The new allegations stem from an eight-page, handwritten document that McDougal authored during the affair and which was later shared with The New Yorker by one of the former Playmate's friends. McDougal confirmed to The New Yorker that the handwriting was indeed her own.
According to the article, the Trump-McDougal affair began in June 2006 after Trump opted to film an episode of "The Apprentice" at the famed Playboy Mansion. Along with show contestants, dozens of current and former Playmates, including McDougal, were invited to the reality show's taping.
"[Trump] immediately took a liking to me, kept talking to me — telling me how beautiful I was, etc," McDougal wrote. "It was so obvious that a Playmate Promotions exec said, ‘Wow, he was all over you — I think you could be his next wife.'"
It should be noted that, by this time, Trump had been married to now-First Lady Melania Trump for less than two years and their son, Barron, was only a few months old.
Once the episode wrapped up and the pool party that followed came to a close, the two exchanged numbers with the intention of continuing their conversation over the phone and eventually meeting again.
McDougal later expressed in her writings that she was extremely nervous prior to their date and also how impressed she was by his "charm."
"I was so nervous! I was into his intelligence + charm. Such a polite man," she wrote. "We talked for a couple hours — then, it was "ON"! We got naked + had sex."
But something didn't feel right after their steamy interaction. Then, while she was getting dressed, he offered her money.
"He offered me money," she wrote. "I looked at him (+ felt sad) + said, ‘No thanks — I'm not ‘that girl.' I slept w/you because I like you — NOT for money' — He told me ‘you are special.'"
And so the affair continued. The two met up every time Trump traveled to Los Angeles. she met some members of his family at parties and he invited her to stay at some of his private residences. However, any time that McDougal met Trump, she had to pay her way.
"No paper trails for him," she wrote. "In fact, every time I flew to meet him, I booked/paid for flight + hotel + he reimbursed me."
In one instance, when McDougal toured Trump Tower, she recalled a moment when Trump pointed out Melania's separate bedroom. Trump reportedly said she had a separate room because "she liked her space… to read or be alone."
Trump and McDougal's relationship eventually came to an end in April 2007.
But that's not the end of the story, folks. The article notes that four days before the 2016 US election, the Wall Street Journal reported that the National Enquirer's publisher, American Media, Inc., paid $150,000 for exclusive rights to McDougal. This, The New Yorker alleges, was ultimately part of a "catch and kill" tactic that would keep the McDougal affair from ever seeing the light of day. According to the article, this is a tactic that David Pecker, the CEO and chairman of AMI and friend of Trump, would use whenever a story about Trump's affairs would surface.
"[The agreement] took my rights away," McDougal told The New Yorker. "At this point I feel I can't talk about anything without getting into trouble, because I don't know what I'm allowed to talk about. I'm afraid to even mention his name."
McDougal later indicated that she felt emboldened by the growing #MeToo movement to speak out, despite lingering fears of legal troubles it might cause.
"Every girl who speaks is paving the way for another," McDougal added.
The White House has denied McDougal's allegations.
"This is an old story that is just more fake news," a White House statement given to the outlet reads. "The president says he never had a relationship with McDougal."
We've heard that one before.
Stormy Daniels, the retired adult film actress at the center of another Trump affair, might soon enough also be revealing details about her own affair with POTUS. According to Gina Rodriguez, one of Daniels' lawyers, the nondisclosure agreement that the actress signed is now void since Michael Cohen, Trump's lawyer, admitted to paying Stormy $130,000.
"Everything is off now," Rodriguez said in a statement to AP. "Stormy is going to tell her story."
The announcement follows the Tuesday revelation in which Cohen told the New York Times that he'd paid Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Cliffords, in order to keep her from talking about her relationship with Trump.
"Neither the Trump Organization nor the Trump campaign was a party to the transaction with Ms. Clifford and neither reimbursed me for the payment, either directly or indirectly," Cohen told the Times. "The payment to Ms. Clifford was lawful and was not a campaign contribution or a campaign expenditure by anyone."
Prior to Cohen's declaration, Trump's legal team denied the relationship or the payment ever took place.