- Lindsey Halligan, a lawyer for Donald Trump, said she planned to sue CNN for defamation.
- She said the network defamed the former president by calling his claims of election fraud “The Big Lie.”
- The phrase “is actually associated with Adolf Hitler,” Halligan said on Steve Bannon’s War Room podcast.
In an interview on Steve Bannon’s War Room podcast, a lawyer for Donald Trump said she planned to sue CNN for defamation over the network’s reporting on the former president’s allegations of election fraud.
“CNN called Trump a liar and referred to his questions about voter fraud as the Big Lie, which is actually related to Adolf Hitler,” said Lindsey Halligan, a Florida attorney.
The German expression “big lie” was coined by Hitler in his book “Mein Kampf” to describe a lie so outrageous that no one would believe that someone “could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously”.
On Wednesday, Trump released a 282-page statement detailing his intention to sue CNN for covering its baseless claims of voter fraud, which the network called “The Big Lie.” In his statement, he defines the word “lie” as something known or believed by the speaker to be untrue.
“In this case, President Trump’s comments are not lies: he subjectively believes that the results of the 2020 presidential election turned into fraudulent voting activity in several key states,” the former president’s letter said.
Some legal scholars have argued Trump’s position that he believed voter fraud could be key to his defense, as it could make it harder to prove criminal intent. However, Trump’s “willful blindness” to the facts of the case may, in fact, create intent and serve as evidence.
Allegations of voter fraud perpetuated by the former president have been repeatedly dismissed by the media, as well as by conservative politicians, Trump administration lawyers and Trump’s own allies.
“So it’s very simple: If you’re going to call someone a liar, back it up with well-researched, well-founded facts. Otherwise, don’t report it, don’t twist the truth,” Halligan said during an interview on the War Room podcast. . “CNN responded to our letter today advising us that they would not retract the statements, so they will be receiving a lawsuit very soon, I believe.”
According to the most recent information available through the Florida Bar Association, Halligan was previously employed by the law firm Cole, Scott & Kissane specializing in property insurance claims, but her profile has since been removed from their website. internet. It is unclear where she is currently practicing law.
Halligan did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.
