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JoeOtterbein

(7,697 posts)
Wed Apr 29, 2020, 05:36 PM Apr 2020

Trump Encouraged Sean Hannity to Go After the New York Times

Daily Beast

Trump thought it was a good idea for Hannity to explore legal action against the news outlet for its critical coverage of how Fox News handled the coronavirus crisis.

Asawin Suebsaeng
Maxwell Tani
Lachlan Cartwright
Updated Apr. 29, 2020 5:25PM ET / Published Apr. 29, 2020 5:09PM ET

Over the past month, as Fox News personality Sean Hannity seethed over his—and his network’s—treatment in The New York Times, one of the host’s closest friends quietly encouraged him to exact some revenge on the newspaper for reporting that Hannity had downplayed the threat of the coronavirus.

This particular friend was none other than President Donald Trump, who at the time was busy overseeing the federal response to the pandemic and resulting U.S. economic implosion, as his reelection campaign was also filing lawsuits against various local and national media outlets.

According to two people familiar with the matter, Trump had privately gossiped with Hannity—a prominent informal adviser to this president and one of Trump’s preferred late-night phone buddies—about the Fox host’s desire to make an example of the Times. Though President Trump thought it was a good idea for Hannity to explore legal action against the news outlet, one of the two sources stressed that it “wasn’t the president’s idea” for Hannity and his attorney to shoot off a threatening letter to the Times. Trump did not order or direct Hannity to do so, this source said.

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Trump Encouraged Sean Hannity to Go After the New York Times (Original Post) JoeOtterbein Apr 2020 OP
This is like an episode of Beavis and Butthead C_U_L8R Apr 2020 #1
.....and Nixon Stallion Apr 2020 #6
These guys are scumbags. Initech Apr 2020 #2
Like a good lap dog Hannity obeyed randr Apr 2020 #3
I remember when the GOP complained about trial lawyers and frivolous lawsuits Walleye Apr 2020 #4
And Sean Listened To THe Guy Who Always Has To Settle LawSuits & Doesn't Win Any? Me. Apr 2020 #5
I hear the Presidents own safeinOhio Apr 2020 #7
Rudi? Me. Apr 2020 #9
Trumps attorney in October 2016 tried that to. irisblue Apr 2020 #8
May those two just keep taking each other's advice!1 UTUSN Apr 2020 #10

C_U_L8R

(44,889 posts)
1. This is like an episode of Beavis and Butthead
Wed Apr 29, 2020, 05:39 PM
Apr 2020

Heh heh. I dare ya to do it. Heh. Go ahead. Heh heh heh. Do it. C'mon. Heh.

Me.

(35,454 posts)
5. And Sean Listened To THe Guy Who Always Has To Settle LawSuits & Doesn't Win Any?
Wed Apr 29, 2020, 05:43 PM
Apr 2020

I love the Times' lawyer's reply of No!

irisblue

(32,828 posts)
8. Trumps attorney in October 2016 tried that to.
Wed Apr 29, 2020, 09:18 PM
Apr 2020

NYT said F-off.
More politely, in legalese
Source-https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/14/us/politics/donald-trump-lawsuit-threat.html

snip--The Times stood by the article on Thursday. ”We stand by the story, which falls clearly into the realm of public service journalism,” Eileen Murphy, a spokeswoman for The Times, said in a statement.

David McCraw, vice president and assistant general counsel of The New York Times, followed up in a letter to Mr. Kasowitz and said that the article would not be retracted.

“The women quoted in our story spoke out on an issue of national importance - indeed, an issue that Mr. Trump himself discussed with the whole nation watching during Sunday night’s presidential debate,” Mr. McCraw wrote. “It would have been a disservice not just to our readers but to democracy itself to silence their voices.”

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