
President Donald Trump filed a $15 billion defamation lawsuit against The New York Times on Monday for allegedly attempting to undermine his character and his 2024 presidential candidacy with âactual malice.â
The lawsuit accused the Times of being a âfull-throated mouthpiece of the Democrat Partyâ by publishing dozens of articles that promoted âfalsehoodsâ about Trump to help former Vice President Kamala Harris win the election. Trumpâs legal team alleged that these articles and a book written by two reporters were all âcarefully craftedâ with âactual maliceâ to impair Trumpâs candidacy and his reputation.
âWhatever the historical merit of this self-congratulation, the Times has betrayed the journalistic ideals of honesty, objectivity, and accuracy that it once professed,â the lawsuit reads. âToday, the Times is a full-throated mouthpiece of the Democrat Party. The newspaperâs editorial routine is now one of industrial-scale defamation and libel against political opponents. As such, the Times has become a leading, and unapologetic, purveyor of falsehoods against President Trump on the legacy media landscape.â
The defendants named in the suit are The New York Times Company, Susanne Craig, Russ Buettner, Peter Baker and Michael S. Schmidt. The book in question, âLucky Loser: How Donald Trump Squandered His Fatherâs Fortune and Created the Illusion of Success,â was written by Craig and Buettner. (RELATED: Trump Files Suit Against Murdoch Over WSJ Epstein Story)
Trump wrote on Truth Social that it is his âhonorâ to sue âone of the worst and most degenerate newspapersâ in the country.
âToday, I have the Great Honor of bringing a $15 Billion Dollar Defamation and Libel Lawsuit against The New York Times, one of the worst and most degenerate newspapers in the History of our Country, becoming a virtual âmouthpieceâ for the Radical Left Democrat Party. I view it as the single largest illegal Campaign contribution, EVER,â Trump wrote. âTheir Endorsement of Kamala Harris was actually put dead center on the front page of The New York Times, something heretofore UNHEARD OF! The âTimesâ has engaged in a decades long method of lying about your Favorite President (ME!), my family, business, the America First Movement, MAGA, and our Nation as a whole.â
The lawsuit alleged that the book was attempting to smear Trumpâs success on âThe Apprenticeâ by inaccurately stating that executive producer Mark Burnett discovered Trump and made him a celebrity.
The suit pointed to the Timesâ editorial board endorsing Harris in September 2024 and stated that Trump would âdefy the norms and dismantle the institutions that have made our country strong.â It also accused an article from Oct. 20, 2024, titled, âFor Trump, a Lifetime of Scandals Heads Toward a Moment of Judgementâ and another from Oct. 22, 2024, titled, âAs Election Nears, Kelly Warns Trump Would Rule Like a Dictator,â as being âmaliciousâ and âdefamatory.â
The lawsuit accused the Times and the reporters of having âfalsified, distorted and manipulated factsâ with the intention of defaming Trump.
A spokesperson for The Times told its own newspaper that the lawsuit âlacks any legitimate legal claimsâ and that it will not be âdeterred by intimidation tactics.â
âThis lawsuit has no merit,â the spokesperson said. âIt lacks any legitimate legal claims and instead is an attempt to stifle and discourage independent reporting. The New York Times will not be deterred by intimidation tactics. We will continue to pursue the facts without fear or favor and stand up for journalistsâ First Amendment right to ask questions on behalf of the American people.â
CBS and its parent company, Paramount, agreed to pay a $36 million settlement to Trump to end a lawsuit relating to the editing of a â60 Minutesâ interview with Harris. ABC News agreed to a $15 million settlement in December 2024 after Trump sued the network over host George Stephanopoulosâ false claim that the president was found liable of rape.
The Times also had to issue a correction on Thursday after it falsely stated that Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk made a claim about Jewish people âpushing the exact kind of hatred against whitesâ that they want people to stop using against them. Kirk was reading that quote from another personâs tweet and criticizing the statement.
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