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Fox News Settles for $787.5 Million in defamation suit, acknowledges false claims
- New York Times: Fox Will Pay $787.5 Million to Settle Defamation Suit: Fox News abruptly agreed on Tuesday to pay $787.5 million to resolve a defamation suit filed by Dominion Voting Systems over the network’s promotion of misinformation about the 2020 election, averting a lengthy and embarrassing trial just as a packed courtroom was seated in anticipation of hearing opening statements. The settlement, one of the largest ever in a defamation case, was the latest extraordinary twist in a case that has been full of remarkable disclosures that exposed the inner workings of the most powerful voice in conservative news. In addition to the huge financial price, Dominion exacted a difficult admission from Fox News, which acknowledged in a statement that “certain claims” it made about Dominion were false.
- Washington Post: 4 takeaways from the Dominion v. Fox settlement: The long-anticipated defamation trial in Dominion Voting Systems’ lawsuit against Fox News ended before it truly began Tuesday, with a judge announcing the two sides had agreed to a settlement. Dominion says Fox has agreed to pay $787.5 million — nearly half of the $1.6 billion Dominion sought. At issue in the case were false claims that Fox aired about Dominion related to former president Donald Trump’s false accusations about the 2020 election being stolen. Dominion had to prove not only that the claims weren’t true — which it did — but that Fox’s actions met the legal standard of “actual malice,” meaning that it knew better or that it showed a reckless disregard for the truth.
- CNN: Why Fox News had to settle the Dominion suit: Lawyers for Dominion announced that Fox News (and parent company Fox Corporation) had agreed to settle the case for $787.5 million — less than half of Dominion’s claim for $1.6 billion in damages but nevertheless a historic rebuke for the influential conservative media outlet. The massive payout reflects the fact that Dominion had put together a strong case that Fox had acted with “actual malice,” a high bar under defamation law that has historically been difficult for plaintiffs suing media outlets to satisfy. Dominion’s considerable success in this case indicates that Fox acutely understood that there was a high risk that the jury would side with Dominion on this crucial legal point. The settlement also spares the network from weeks of embarrassing testimony that would have put the widespread internal dysfunction at Fox News on full public display.
- Salon: Fox News caves, and the real winner isn’t Dominion — it’s democracy and the rule of law: Fox News has caved. On Tuesday afternoon, its parent corporation settled the defamation lawsuit that Dominion Voting Systems had brought against the right-wing cable network for a reported sum of $787.5 million. That dollar amount, although less than half the $1.6 billion Dominion originally demanded, will clearly capture the headlines. But as a former federal prosecutor concerned above all else with the strength of the rule of law and our constitutional order, three points stand out.
“Fake Trump Electors” implicate each other as accountability for election lies looms in Georgia
- CNN: Fulton County DA says fake Trump electors are incriminating one another and wants lawyer disqualified: The Fulton County District Attorney’s office said some fake electors for Donald Trump have implicated each other in potential criminal activity and is seeking to disqualify their lawyer, according to a new court filing.The district attorney’s office is requesting that attorney Kimberly Bourroughs Debrow be disqualified from representing a group of 10 Republicans who served as electors for the former president in Georgia – a state Trump lost to President Joe Biden. The DA’s office also accused the lawyer of failing to present an immunity deal to her clients last year, according to the filing.The new filing offers the latest indication that immunity offers could still be in the works months after Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis suggested charging decisions were “imminent.”
- Georgia Public Broadcasting: 2020 election lies about Georgia could soon finally face legal reckoning: Nearly two and a half years after former President Donald Trump and his allies tried to overturn his presidential defeat in Georgia, courtrooms around the country are poised to bring accountability and, potentially, some closure to those efforts. All eyes are on Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who could soon seek indictments against a sweeping range of individuals in the widespread efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, ranging from: Georgia GOP Chairman David Shafer and others who served as fake electors; to Trump advisors like Giuliani and Powell; and to the former president himself.
- Politico: Georgia prosecutor probing Trump reveals new details of active investigation: The Atlanta-area prosecutor investigating efforts by former President Donald Trump and his allies to overturn the 2020 election indicated Tuesday that she has conducted fresh interviews with some of the Republican activists who falsely claimed to be Georgia’s legitimate presidential electors. In a court filing Tuesday, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis noted that her office conducted those interviews on April 12 and April 14, suggesting an active and ongoing investigation. Willis disclosed in the filing that more than one of the false electors had described potential violations of Georgia state law by another one.
