Trump files libel lawsuit over Wall Street Journal report on Jeffrey Epstein's birthday letters
The lawsuit is an extraordinary escalation of Trump's ongoing legal campaign against media companies he views as opponents.
According to the docket filed in federal court in South Florida, Trump is suing for libel, assault and slander. A copy of the lawsuit was not attached to the docket.
Trump has denied that he wrote the note.
Trump had threatened to sue almost immediately after the story, which was written by Journal reporters Khadeeja Safdar and Joe Palazzolo, was published late Thursday afternoon. Both reporters are named in the docket as defendants.
'The Wall Street Journal, and Rupert Murdoch, personally, were warned directly by President Donald J. Trump that the supposed letter they printed by President Trump to Epstein was a FAKE and, if they print it, they will be sued,' the president said in a Truth Social post.
The president added in that post that Murdoch, the owner of News Corp, the Journal's parent company, 'stated that he would take care of it.'
'But, obviously, did not have the power to do so,' Trump added.
CNN has reached out to the Wall Street Journal for comment.
The president's relationship with Epstein, the late convicted sex offender who died in a New York City jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges, has come under increased scrutiny in recent weeks.
Trump said during his 2024 campaign that he would consider releasing additional files on Epstein, vowing to fulfill the demands of influential right-wing figures who have long pushed for increase governmental transparency around the case and publicly casted doubt on whether his death was a suicide, as was ruled by multiple official investigations.
A memo released by his Justice Department earlier this month claimed there is no evidence that Epstein, who rubbed shoulders with some of the most influential men in politics and business during the late 20th century, maintained a 'client list' that named or implicated these men in alleged sex crimes.
That revelation has disappointed some of the president's most loyal followers and was the catalyst of a split that threatened to fracture his MAGA coalition.
Trump has had a hot-and-cold professional relationship with Murdoch that has spanned decades. Murdoch's company also owns Fox News, the most-watched and most-prominent Trump-friendly cable news network, which also employs the president's daughter-in-law Lara Trump.
Trump's latest media battle
Legal experts consulted by CNN said they could not immediately recall any past instances of a sitting president suing a news outlet over a story.
Trump filed several suits in 2024 while he was running for reelection. In March of that year, he sued ABC, claiming George Stephanopoulos and ABC News defamed him when the anchor repeatedly said on air that a jury found Trump had 'raped' E. Jean Carroll.
A jury found that Trump had sexually abused Carroll and held him liable for battery, but the jury did not find that she proved he had raped her. (Trump has denied all wrongdoing toward Carroll.) ABC's parent company Disney settled with Trump and agreed to pay US$16 million toward his future presidential library, setting a precedent of sorts for other settlement deals.
Just two weeks ago, Trump agreed to drop his October 2024 lawsuit against CBS News over a segment on '60 Minutes' during the closing stretch of the campaign. Paramount said it would pay $16 million for the library.
Meta and X have also settled with Trump over lawsuits that predated his second term in office. At least three other cases against media and tech companies are still pending.
University of Richmond law professor Carl Tobias told CNN that Trump's challenge to the Journal goes hand in hand with the recent settlements and the rescission package targeting public broadcasting.
In each case, 'his attacks on the media undermine the First Amendment by making the media and others more cautious in covering Trump, his administration and other federal and state politicians,' Tobias said.
This story is breaking and will be updated.
By Michael Williams, Dan Berman and Brian Stelter.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CTV News
27 minutes ago
- CTV News
CTV National News: Federal government faces lawsuit over limits on foreign workers
CTV National News: Federal government faces lawsuit over limits on foreign workers Quebec businesses sue Ottawa over foreign worker cap, warning of serious consequences if the policy continues. CTV's Stéphane Giroux reports.
