Donald Trump took legal action against Hillary Clinton and others on Thursday over the 2016 US Presidential election. They were sued for allegedly conspiring to "weave a false narrative" during the election in that year that the former President and his campaign were colluding with Russia.
Clinton, who was Trump's Democratic rival in the 2016 election, and other defendants deceived law enforcement authorities, according to the suit, which was filed in US District Court for the Southern District of Florida, reported CNBC. The suit also said that they falsified evidence and exploited access to "highly-sensitive data sources" in a way that "even the events of Watergate pale in comparison."
In damages, the lawsuit is seeking more than $72 million. It is an amount that is triple the $24 million in legal fees and other damages that the former President allegedly has accrued. The lawsuit said that while the scheme was designed to "rig" the 2016 election, "When their gambit failed, and Donald J. Trump was elected, the Defendants' efforts continued unabated, merely shifting their focus to undermining his presidential administration."
Apart from Clinton and the Democratic National Committee (DNC), the defendants include former DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Others are law firm Perkins Coie, Clinton campaign chief John Podesta, research firm Fusion GPS, former FBI officials Andrew McCabe, Peter Strzok and Lisa Page, and Christopher Steele, an ex-British intelligence agent.
Trump's lawyer, Alina Habba, said in a statement that the lawsuit outlines the Defendants' "nefarious plot to vilify" her client by "spreading lies to weave a false narrative that he was colluding with Russia." The lawyer added that for years, Clinton and her cohorts tried to "shield themselves from culpability by directing others to do their dirty work for them."
On Friday, Clinton's spokesman called the suit "nonsense."
Meanwhile, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas' wife, Virginia, urged top Trump White House figures to continue insisting that the then-president won the 2020 election, reported Independent. It was revealed in messages sent by her to then-chief of staff Mark Meadows that have been released to the Jan. 6 committee. The texts put pressure on her husband because of the implications that her closeness to Trump's aides could have for Thomas' judicial impartiality.
According to some people, Thomas didn't recuse himself from cases involving the events surrounding the Capitol riot or false claims about the 2020 US election. Grand Old Party House leader Kevin McCarthy declined to agree that Thomas should recuse himself from such cases. He said that the justice could and should decide for himself what to do.
In another new development, as part of a lawsuit alleging the Trumps collaborated with a fraudulent marketing company, the former President and his two adult sons have agreed to sit for depositions, reported CNN. According to a letter, Trump agreed to be deposed on June 16, Donald Trump Jr. on May 10 and Eric Trump will sit for questioning on May 12. A date for Trump's daughter Ivanka's deposition had not been proposed.
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