A pebble in his shoe?
Former US President Donald Trump filed a complaint on Monday against the CNN channel, accusing it of defaming him because it fears that he will run for president again in 2024. The Republican believes that the channel “ sought to use his immense influence” to “defame him to his viewers and readers for the purpose of defeating him politically,” according to the text of the lawsuit filed in Florida.
"CNN's campaign of deterrence, in the form of defamation and slander against the plaintiff, has only escalated in recent months as CNN fears the plaintiff will run for president in 2024," according to the same source.
Donald Trump accuses the channel of wanting to "tip the political balance to the left" by trying to "dirty" it with "a series of ever more defamatory, false and scandalous qualifiers such as
racist
,
lackey of the Russians
,
insurrectionist
and ultimately
Hitler
".
Read alsoUnited States: what if Donald Trump returned for the 2024 presidential election?
The businessman particularly criticizes CNN for using the expression “the Big Lie” to talk about his allegations that the 2020 presidential election was “stolen” from him by Joe Biden.
"The
Big Lie
is a direct reference to a tactic employed by Adolf Hitler and appearing in Mein Kampf," according to the complaint.
“The
Big Lie
was used by Hitler to incite hatred of Jews” and should “not be taken lightly.”
Other media soon targeted
Its repeated use on the channel about Donald Trump - more than 7,700 times since January 2021, the complaint alleges - is "a deliberate attempt by CNN to convey to its audience an association between the complainant and one of the most repugnant personalities in modern history".
Donald Trump, 76, is therefore claiming $475 million in damages.
VIDEO.
Capitol Attack: Trump Must Be Held Accountable, Inquiry Says
In a press release, the ex-president said Monday evening that he was going to file a complaint against "a large number" of other media in the weeks and months to come, also for defamation.
He also said he could take action against the House committee investigating the assault on the Capitol by his supporters on Jan. 6, 2021.
Throughout his tenure, the former Republican president had an abysmal relationship with mainstream media like CNN and the New York Times, which he dubbed "fake news" media.
He regularly raged against them on Twitter, from where he has since been banned.