, April 22, and he got his wish.

Both sides — Trump's defense team and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg Jr.'s office — made their opening arguments that day. And before the day was over, the prosecution's first witness, former National Enquirer Publisher David Becker, was testifying.

Pecker's testimony was still going on later in the week. During his Thursday, April 25 testimony, according to CNN, Pecker described a meeting at Trump Tower in Mid-Town Manhattan in January 2017.

READ MORE:'Cutting him to shreds': Judge tells Trump's attorney he's 'losing all credibility'

The former National Enquirer publisher remembered meeting some officials who served in Trump's administration, including former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer and former White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus. Also present were then-FBI Director James Comey and former CIA Director Mike Pompeo, who later became secretary of state in the Trump Administration.

Pecker, according to CNN, recalled that he had never seen that much security at Trump Tower.

Pecker testified, "Mr. Trump introduced me to each of them. He said, 'Here is David Pecker. He's the publisher of the National Enquirer, and he probably knows more than anybody else in this room,' as a joke."

According to CNN, Trump "cracked a smile" when Pecker said that in Justice Merchan's courtroom — and Todd Blanche, one of Trump's defense attorneys in the case, laughed.

READ MORE: Fox News host suggests Trump 'force' court to throw him in jail – by quoting him

But Pecker — referring to the officials Trump introduced him to during the Trump Tower meeting back January 2017 — added, "Unfortunately, they didn't laugh."

Read CNN's full coverage here.