Former U.S. President Donald Trump has filed a \$10 billion defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal, its parent companies , CEO Robert Thomson, media mogul Rupert Murdoch, and two Journal reporters. This comes after the newspaper published a story claiming Trump once sent a sexually suggestive birthday card to Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted sex offender in 2003.
The article said the card was part of a birthday album made by Ghislaine Maxwell and included Trump’s signature, a drawing of a naked woman, and the message: “Happy Birthday and may every day be another wonderful secret.” Trump strongly denied this, calling it “FAKE” and attacked the newspaper on Truth Social , calling it a “useless rag.”
Trump filed the lawsuit in Florida, calling the article false, damaging, and unsupported by evidence. However, under U.S. defamation law, it is difficult for public figures like Trump to win unless they can prove the journalists knowingly published lies or showed “actual malice.”
Legal experts say the \$10 billion demand is extremely high and unlikely to be awarded. The Journal and its parent company have said they stand by their reporting and will defend themselves in court.
If the case moves forward, both sides may have to share documents and answer questions about Trump’s past relationship with Epstein and the birthday card in question.
The lawsuit also comes as pressure grows to release more documents related to Epstein. Attorney General Pam Bondi, following Trump’s request, recently moved to unseal federal records from Epstein’s 2019 investigation. Some Democrats accuse Trump of trying to hide his ties to Epstein, though the Justice Department denies this..
This legal battle could lead to more information coming out about Trump and Epstein’s past connections. It may also affect how the media reports on powerful public figures in the future.
