❓WHAT HAPPENED: President Donald J. Trump filed a $10 billion lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal, claiming defamation over allegations tied to a letter he supposedly sent to Jeffrey Epstein in 2003.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Donald Trump, Judge Darrin P. Gayles, The Wall Street Journal, Rupert Murdoch, and WSJ reporters.
📍WHEN & WHERE: The lawsuit was filed in July in Miami, Florida, and assigned to Judge Gayles of the Southern District of Florida.
💬KEY QUOTE: “The reason for those failures is because no authentic letter or drawing exists.” – Trump lawsuit complaint
🎯IMPACT: The case being run by a judge appointed by former President Obama raises concerns that President Trump will not receive a fair hearing.
President Donald J. Trump has launched a $10 billion defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal, its parent company News Corp, Dow Jones, and several others, alleging they published a false and defamatory report claiming he sent a sexually suggestive birthday card to deceased pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein in 2003.
The lawsuit, filed in the Southern District of Florida, has been assigned to U.S. District Court Judge Darrin P. Gayles. Judge Gayles was trumpeted by the left as the first openly gay black man confirmed to the federal bench when then-President Barack Obama appointed him in 2014.
Trump accuses the WSJ of fabricating the story and failing to present any legitimate proof, such as the alleged letter or evidence confirming he wrote it. “The reason for those failures is because no authentic letter or drawing exists,” Trump’s legal team argues in the complaint.
The suit also names high-profile defendants, including media mogul Rupert Murdoch, News Corp CEO Robert Thomson, publisher Dow Jones, and the two journalists responsible for the article. Trump’s lawyers allege the report was crafted with the intent to harm his reputation.
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