'The benefit of Mr. Trump': Longtime fixer Michael Cohen testifies in hush money trial. What you missed on Day 16.

Donald Trump’s longtime fixer and lawyer, Michael Cohen, testified Monday that he was acting at Trump's behest when he made hush money payments to Stormy Daniels before the 2016 presidential election.

For weeks in Manhattan criminal court in New York City, Trump's defense attorneys have sought to puncture Cohen’s credibility with the jury, and even witnesses have painted him as hot-headed, self-interested and untrustworthy.

“I didn’t know Michael to be an especially charitable person or selfless person,” said Hope Hicks, Trump’s former communications aide, when she was on the stand. Cohen’s former banker said he was assigned to him because of his “ability to handle individuals who are challenging.”

But on the stand for the first time, Cohen presented himself as cool-headed and recalled how he had worked at Trump’s behest to suppress stories that posed a threat, negotiating with tabloid publisher David Pecker and ultimately procuring $130,000 of his own money to pay off a porn star — with the promise of reimbursement.

“You’re a billionaire. Just pay it,’” Cohen said Trump’s friends told him. “And he expressed to me: ‘Just do it. Meet up with Allen Weisselberg and figure this whole thing out.’”

Cohen and prosecutors have made no secret that they have gone to lengths to prep him for his testimony — but the real test may come Tuesday, when cross-examination by Trump's lawyer is expected to begin.

But first, here is what you missed Monday:

Trump v. Cohen

Cohen's testimony had long been billed as the main event — a former Trump confidant who was closer to him than almost any other ally, having flipped — a term Trump often employs — and agreeing to testify against him.

The prosecution spent much of the run-up trying to bolster