After a judge threw out his first lawsuit, President Donald Trump has filed a new $15 billion defamation case against The New York Times.
Trump claims the newspaper damaged his 2024 campaign and his reputation as a businessman. His first complaint was 85 pages long. Judge Steven D. Merryday of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida said it took too long for Trump to file and described it as “florid and enervating.” Trump was given 28 days to submit a shorter version.
The new complaint is 40 pages. Reporter Michael S. Schmidt is no longer named in the case. Some of Trump’s bigger claims, like calling his 2024 win “the greatest personal and political achievement in American history,” were cut. But he is still asking for $15 billion.
The New York Times pushed back, saying, “As we said when this was first filed and again after the judge’s ruling to strike it: This lawsuit has no merit. Nothing has changed today. This is merely an attempt to stifle independent reporting and generate P.R. attention, but The New York Times will not be deterred by intimidation tactics.”
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Trump’s legal team said he is “continuing to hold the Fake News responsible through this powerhouse lawsuit.”
The lawsuit also targets Penguin Random House. The publisher released Lucky Loser, a book by Susanne Craig and Russ Buettner. It covers Trump’s time hosting The Apprentice and claims he “squandered his father’s fortune and created the illusion of success.” The book was a New York Times bestseller and was named Best Business Book of the Year by the Financial Times. Craig and Buettner are included in the lawsuit.
Trump has taken legal action against other media companies before. CBS News and ABC News settled for $16 million. He even pressured ABC to pull Jimmy Kimmel’s show after the host criticized MAGA Republicans for using Charlie Kirk’s death for political points. The show returned a week later with 6.3 million viewers, nearly triple its usual audience.
He also sued The Wall Street Journal over a birthday letter allegedly sent to convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. The letter reportedly had a sexual drawing, signed by Trump over a woman’s navel. The WSJ said the story was true and called Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit “an affront to the First Amendment.”
Featured image via Political Tribune Gallery
