Former President Donald Trump has ignited another courtroom battle, this time unleashing a $15 billion defamation lawsuit against The New York Times, several of its star reporters, and publisher Penguin Random House. The explosive case, filed Monday in Florida federal court, accuses the defendants of orchestrating a calculated smear campaign designed to cripple Trump’s 2024 presidential bid.
A Book and Three Articles at the Center of the Storm
At the heart of the suit is the book “Lucky Loser: How Donald Trump Squandered His Father’s Fortune and Created the Illusion of Success,” penned by Times journalists Susanne Craig and Russ Buettner and published in September 2024 by Penguin. Trump claims the work—along with three Times articles tied to its release—was part of a coordinated attack to inflict “maximum damage” ahead of Election Day.
Among the cited pieces are:
-
“The Star-Making Machine That Created ‘Donald Trump’” by Craig and Buettner, released just before the book’s debut.
-
“For Trump, a Lifetime of Scandals Heads Toward a Moment of Judgment” by Peter Baker on Oct. 20, 2024.
-
“As Election Nears, Kelly Warns Trump Would Rule Like a Dictator” by Michael S. Schmidt on Oct. 24, 2024.
All four reporters are individually named in the lawsuit.
