President-elect Donald Trump took questions from the press on Monday, promising a bevy of new lawsuits against media organizations. The suits come in the wake of a settlement with ABC News, which paid out $15 million and issued an apology.
Trump named several targets, including pollster Ann Selzer, who conducted a survey for The Des Moines Register that showed him trailing in Iowa. Trump claims the poll was “fraudulent” and “electoral interference,” and suggested he would file a major lawsuit.
Trump also reiterated his criticism of CBS’s pre-election interview with Vice President Kamala Harris, which he claims was “grossly incompetent” and “fraudulent.” He also criticized the network’s editing of the interview.
Additionally, Trump promised to pursue lawsuits against Bob Woodward, who recorded and then sold tapes of his conversations with Trump, and the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists who reported on the “Russia, Russia, Russia” hoax, which he claims was a “hoax” and “electoral interference.” Trump demands that the reporters return their Pulitzer Prizes and pay damages.
Trump condemned the press, calling it “very corrupt, almost as corrupt as our elections are.” He claimed that he has to take on these lawsuits himself because others, such as the Justice Department, should be doing so. He also acknowledged that taking legal action against the press may be costly, but he believes it is necessary to “straighten out the press” and hold them accountable for what he perceives as their wrongdoing.
