Stormy Daniels launches crowd fundraiser to pay for legal costs in suit against Trump

Jessica Estepa | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption 7 things you didn't know about Stormy Daniels Stormy Daniels is an adult film star who says she had a sexual encounter with Donald Trump in 2006, while he was married to Melania. Here's what you may not know about her.

It's expensive to sue President Trump.

Stormy Daniels, the former porn star who says she had an affair with Trump in his pre-political days, is raising money to pay the legal fees and potential damages for her lawsuit against him.

The suit alleges that the "hush" agreement that keeps Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, from telling her story is invalid.

On the site — which was tweeted about by Daniels' lawyer, Michael Avenatti — Daniels said she would use the funds raised to pay for attorneys' fees, out-of-pocket costs associated with the lawsuit, security expenses and damages if she loses her suit. She said she did not have the "vast resources" to fight Trump and lawyer Michael Cohen on her own.

Here is a link to the official site. All others are imposters. https://t.co/6uvLrBqc8v#basta — Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) March 14, 2018

Per the crowd fundraiser, Cohen and Trump have threatened damages amounting to $1 million for every time she speaks out about the alleged affair.

"I am attempting to speak honestly and openly to the American people about my relationship with now President Donald Trump, as well as the intimidation and tactics that he, together with his attorney Michael Cohen, have used to silence me," Daniels wrote on her crowd fundraiser site.

More: Did the $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels break the law?

Trump lawyer Cohen won a temporary restraining order against Daniels in a secret arbitration proceeding last month. Daniels then filed suit, saying that the October 2016 agreement was not valid because Trump never signed it.

"Rather than agree that the NDA is invalid, thus allowing me to talk, Mr. Trump and Mr. Cohen have instead attempted to hide the facts from the public using a bogus arbitration proceeding and have threatened me with millions of dollars in damages ($1M each time I speak out) if I tell the truth about what happened," she said.

Daniels has offered to return the $130,000 payment she received from Cohen in order to walk away from the agreement. Though she and her lawyer gave Cohen and Trump a Tuesday deadline to respond, they never responded.

"The president and Mr. Cohen have purposely ignored our settlement offer, thus doubling down on their efforts to muzzle Ms. Clifford and prevent her from telling hte American people what happened," Avenatti tweeted Tuesday. "Time to buckle up."

More: Porn star Stormy Daniels files lawsuit against Trump, alleging 'hush' agreement invalid