CTV News
3 hours ago
- CTV News
Trump administration imposes limits on Mexican flights and threatens Delta alliance in trade dispute
Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy testifies during a House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Oversight hearing on the Department of Transportation's Policies and Programs and Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Request on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, July 16, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.) The Trump administration imposed new restrictions Saturday on flights from Mexico and threatened to end a longstanding partnership between Delta Air Lines and Aeromexico in response to limits the Mexican government placed on passenger and cargo flights into Mexico City several years ago. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Mexico's actions to force airlines to move out of the main Benito Juarez International Airport to the newer Felipe Angeles International Airport more than 30 miles (48.28 kilometers) away violated a trade agreement between the two countries and gave domestic airlines an unfair advantage. Mexico is the top foreign destination for Americans with more than 40 million passengers flying there last year. 'Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg deliberately allowed Mexico to break our bilateral aviation agreement,' Duffy said, referring to the previous president and his transportation secretary. 'That ends today. Let these actions serve as a warning to any country who thinks it can take advantage of the U.S., our carriers, and our market. America First means fighting for the fundamental principle of fairness.' All Mexican passenger, cargo and charter airlines will now be required to submit their schedules to the Transportation Department and seek government approval of their flights until Duffy is satisfied with the way Mexico is treating U.S. airlines. It's not immediately clear how Duffy's actions might affect the broader trade war with Mexico and negotiations over tariffs. A spokesperson for Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum didn't reply immediately to a request for comment. Sheinbaum didn't mention the new restrictions during either of her two speaking events on Saturday. Delta and Aeromexico have been fighting the Transportation Department's efforts to end their partnership that began in 2016 since early last year. The airlines have argued that it's not fair to punish them for the Mexican government's actions, and they said ending their agreement would jeopardize nearly two dozen routes and $800 million in benefits to both countries' economies that come from tourism spending and jobs. 'The U.S. Department of Transportation's tentative proposal to terminate its approval of the strategic and pro-competitive partnership between Delta and Aeromexico would cause significant harm to consumers traveling between the U.S. and Mexico, as well as U.S. jobs, communities, and transborder competition,' Delta said in a statement. Aeromexico's press office said it was reviewing the order and intended to present a joint response with Delta in the coming days. But the order terminating approval of the agreement between the airlines wouldn't take effect until October, and the airlines are likely to continue fighting that decision. The airlines said in a previous filing fighting the order that it believes the loss of direct flights would prompt over 140,000 American tourists and nearly 90,000 Mexican tourists not to visit the other country and hurt the economies of both countries with the loss of their spending. Associated Press writer Amaranta Marentes in Mexico City contributed to this report. Josh Funk, The Associated Press
Canada News.Net
3 hours ago
- Canada News.Net
Trump touts Coke cane sugar move amid food policy push
WASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump announced that Coca-Cola has agreed to begin using real cane sugar in its U.S. beverages following his conversations with company leadership. "I have been speaking to Coca-Cola about using REAL Cane Sugar in Coke in the United States, and they have agreed to do so," Trump posted on Truth Social. "I'd like to thank all of those in authority at Coca-Cola." Coca-Cola currently uses high-fructose corn syrup in most of its U.S. drinks, while it relies on cane sugar in some overseas markets. A company spokesperson said Coca-Cola would share more details on new product offerings soon and welcomed the president's support. The shift aligns with the Trump administration's Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) initiative, a health policy push spearheaded by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The initiative has urged food companies to revise product formulations, including removing artificial dyes and cutting added sugars. Kennedy has also been critical of excessive sugar consumption in American diets and previewed upcoming federal dietary guidelines that encourage eating "whole food." A May report by the MAHA Commission linked high consumption of high-fructose corn syrup to childhood obesity and other chronic health conditions. Still, many medical experts say the health impact of cane sugar and corn syrup is broadly similar, as both are forms of added sugar. The proposed change drew pushback from corn producers, particularly in the Midwest, where corn syrup production is concentrated. "Replacing high fructose corn syrup with cane sugar would cost thousands of American food manufacturing jobs, depress farm income, and boost imports of foreign sugar, all with no nutritional benefit," said John Bode, president of the Corn Refiners Association. Trump's home state of Florida is the top sugarcane producer in the U.S. As part of broader food policy changes, the Trump administration has also allowed some states to remove soda from SNAP benefits, putting added pressure on beverage companies like Coca-Cola and PepsiCo.
