Trump goes to war with Rupert Murdoch and WSJ over bombshell Epstein article

Washington DC - President Donald Trump sued media magnate Rupert Murdoch and The Wall Street Journal for at least $10 billion Friday over a bombshell article on his friendship with infamous sex-offender Jeffrey Epstein.

President Donald Trump is suing Rupert Murdoch and the Wall Street Journal for defamation, seeking damages of at least $10 billion.
President Donald Trump is suing Rupert Murdoch and the Wall Street Journal for defamation, seeking damages of at least $10 billion.  © Collage: Kevin Hagen / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP & REUTERS

The defamation lawsuit, filed in federal court in Miami, saw the 79-year-old Republican hitting back at a scandal threatening to cause serious political damage.

"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," Trump posted on Truth Social late Friday.

The Journal reported Thursday that in 2003, the then-real estate magnate wrote a suggestive birthday letter to Epstein, which featured a sketch of a naked woman and hinted at a shared "secret."

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The lawsuit, which also names two reporters, the Dow Jones corporation, and Murdoch's parent company News Corp. as defendants, claims that no such letter exists and that the paper intended to malign Trump with a story that has now been viewed by hundreds of millions of people.

"And given the timing of the Defendants' article, which shows their malicious intent behind it, the overwhelming financial and reputational harm suffered by President Trump will continue to multiply," it said.

Trump scrambles to contain fallout from Epstein scandal

Rupert Murdoch's Wall Street Journal published a bombshell article on a birthday letter allegedly sent by Trump to Epstein.
Rupert Murdoch's Wall Street Journal published a bombshell article on a birthday letter allegedly sent by Trump to Epstein.  © Frederic J. BROWN / AFP

Dow Jones, the Journal's longtime publisher, responded to Trump's libel suit Friday saying it is standing by the story.

"We have full confidence in the rigor and accuracy of our reporting, and will vigorously defend against any lawsuit," a Dow Jones spokesperson said in a statement.

In another bid to dampen outrage among his own supporters about an alleged government cover-up of Epstein's activities and 2019 death, Trump ordered US Attorney General Pam Bondi to seek the unsealing of grand jury testimony from the prosecution against the disgraced financier.

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Epstein, a longtime friend of Trump and multiple high-profile men, was found hanging dead in a New York prison cell while awaiting trial on charges that he sexually exploited dozens of underage girls at his homes in New York and Florida.

The case sparked considerable speculation, especially among Trump's far-right voters, about an alleged international cabal of wealthy pedophiles. Epstein's death – declared a suicide – before he could face trial supercharged the narrative.

When Trump returned to power for a second term this January, his supporters clamored for revelations about Epstein's supposed list of clients. But Bondi issued an official memo this month claiming there was no such list, causing outrage among the Republican's MAGA base.

It remained unclear whether a court would authorize the unsealing of the grand jury testimony.

Asked Friday by reporters if he would pursue the broader release of information related to the case, Trump did not answer.

Cover photo: Collage: Kevin Hagen / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP & REUTERS

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