Trump Files $10B Lawsuit After Epstein Report Fallout \ Newslooks \ Washington DC \ Mary Sidiqi \ Evening Edition \ President Trump filed a $10 billion lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal and Rupert Murdoch after the paper reported on a letter allegedly linking him to Jeffrey Epstein. The report sparked backlash from Trump’s base, especially after the Justice Department reversed course on releasing Epstein case files. Trump called the article defamatory and part of a coordinated smear campaign, while the DOJ now seeks to unseal grand jury transcripts.
Quick Looks
- Trump filed a $10 billion defamation suit against The Wall Street Journal and Rupert Murdoch.
- Lawsuit follows WSJ’s report detailing a sexually suggestive letter allegedly bearing Trump’s name from Epstein’s 50th birthday album.
- Trump denies authoring or signing the letter and accuses the outlet of fabricating the story.
- DOJ filed motions to unseal Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell grand jury transcripts.
- Trump’s base erupted after DOJ reversed plans to release more Epstein-related files.
- Trump claims the WSJ story caused “financial and reputational harm.”
- Lawsuit also criticizes the outlet for not providing full proof of the letter’s authenticity.
- DOJ says it will redact victim-related information before any transcripts are made public.
- Trump’s supporters demand full transparency as pressure mounts on the White House.
- DOJ reiterates it must protect victims while balancing legal transparency.
Deep Look
In a stunning escalation of a controversy that’s rocked Washington and strained President Donald Trump’s relationship with his base, the president filed a $10 billion lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal and media mogul Rupert Murdoch on Friday. The lawsuit came just one day after the Journal published a report suggesting Trump’s deeper-than-acknowledged connection to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein—a report that included details of a sexually suggestive letter allegedly written by Trump in the early 2000s.
Filed in federal court in Miami, the lawsuit accuses the Journal and its reporters of publishing “knowingly false, defamatory, and disparaging statements,” which Trump claims caused immense financial and reputational damage. The article’s centerpiece was a letter said to be from Trump, framed by an image of a hand-drawn nude woman and ending with the words, “Happy Birthday — and may every day be another wonderful secret.” The letter was reportedly included in an album created by Ghislaine Maxwell for Epstein’s 50th birthday in 2003.
Trump has forcefully denied writing the letter, calling it “fake” and not resembling his writing or speech. “These are not my words, not the way I talk. Also, I don’t draw pictures,” he stated. According to the president, he warned both Rupert Murdoch and WSJ editor Emma Tucker ahead of publication that the letter was fabricated.
The Journal did not publish an image of the full letter or explain how it obtained it—points that Trump’s legal team seizes on in the suit. “Defendants failed to attach the letter, failed to attach the alleged drawing, failed to show proof that President Trump authored or signed any such letter, and failed to explain how this purported letter was obtained,” the complaint says.
The fallout from the article and the Trump administration’s separate decision not to release additional Epstein case files—despite previous public assurances—has deeply fractured Trump’s base, particularly among supporters who have long called for full disclosure around Epstein’s connections to global elites. Critics accused the White House of backtracking on promises of transparency and demanded answers.
The situation grew more complex Friday when Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche filed motions in a separate federal court urging the unsealing of grand jury transcripts from both the Epstein case and that of Ghislaine Maxwell, who was convicted in 2021 of sex trafficking minors for Epstein. Epstein died by suicide in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial.
In his court filing, Blanche insisted that “transparency in this process will not be at the expense of our obligation under the law to protect victims,” adding that the Justice Department would work with prosecutors in New York to redact identifying and sensitive victim information before any records are made public.
Still, that partial step did little to calm a base already feeling betrayed. The administration had earlier promised a broader release of Epstein-related materials after a limited batch released in February revealed few new details. Attorney General Pam Bondi, who initially promoted a full release, has remained silent amid the blowback.
The request to unseal transcripts is unlikely to lead to an immediate resolution. A judge must still approve the release, and the process of reviewing, redacting, and organizing sensitive testimony is expected to take months. Grand jury transcripts are among the most protected legal documents in the U.S. system, typically only released under extraordinary circumstances.
Meanwhile, Trump is using the lawsuit as a political cudgel. On his social platform Truth Social, he framed the move as part of a broader campaign against what he calls “Fake News Media,” citing past settlements with ABC and CBS over similar lawsuits. “This lawsuit is filed not only on behalf of your favorite President, ME,” Trump wrote, “but also in order to continue standing up for ALL Americans who will no longer tolerate the abusive wrongdoings of the Fake News Media.”
In a brief statement, Dow Jones, the publisher of The Wall Street Journal, said, “We have full confidence in the rigor and accuracy of our reporting, and will vigorously defend against any lawsuit.”
As the political, legal, and media drama unfolds, the broader stakes continue to grow. Trump’s lawsuit, coupled with mounting pressure on the DOJ to unseal explosive Epstein-related documents, signals a convergence of campaign strategy, legacy management, and information warfare—all with the 2026 presidential election already in focus.
Whether the courts, or the public, will accept the explanations given by the administration and the media remains uncertain. What is clear is that the Epstein case—long dormant—is once again front-page news, dragging powerful names back into the spotlight.
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