In The States
TEXAS: Election official quits after threats from Trump supporters
- New York Times: Another Texas Election Official Quits After Threats From Trump Supporters: Heider Garcia, the head of elections in Tarrant County, Texas, announced this week that he would resign after facing death threats, joining other beleaguered election officials across the nation who have quit under similar circumstances. Mr. Garcia oversees elections in a county where, in 2020, Donald J. Trump became only the second Republican presidential candidate to lose in more than 50 years. Right-wing skepticism of the election results fueled threats against him, even though the county received acclaim from state auditors for its handling of the 2020 voting. With Mr. Trump persistently repeating the lie that he won the 2020 election, many of his supporters and those in right-wing media have latched on to conspiracy theories and joined him in spreading disinformation about election security. Those tasked with running elections, even in deeply Republican areas that did vote for Mr. Trump in 2020, have borne the brunt of vitriol and threats from people persuaded by baseless claims of fraud.
- Texas Tribune: Bills to create new Texas courts would likely reverse Democratic gains, restore GOP dominance: Bills being debated in the Texas Legislature would create two new statewide courts, which supporters say would be more efficient and lead to fairer decisions but opponents deride as unnecessary, politically motivated and potentially unconstitutional. Senate Bill 1045 would create a 15th state appeals court with jurisdiction specifically in cases brought by or against the state of Texas; agencies, departments or boards of the executive branch; or state universities, including any of these entities’ officers. It would have five justices, elected statewide.Senate Bill 27, with its companion, House Bill 19, would create a new state district court to hear business cases involving transactions larger than $10 million. It would have seven judges appointed by the governor every two years, and appeals would be heard by the new appeals court.
OHIO: State Republicans nearing resolution to make it harder to amend constitution; move to protect voter ID laws
- Toledo Blade: Votes near on higher threshold for constitutional amendments: Committees in the Ohio House and Senate could vote as soon as Wednesday to ask voters in the heat of the summer to change the state’s constitution to make it tougher to pass any other proposed constitutional changes that follow. If it clears both chambers and appears on the ballot of an Aug. 8 special election, future proposals would require the approval of at least 60 percent of the vote to take effect, replacing the current standard of a simple majority. “(Senate Joint Resolution 2) is a direct attack on democracy and freedom as we know it here in Ohio,” Jen Miller, executive director of the League of Women Voters of Ohio, told a Senate committee. “It is undemocratic and unfair because it would shred our constitution and abandon our proud tradition of direct democracy. “It is unnecessary because the process is already challenging but not overused,” she said. “And lastly…it is unpopular.”
- Dayton Daily News: Ohio voting law adds ‘noncitizen’ label to state IDs, driver’s licenses: Ohio’s new voting law that requires photo ID for in-person voting also added a label on driver’s licenses and ID cards indicating a person’s citizenship status. Voter rights advocates call this provision unneeded and say it could increase cases of violence against noncitizens in Ohio. “We worry this designation could needlessly subject legal immigrants who are just trying to live their lives to intimidation, harassment and even violence,” said Collin Marozzi, deputy policy director at the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio. The new Ohio voting law (HB 458) signed in January by the governor took effect earlier this month. It requires voters to prove their identity with photo identification when casting a ballot in-person, whether on Election Day or while voting early. Acceptable photo ID includes unexpired driver’s licenses, state ID cards, military ID and U.S. passports.
ARIZONA: Judge rejects effort to remove Arizona county Elections Director
- KAWC: Arizona judge tosses Cochise County election lawsuit: A judge on Tuesday rejected a request from Arizona attorney General Kris Mayes to block the Cochise County board of supervisors from handing over its election administration to the elected county recorder. Santa Cruz County Superior Court Judge Thomas Fink turned aside Mayes’ request for an injunction blocking the February agreement from being implemented. Mayes had argued in her lawsuit that the board illegally delegated its oversight of elections to Recorder David Stevens.But Fink said the agreement the board signed gives it sufficient oversight to meet the law’s requirements, including regular reports from Stevens to the board and its ability to overturn any decisions it finds objectionable. “If there is a problem with the recorder’s performance of his election duties, these provisions are safeguards that are in the court’s opinion sufficient to ensure that the board means authority over the conduct of elections in Cochise County,” Fink said.
