Trump Reloads: Mr. President Refiles $15 Billion Defamation Lawsuit Against The New York Times After Judge Tosses Original
President Donald Trump has once again set his sights on The New York Times, refiling his massive $15 billion defamation lawsuit after a federal judge previously dismissed the original filing for being too lengthy. The revised complaint — trimmed from 85 pages down to 40 — was submitted Thursday to the U.S. District Court for Florida’s Middle District in Tampa. The lawsuit accuses The Times, four of its reporters, and publisher Penguin Random House of defamation over two 2024 articles and a book titled Lucky Loser: How Donald Trump Squandered His Father’s Fortune and Created the Illusion of Success. Trump’s legal team insists the new filing meets the court’s demands and doubles down on holding what they call “Fake News media” accountable.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for Trump’s legal team described the case as a “powerhouse lawsuit” aimed at exposing media bias and protecting the president’s reputation. The defendants named include The New York Times Company, reporters Susanne Craig, Russ Buettner, Peter Baker, and Michael S. Schmidt, along with Penguin Random House. The suit alleges that the outlets and authors engaged in deliberate falsehoods about Trump’s finances and his time as host of The Apprentice. A New York Times spokesperson, however, dismissed the renewed action as baseless, saying, “This lawsuit has no merit… it’s merely an attempt to stifle independent reporting and generate PR attention.”
This latest legal move extends Trump’s ongoing battle with major media corporations. In the past year, the president has scored substantial settlements — including $15 million from ABC News following comments by George Stephanopoulos, and an estimated $30 million from CBS parent company Paramount over a 60 Minutes segment involving Vice President Kamala Harris. As Trump refiles against The Times, the case underscores his broader strategy of taking an aggressive stance against outlets he claims have spread misinformation — a fight he appears determined to pursue well beyond the headlines.
