Fbi Boss Sues The Atlantic Over Drinking Story
FBI director Kash Patel sued The Atlantic magazine yesterday for $250 million, alleging defamation in a recent article claiming that he drinks excessively and that his “erratic” behavior has officials worried about national security.
Journalist Sarah Fitzpatrick, who authored the article based on over two dozen anonymous sources, is named in the lawsuit—which The Atlantic called “meritless” and vowed to fight.
Damaging light
The lawsuit seeks damages for allegations in Fitzpatrick’s article that Patel’s lawyers assert were fabricated to destroy his reputation. The lawsuit claims that The Atlantic’s story falsely portrays Patel as “a habitual drunk, unable to perform the duties of his office” who is “unreachable in emergencies” and once required a “SWAT-style breach” of his office, and that it claims he used his position to target president Trump’s personal enemies.
Patel vehemently denies the assertions, saying that the FBI notified the magazine they were “100% false” when it reached out to him less than two hours before publication. But establishing defamation is especially difficult for public figures, who must prove that a publication knowingly made false claims or recklessly disregarded the truth.
It’s not a first…as the Trump administration has sued several media outlets. A judge recently dismissed Trump’s $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the publisher of the Wall Street Journal over an article about his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.—SK
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