Trump has intensified his long-established hostility toward the media since his return to the White House, and the suit against the Journal is one of numerous attacks against news organisations he accuses of bias against him.
Trump’s attacks on media outlets have seen him restrict access, badmouth journalists critical of his administration, and bring lawsuits demanding huge amounts of compensation.
According to the Journal, Trump wrote a “bawdy” birthday letter to Epstein in 2003 to mark his 50th birthday, part of an album of messages from rich and well-known figures.
Trump’s alleged missive included a hand-drawn illustration of a naked woman and referred to their shared “secret.”
Trump has said he broke off his friendship with Epstein prior to the wealthy financier’s 2008 guilty plea in Florida to solicitation of prostitution with a minor.
Epstein was found dead in a New York prison cell in 2019 as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. His death was ruled a suicide but like much else around Epstein is the subject of lurid conspiracy theories.
The Epstein case has repeatedly overshadowed Trump’s second presidency and led to the downfall of a number of powerful figures around the world who were associated with Epstein.
The US Justice Department has over the past year released huge tranches of files related to Epstein. Trump, 79, figures prominently in the files but has not been formally accused of wrongdoing.
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