A federal judge has handed President Donald Trump a huge victory, at least for now, in his fight with the legacy media, which he often has described as being the enemy of the American people.
Trump, whose irritation with the media’s bias and attitude dates back years, several times in the past has sued a corporation and either won or settled for damages.
This fight is with the New York Times, and the Washington Examiner said Judge Steven Merryday has declined to dismissed Trumps $15 billion defamation claim against the Times and gave him several weeksk to amend his case.
The Times wanted it thrown out on First Amendment grounds, which the judge rejected.
Trump responded on social media with: “BREAKING NEWS: The Failing New York Times, after 10 years of harassment, slander, and libel, just failed again in their desperate attempt to have our powerful Defamation Lawsuit against them dropped. As we requested, the Highly Respected Judge has called for an updated complaint, which will lay out, in extreme detail, all the ways in which The Times has repeatedly and consistently acted, with actual malice in defaming me, my family, our Great MAGA Movement, and America, itself. We will continue to hold The Times and their ‘comrades’ in the Mainstream Media accountable for publishing, promoting, and dealing in Fake News. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
The fight is pending in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida in Tampa.
The same judge earlier gave the president a chance to refile with “simple, concise, and direct” claims, without “vituperation and invective.”
At issue is the Times’ 2024 election reporting and a book unleashed by several of its writers.
The case accuses the Times of being a “mouthpiece” for the Democrats and engaging in a “decades-long pattern” involving “intentional and malicious defamation against” the president.
Named are the Times company and writers Susanne Craig, Russ Buettner, Peter Baker, and Michael Schmidt, and Penguin Random House, which published a publication titled “Lucky Loser: How Donald Trump Squandered His Father’s Fortune and Created the Illusion of Success.”
The Times responded with, “The judge simply gives him yet another chance to draft a complaint that demonstrates any legal merit.”
The Times said it “stands by our journalism.”
Trump also has pending cases against the BBC and the Wall Street Journal.
Trump previously has been awarded $16 million in a settlement in his case against CBS and there was a $15 million settlement in a case against ABC.
