Trump suing Murdoch's WSJ over Epstein claim

US President Donald Trump is suing the Wall Street Journal and its owners including Rupert Murdoch over the newspaper's report that Trump in 2003 sent Jeffrey Epstein a birthday greeting that included a sexually suggestive drawing and a reference to secrets they shared.

The lawsuit filed on Friday in Miami federal court names Murdoch, Dow Jones, News Corp and its chief executive Robert Thomson, and two Wall Street Journal reporters as defendants, saying they efamed Trump and caused him to suffer "overwhelming" financial and reputational harm.

Trump, 79, is seeking at least $US10 billion ($NZ16.7 billion) in damages.

Epstein, the disgraced financier and sex offender, died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019. He was 66.

His case has generated conspiracy theories that became popular among Trump's base of supporters who believed the government was covering up Epstein's ties to the rich and powerful.

Trump has said he parted ways with Epstein before the financier's legal troubles became public in 2006.

The president has vehemently denied the Journal report, which Reuters has not verified, and warned Murdoch, the founder of News Corp, that he planned to sue. Dow Jones, the parent of the newspaper, is a division of News Corp.

"We have just filed a POWERHOUSE Lawsuit against everyone involved in publishing the false, malicious, defamatory, FAKE NEWS 'article' in the useless 'rag' that is, The Wall Street Journal," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

"I hope Rupert and his 'friends' are looking forward to the many hours of depositions and testimonies they will have to provide in this case," Trump added.

A spokesperson for Dow Jones said in a statement: "We have full confidence in the rigor and accuracy of our reporting, and will vigorously defend against any lawsuit."

The lawsuit called Trump's alleged birthday greeting "fake," and said the Journal published its article to harm Trump's reputation.

“Tellingly, the Article does not explain whether Defendants have obtained a copy of the letter, have seen it, have had it described to them, or any other circumstances that would otherwise lend credibility to the Article,” the lawsuit said.

To prevail on his defamation claims, Trump must show the defendants acted with "actual malice," meaning they knew the article was false or acted with reckless disregard for its truth.

A $US10 billion award would far exceed the largest defamation judgments and settlements in recent history.

These include a $US1.5 billion judgment against conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, and Fox News' settlement with Dominion Voting Systems for $US787.5 million.

"Ten billion dollars is a ridiculously high number," said Jesse Gessin, a lawyer with experience in defamation and First Amendment litigation. "It would be the largest defamation verdict in US history."

WHITE HOUSE ROILED

The Epstein affair has increasingly disquieted the White House, after the Justice Department this month concluded that there was no evidence to support long-held conspiracy theories about his clients and death.

Some of Trump's most loyal followers became furious after his administration reversed course on its promise to release files related to the Epstein investigation.

A Justice Department memo released on July 7 concluded that Epstein killed himself and said there was "no incriminating client list" or evidence that Epstein blackmailed prominent people.

With pressure to release the Epstein files building, Trump on Thursday said he directed Attorney General Pam Bondi to ask a court to release grand jury testimony about Epstein.

The United States government on Friday filed a motion in Manhattan federal court to unseal grand jury transcripts in the cases of Epstein and his former associate Ghislaine Maxwell.

The 63-year-old socialite was convicted in 2021 of five federal charges related to her role in Epstein's sexual abuse of underage girls.

Maxwell is appealing her conviction and 20-year prison sentence to the U.S. Supreme Court.

"Public officials, lawmakers, pundits, and ordinary citizens remain deeply interested and concerned about the Epstein matter," Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in the filing. "After all, Jeffrey Epstein is the most infamous paedophile in American history."

Blanche said prosecutors would work to redact all victim-identifying information before making anything public.

The release of the grand jury documents may fall short of what many of Trump's supporters have sought, including case files held by the administration, and a judge may reject the administration's request to make the transcripts public.

BAWDY LETTER

The Journal said the letter bearing Trump's name was part of a leather-bound birthday book for Epstein that included messages from other high-profile people.

It also said the letter contained several lines of typewritten text framed by the outline of a naked woman, which appeared to be hand-drawn with a heavy marker.

The newspaper said the letter concluded "Happy Birthday - and may every day be another wonderful secret," and featured the signature "Donald."

Allegations that Epstein had been sexually abusing girls became public in 2006 - after the birthday book was allegedly produced - and he was arrested that year before accepting a plea deal.

Epstein died just over a month after he was arrested for a second time and charged with sex-trafficking conspiracy.

Trump was photographed with Epstein multiple times in social situations in the 1990s and early 2000s, and had been a neighbour of Epstein's in Florida.

He was quoted in 2002 in New York magazine as saying, "I've known Jeff for 15 years. Terrific guy. He's a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side."

In 2019, Trump told reporters that he and Epstein had a "falling out" before the financier was first arrested.

Trump said he "knew him like everybody in Palm Beach knew him" but that "I had a falling out with him. I haven't spoken to him in 15 years. I was not a fan of his, that I can tell you."

WHAT TRANSCRIPTS COULD SHOW

The release of the grand jury documents may fall short of what many of Trump's supporters have sought, including case files held by the administration.

Grand juries review evidence from prosecutors to determine whether people should be indicted for crimes. This includes hearsay, improperly obtained information and other evidence that prosecutors would not be allowed to present at trial.

Transcripts of grand jury proceedings are generally kept secret under federal criminal procedure rules, with limited exceptions.

A judge may allow disclosure of grand jury matters in connection with judicial proceedings, or at the request of defendants who believe it could lead to the dismissal of their indictments.

It is likely that some material released from grand jury proceedings would be redacted, or blacked out, because of privacy or security concerns.

TRUMP DRAWINGS 

Trump has publicly denied that he draws, but numerous examples of his sketches have been sold at auction over the years, many dating from his time as a New York real estate developer, the New York Times reported on Friday.

Drawings attributed to Trump, typically simple cityscapes or landmarks rendered in black marker and signed with his name, were donated to various charities in the early 2000s and have fetched thousands of dollars in later sales, the paper added.

"I don't draw pictures," Trump wrote on Truth Social this week, disputing the Wall Street Journal report about the 2003 birthday greeting.

In his 2008 book Trump Never Give Up: How I Turned My Biggest Challenges Into Success, however, Trump acknowledged his artistic contributions.

"It takes me a few minutes to draw something, in my case, it's usually a building or a cityscape of skyscrapers, and then sign my name, but it raises thousands of dollars to help the hungry in New York," he wrote.

On Friday, White House spokesman Steven Cheung dismissed the report and any suggestion that Trump's drawings resembled the one described by the Journal.

"As the president has said, the Wall Street Journal printed fake news and he doesn't draw things like the outlet described," Cheung said in a statement.

"The New York Times is engaged in false and defamatory claims, and to make this false equivalation proves they are the enemy of the people."