What Experts Are Saying
Laurence Tribe, professor emeritus at Harvard University: “Dominion won a spectacular victory not from what it forced FOX to admit, which was nearly nothing, but from (1) how it collected ~6x its provable damages and from (2) all the amazing evidence of deliberate lies it forced into the open — evidence that FOX was desperate to conceal” Tweet
Barbara McQuade, former US attorney: “Not sure what to make of Dominion settlement. While Fox paid a huge penalty for airing dangerous lies, it seems like they bought their way out of trouble without admitting wrongdoing. Will $787.5M deter more lies or is it simply the cost of doing business? Fox’s tepid statement does not feel like accountability for the damage it inflicted on American democracy. It does not even promise to change the way it covers the news.” Tweets
Joyce Vance, former US attorney (MSNBC video), re: Fox-Dominion settlement: “Lordy, there were tapes … This case really was ultimately about Donald Trump and about the fact that he was in bed with a network that Americans relied upon for news, and that what they were told instead of news was lies.” The Recount Tweet
Norm Eisen, legal analyst (CNN video): “Not only did Fox have to pay up a huge $787.5 mil number[.] They also had to concede their statements about 2020 were adjudged to be false[.] This settlement is a watershed moment” Tweet
Harry Litman, former US attorney: “The money of course serves no public purpose. An apology would have been meaningful as part of national accounting for the Big Lie. That was a very big opportunity here, which now goes away. Not Dominion’s fault–it’s the adversary system for you–, but a shame.” Tweet
Barbara F. Walter, Rohr Professor of International Affairs at the School of Global Policy & Strategy at the University of California, San Diego: “[W]e actually know who tends to start civil wars. And it’s not the people who most of us think it’s not the poorest or the weakest groups. It’s actually the groups that had once been politically dominant and are in decline. Now, that’s sort of background to answering your question, which is this demographic transition that the United States is facing, the group that’s in that had been politically dominant in this country and is in decline are white, predominantly male, predominantly Christians, the United States from our inception has been dominated by that demographic, and they have been losing status, their status was extremely high. It was privileged compared to everybody else, but they perceive it as if they are in fact in decline. So if you think back to January 6, and you if you remember videos from that day, the people who stormed the US Capitol, they walked down the mall, they were not trying to hide, they didn’t have masks on they were taking videotapes. They were videotaping themselves with their phones, they believed they were patriots, that they were doing the right thing and that it was their duty, actually, to take back their country. That is the kind of the perfect visual of the types of groups who feel justified in turning to violence.” WPSU
Headlines
The MAGA Movement And The Ongoing Threat To Elections
The Hill: Trump reasserts dominance over GOP with post-indictment offensive
Independent: Trump says if elected he will force federal workers to pass a political test and fire them if they fail
New York Times: What’s Next for Dominion After Its $787.5 Million Settlement With Fox News?
Trump Investigations
New York Times: Trump Says He May Skip Rape Case to Spare New Yorkers Traffic Hassles
Mother Jones: Donald Trump’s Lawyers Just Made a Big Mistake
NBC: Lawyers for House GOP and Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg to face off in court over Trump probe
AP: More say Trump broke law in Ga. case than NY’s: AP-NORC poll
New York Times: Boris Epshteyn, Trump Legal Adviser, Is to Be Interviewed by Special Counsel
AP: Trump’s former financial chief Weisselberg gets out of jail
January 6 And The 2020 Election
Washington Post: Proud Boy who broke Capitol window: ‘I got caught up in all the craziness’
NBC: Rioter who organized ‘fighters’ on Jan. 6 pleads guilty, agrees to cooperate with DOJ
NBC 4 Washington: Tennessee Man and His Mother, Who Took Zip Ties Into Senate, Convicted in Capitol Riot
Opinion
New York Times: Why Fox Had to Settle
The Hill: SCOTUS needs a moral compass
Washington Post: Aftershocks from Tennessee Republicans’ fiasco may resonate for years
The Hill: The United States Supreme Court is on public trial
New York Times: How Fox Helped Break the American Right
Washington Post: Fear for our democracy runs both ways, but only half of that story gets told
New York Times: Clarence Thomas Can Do No Wrong
In the States
Richmond Times-Dispatch: Commentary: Virginia must resist efforts to roll back voting rights
Atlanta Journal-Constitution: No consequences so far after Trump supporters copied Georgia election data
Detroit News: Michigan had best youth voter turnout in 2022 midterm election
Journal Record: Oklahoma GOP eyes tighter voting rules
