Posted on 12/03/2019 1:30:47 PM PST by jazusamo
Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., sued CNN for defamation on Tuesday, accusing the cable network of publishing a “demonstrably false hit piece” about him amid his high-profile opposition to the Trump impeachment inquiry.
The 47-page lawsuit, filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, accuses the liberal network of publishing “numerous egregiously false and defamatory” statements about Nunes on Nov. 22, 2019 when journalist Vicky Ward reported claims that Nunes met with Ukranian prosecutor, Viktor Shokin, in Vienna in 2018 to dig "up dirt" on Hunter and Joe Biden.
Nunes, who has been leading GOP opposition to the House Democratic impeachment inquiry in the House Intelligence Committee, says he “did not go to Vienna or anywhere else in Austria in 2018” and “has never met” Shokin.
“CNN is the mother of fake news. It is the least trusted name. CNN is eroding the fabric of America, proselytizing, sowing distrust and disharmony. It must be held accountable,” the lawsuit, obtained by Fox News, states.
Nunes is seeking at least $435,350,000 in compensatory and punitive damages.
CNN did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The lawsuit mocks the “trusted” source of CNN’s story, Lev Parnas, a man recently indicted by the U.S. government and charged with multiple federal crimes. The CNN story said Parnas’ attorney told them his client was willing to tell Congress about Nunes’ travels. The suit includes a tweet sent by MSNBC justice and security analyst Matthew Miller, who publicly questioned Parnas’ credibility.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
If nothing else, it’s a relatively inexpensive publicity move and “campaign ad.”
If he wins and the kid, Nick Sandmann, wins, CNN reporters will not be getting a raise. Instead, some of them may be getting pink slips.
As Carter Page found out recently, to file a civil lawsuit for slander or defamation you need to show “standing” before the court will even consider the case. “Standing” requires that you show you were injured by the statement, that the statement was the cause of your injury and not something else, and that the injury is something that is recoverable by financial or other property compensation.
I doubt Nunes, as a public figure, can show that he was economically injured or lost his Congressional seat because of the statement so I don’t think this will get heard in court.
The interesting part of this CNN smear is that it is part of a much wider pattern to attack Rudy Giuliani, Joe DeGenova, Victoria Toensing, Sean Hannity, John Solomon, and even President Trump by implying that there was something wrong in contacting and interviewing the fired prosecutor in the Burisma case. Shokin under oath has testified that he was told by Poroshenko that Biden was demanding his firing and that he needed to resign “for the good of their country”. Lindsey Graham is trying to get a visa for Shokin to tell his story to the Senate Judiciary Committee but this is being blocked by the same Ambassador William Taylor that implicated Trump in his testimony to the House committee. Small world, isn’t it.
P
the legal standard required for suing reporting on public figures is very very difficult to meet. Proving malice etc.
But for nick sandman, the media is in the deepest trouble because he is not a public figure, even a minor...
Thanks jazusamo.
Which is proven by reckless disregard of the truth, which Nunes raised here. A totally fabricated story about something that happened in a place he never visited is reckless disregard of the truth.
Boy, I hope he wins.
L8r
#3. Disagree. If Nunes can show that CNN either knowingly lied about his supposed “trips” and “contacts”, or recklessly published accusation of such WITHOUT CONTACTING HIM FOR VERIFICATION/DENIAL, then he will win.
Lack of a normal “effort” to verify claims is actionable in a libel/defamation suit.
Hope Nunes is the new chairman of CNN and then fires everyone, puts out their names and addresses for all the world to see, and does not give any of them a job recommendation except for dogshit scooper in San Fran, LA and Seattle.
Yeah - just allow the bullies and other bad guys to walk all over you - and then wonder how they ended up enslaving you somewhere down the line....do you also think Neville Chamberlain was right?
I don't like running to "teacher" or the courts unless its a really good case. Slander, especially to the tune of $435 million, is a tough hurdle. It's especially tough if the suit is brought in a liberal jurisdiction like California (where Nunes is from) or DC or NY. Think of the jury composition.
Also, I don't think that the publicity of being hauled into court on something like this strikes fear into AT&T/CNN. So, I don't see how it works.
Now, if there was a provable conspiracy,then it should be a criminal case. That would be nice, I'd be behind it, but DOJ is afraid to touch it because of the power of the MSM to make it a political freedom of the press issue.
One can either push back or lie down and speak the words of the Gadsden Flag while keeping the fangs capped.....even if the bad guys don’t scare easy doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be made to perceive that they won’t be unopposed.
Even though some battles are lost, they still need to be fought.
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