#29 – New suit, who dis
In wake of recent successes and coverage deemed unfavorable, Trump promises to file yet another lawsuit.
If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. And maybe run for office once more. During his first run for president, Trump succeeded. But he lost various lawsuits and many cases were dismissed. Then he lost against Biden for reelection in 2020.
But after winning in 2024, Trump has seen far more success in court. First it was broad presidential immunity. Then the Supreme Court recently allowed the Trump administration to proceed with its removal of birthright citizenship — though the ruling was technically only about the ability of federal judges to order nationwide injunctions.
And this week, the Supreme Court ruled again in favor of the Trump administration’s federal worker layoffs, adding to the months-long whiplash that federal workers have faced between being fired, rehired, fired, rehired, and finally fired again.
Earlier this month, Trump won a $16 million settlement with CBS over his claim that the network had edited footage of Kamala Harris’s 60 Minutes interview in what he deemed was unfair to him. Paramount, the parent company of CBS, settled the suit, to the dismay of audiences, politicians, and journalists alike. It’s believed that the primary shareholder of Paramount wanted to settle so that the Trump administration would approve the company’s planned merger with Skydance.
Then, just a couple of days ago, CBS announced the decision to end Stephen Colbert’s The Late Show. The decision came just three days after Colbert criticized Paramount’s settlement. Paramount explained the decision was driven purely by financial reasons. Though that may be true, it’s shady at best.
Because the merger with Skydance requires a sign-off from the Trump administration, it’s not a good look for CBS, yet again. Skydance owner David Ellison was spotted with Trump earlier this year at UFC matches, and Ellison’s father, Larry Ellison (Oracle co-founder, also a billionaire), is a Trump supporter and ally.
Fans of the TV show Succession should be pausing here — rich media mogul gives favorable coverage to politician in hopes of securing a big merger? Sounds vaguely familiar.
Following Colbert’s cancellation, Trump posted on social media “I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert!”
Don’t be so obvious, Donald. Though it doesn’t really matter at this point. He doesn’t need to work in the dark.
All of these settlements and lawsuits have snowballed into an article published by the Wall Street Journal in which reporters released an alleged birthday card written by Donald Trump to the now-deceased sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. Apparently, Emma Tucker, editor in chief of WSJ and Rupert Murdoch, Trump ally and owner of NewsCorp (the parent company of WSJ), were even threatened by Trump to not publish the letter.
Tucker let the article get published, prompting Trump to decry the article as fake and immediately announce his decision to sue the outlet. With all kinds of judges, justices, and media moguls on his side, it remains to be seen how this new suit plays out. But it could be another blow to free speech, independent press, and democracy as we know it.