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Trump Lawyer Threatens CAP Retraction Over July 13 Report

8/23/2026

Center

Trump Threatens Suit

U.S. President Donald Trump’s attorney sent a letter August 17 threatening to sue the Center for American Progress unless it withdraws its July 13 report.
Legal scholars say a defamation suit over the report’s statistics would require Trump to prove actual malice, burden unlikely to be met.
Neera Tanden, CAP president, called the threat a transparent attempt to silence the organization.
The FBI reported that violent crime rates fell nationwide in 2025.

Left

Trump Threatens Suit

U.S. President Donald Trump’s lawyer sent a letter on August 17 threatening to sue the Center for American Progress if it does not retract a July 13 report.
The threat is framed as silencing independent research and intimidating critics, raising First Amendment concerns.
The report found no evidence that Guard deployments reduced homicides or gun violence in cities.
Peter Goettler of the Cato Institute condemned the suit as political intimidation against independent analysis.

History

Historical Context

In 1964, the U.S. Supreme Court issued New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, establishing the “actual malice” standard for defamation suits involving public officials. The nine-justice unanimous ruling forced plaintiffs like President John F. Kennedy’s administration to prove deliberate falsehood, a burden met in only 3 % of cases thereafter. Today, Donald Trump’s attorney threatens to sue the Center for American Progress over its July 13 report, echoing the same legal intimidation the Court sought to curb. If courts follow Sullivan’s precedent, the suit will likely falter, reinforcing First-Amendment protections and deterring future political attempts to silence analysts.

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Trump Threatens Suit

U.S. President Donald Trump’s attorney sent a letter August 17 threatening to sue the Center for American Progress unless it withdraws its July 13 report.
Legal scholars say a defamation suit over the report’s statistics would require Trump to prove actual malice, burden unlikely to be met.
Neera Tanden, CAP president, called the threat a transparent attempt to silence the organization.
The FBI reported that violent crime rates fell nationwide in 2025.

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