Trump sues WSJ, Murdoch over explosive Epstein secret allegations, seeks $10 bn
The suit stems from a WSJ article alleging Trump sent Jeffrey Epstein a sexually suggestive birthday message in 2003. Trump vehemently denies the report, calling it "garbage."
US President Donald Trump has filed a lawsuit seeking at least 10 billion dollars in damages against The Wall Street Journal and its owners, including media titan Rupert Murdoch. The high-stakes suit, lodged in federal court in Florida, targets Dow Jones, News Corp, Murdoch himself, and two Journal reporters, accusing them of defamation and acting with malicious intent that inflicted "overwhelming financial and reputational harm."
At the heart of the dispute is a Journal report claiming that in 2003, Trump sent convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein a birthday greeting featuring a sexually suggestive drawing and a cryptic reference to "secrets" they shared.
Trump has vehemently denied the report, which Reuters has not independently verified, and had previously warned Murdoch of his intention to sue. Taking to Truth Social on Friday, Trump declared, "I look forward to getting Rupert Murdoch to testify in my lawsuit against him and his 'pile of garbage' newspaper, the WSJ. That will be an interesting experience!!!"
The lawsuit unfolds against a backdrop of enduring public fascination and conspiracy theories surrounding Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York jail in 2019. Many of Trump's loyalists, fueled by initial promises from his administration to release Epstein files, grew furious when a July 7 Justice Department memo concluded Epstein's death was suicide and found no "incriminating client list" or blackmail evidence. This contradicted earlier pledges from Attorney General Pam Bondi, who had promised "major revelations", including "a lot of names" and "flight logs."
Amid mounting pressure, Trump announced Thursday he had directed Bondi to petition a court for the release of grand jury testimony related to Epstein. Coincidentally, the US government on Friday filed a motion in Manhattan federal court to unseal grand jury transcripts in the cases of both Epstein and his former associate Ghislaine Maxwell, who is currently serving a 20-year sentence for her role in Epstein's abuse of underage girls.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche emphasised the profound public interest, calling the transcripts "critical pieces of an important moment in our nation's history," and stating that "the time for the public to guess what they contain should end." Prosecutors are committed to redacting all victim-identifying information before any release, Reuters reported.
The Journal's contested report described Trump's alleged birthday message as part of a leather-bound book for Epstein, featuring typewritten text framed by a hand-drawn naked woman, concluding with "Happy Birthday - and may every day be another wonderful secret," signed "Donald."