Trump sues Rupert Murdoch, Dow Jones, and News Corp. for $10 billion over the Epstein Letter allegation
Trump has sued Robert Murdoch, Dow Jones, and News Corp. for $10 billion over a “fake” report that connected him to Epstein.
Former US President Donald Trump has sued Dow Jones, News Corp, media tycoon Rupert Murdoch, and two Wall Street Journal reporters for $10 billion (£7.5 billion) over allegations that he wrote a “bawdy” birthday letter to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in 2003.
In the Miami lawsuit, Trump charged the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) with slander, defamation, and printing what he called “fake news.” According to the publication, the supposed 50th birthday letter for Epstein was typewritten inside a hand-drawn outline of a nude woman and included the humorous statement, “A pal is a wonderful thing.” May each day be another amazing secret and happy birthday.
Trump replied, “These are not my words, not the way I talk,” in response to the publishing. Furthermore, I’m not a visual artist.
He declared on social media: “We have just filed a powerhouse lawsuit against everyone involved in publishing the false, malicious, defamatory, fake news ‘article’ in the useless ‘rag’ that is The Wall Street Journal.” I’m hoping Rupert and his “friends” are eager for the numerous hours of testimony and depositions they will have to give in this lawsuit.
“We fully believe that our reporting is accurate and rigorous, and we will vigorously defend against any lawsuit,” a Dow Jones representative retorted.
The media mogul and the Wall Street Journal were warned that they would face legal repercussions if they proceeded with the story, according to Trump, who was recently spotted with Murdoch at the FIFA World Cup.
The letter had a “imaginary conversation between Trump and Epstein, written in the third person,” according to the Wall Street Journal piece, including the statement, “Enigmas never age.”
Citing “public interest,” the US Justice Department publicly requested a judge to unseal grand jury papers pertaining to Epstein’s 2019 sex trafficking prosecution on the same day the lawsuit was filed. Epstein was accused of trafficking dozens of girls, some of them were as young as fourteen.
In response to Trump’s directives, Attorney General Pam Bondi filed the motion to make the confidential information public. Normally, these documents are protected by law until a judge determines that the public interest outweighs secrecy.
In addition, the department sought disclosures regarding Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s colleague who was found guilty of participating in the child sex trafficking scheme.
Even still, it’s unclear if the records will be released to the public or if they include the disclosures that Trump’s followers are clamoring for.
Dissatisfaction with Trump’s handling of the case has been expressed by several of his supporters. GOP sheriff and California gubernatorial candidate Chad Bianco told the BBC: “We feel like we’re being talked down to like stupid children.”
Additionally, pressure is growing in Congress, where both Democrats and Republicans, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Marjorie Taylor Greene, are pushing a “discharge petition” to force the justice department to make more Epstein-related information public.
Trump’s lawsuit and calls for openness indicate that political and public scrutiny of the issue is far from ended, despite the White House’s announcement on Thursday that a prior truce in the Epstein case, spearheaded by the US government, seemed to be holding.
