Desk Report:
US President Donald Trump announced on Monday that he will sue The New York Times for $15 billion in defamation and libel, accusing the newspaper of acting as a “virtual mouthpiece” for the Democratic Party.
CNN reported that The New York Times published a report last week that said that in 2003, on the 50th birthday of the controversial financier Jeffrey Epstein, he was given a sexually suggestive note and photo, which is believed to have been signed by Trump.
After the report was published, Trump threatened to sue The New York Times. Trump and his aides denied any involvement in the note.
In a post on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump accused The New York Times of making false statements about him, his family and his business; although he did not elaborate on the allegations.
In the post, Trump said, “The New York Times has been spreading lies, propaganda and defamation about me for a long time. Now it will stop!”
Trump sees the move as a larger effort to “restore integrity to journalism.”
Trump said yesterday that the lawsuit against The New York Times would be filed in Florida.
He did not elaborate. In the post on Truth Social, Trump also alluded to The New York Times’ endorsement of Democratic candidate Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election.
The lawsuit is the latest in a series of high-profile legal battles Trump has waged against prominent US media outlets.
