Key Points
- US President Donald Trump has sued the Wall Street Journal and its owners, including Rupert Murdoch.
- The newspaper reported that Trump sent Jeffrey Epstein a birthday greeting including a sexually suggestive drawing.
- Trump vehemently denied the Journal's report and called the newspaper a "pile of garbage".
Wall Street Journal owner Dow Jones said Friday it will "vigorously defend" against legal action after Donald Trump filed a defamation suit over the newspaper's recent article linking the US president to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
"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 hours after Trump filed a suit seeking at least US$10 billion in damages from the company, The Wall Street Journal and media magnate Rupert Murdoch, the founder of News Corp, the paper's parent company.
The federal court docket in the Southern District of Florida showed Trump filed a lawsuit on Friday against Dow Jones, News Corp, Rupert Murdoch and two Wall Street Journal reporters, raising claims under federal libel law.
A copy of the complaint was not immediately available.
Trump vehemently denied the Journal's report, which claimed Trump sent Epstein a birthday greeting in 2003 that included a sexually suggestive drawing and a reference to secrets they shared.
"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!!!" Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Friday morning.
The lawsuit comes as Trump faces increased scrutiny about his relationship with Epstein, the disgraced financier and sex offender who died in a New York jail cell in 2019.
New York City's chief medical examiner concluded that Epstein had taken his own life, but this conclusion has been disputed, with many believing he was murdered.
The Epstein case has generated conspiracy theories that became popular among Trump's base of supporters who believed the government was covering up Epstein's ties to the rich and powerful.
Some of Trump's most loyal followers became furious after his administration reversed course on its promise to release files related to the Epstein investigation.
A Justice Department memo released on 7 July concluded that Epstein killed himself and said there was "no incriminating client list" or evidence that Epstein blackmailed prominent people.
Attorney-General Pam Bondi had pledged months earlier to reveal major revelations about Epstein, including "a lot of names" and "a lot of flight logs".
With pressure to release the Epstein files building, Trump on Thursday said he directed Bondi to ask a court to release grand jury testimony about Epstein.
The US government on Friday filed a motion in Manhattan federal court to unseal those grand jury transcripts.
The Department of Justice said the criminal cases against Epstein and his former associate Ghislaine Maxwell are a matter of public interest, justifying the release of associated grand jury transcripts.
The Journal said the letter bearing Trump's name was part of a leather-bound birthday book for Epstein that included messages from other high-profile people.
The newspaper said the letter contains several lines of typewritten text framed by the outline of a naked woman, which appeared to be hand-drawn with a heavy marker.
The newspaper said the letter concludes "Happy Birthday — and may every day be another wonderful secret," and featured the signature "Donald."
Allegations that Epstein had been sexually abusing girls became public in 2006 — after the birthday book was produced — and he was arrested that year before accepting a plea deal.
Epstein died in 2019 in jail after he was arrested for a second time and charged with sex-trafficking conspiracy.
Trump, who was photographed with Epstein multiple times in social situations in the 1990s and early 2000s, told reporters in 2019 that he ended his relationship with Epstein long before his legal troubles became apparent.
