At this point, we have to wonder whether Trump has a Nixon-esque list of his perceived enemies, perhaps etched on his underwear, that no one will ever find, even though he lists his grievances against his foes daily on Truth Social. The message from Trump's Justice Department is pretty simple: sue the president, win $88 million in court against Trump, and we'll see you in court. Twice. E. Jean Carroll beat Trump twice in court.
The Trump Justice Department is now criminally investigating the 82-year-old former magazine columnist over who paid her lawyers in the defamation case she won against him. Because apparently the real crime wasn't the sexual abuse finding or the multi-million dollar judgments — it was potentially not being fully transparent about billionaire Reid Hoffman helping foot the bill. CNN is already calling it "retribution," and it does have that distinct "now it's our turn" energy. The guy who spent years calling the system rigged is back in power, and the feds are suddenly very interested in the funding details of the woman who successfully sued him. Peak 2026 vibes.
The DOJ is looking into whether Carroll lied under oath during her two civil cases against Trump — one over the alleged sexual assault at a New York department store in the mid-1990s, and another over his repeated public denials. The case centers on a 2022 deposition in which Carroll claimed her lawsuit received no outside financial backing, a statement contradicted when it emerged that LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman had quietly covered some of her legal costs.
Via CNN:
The probe is the latest move in the department’s ceaseless, and somewhat strained, efforts to meet Trump’s demands to target his long-standing personal foes.
Under acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, the department has pushed to speed up Trump’s campaign of retribution. But the cases he’s brought since taking the reins of the department in April have been heavily criticized and are likely to face challenges in court over allegations of politicization.
But Blanche has been recused from this matter because he worked as one of Trump’s personal attorneys on the Carroll appeals, according to a source familiar with the matter. Blanche has not attended meetings or been involved in discussions about the investigations, and the investigation is being overseen by other officials in the deputy attorney general’s office.
Oh, boy, this beats any telenovela I've ever seen — except in those, at least the villain's revenge is fictional. Here, it's a sitting president's Justice Department, mobilized because his feelings got hurt after being held accountable for his own actions.
