Trump says Wall Street Journal, Murdoch want to settle defamation lawsuit

NEW YORK – US President Donald Trump said on July 29 The Wall Street Journal and its billionaire owner Rupert Murdoch want to settle Mr Trump’s defamation lawsuit against the newspaper.

On July 18,

Mr Trump sued the Journal and its owners,

including Mr Murdoch, over a story, which said Mr Trump’s name was on a birthday greeting for late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, that included a sexually suggestive drawing and a reference to shared secrets.

“I’ve been treated badly by The Wall Street Journal. I would have assumed that Rupert Murdoch controls it, but, you know, maybe does, maybe doesn’t,” Mr Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One.

“They are talking to us about doing something but we’ll see what happens. Maybe they would like us to drop that, so we’ll see... yeah, they’re having, they want to settle it,” he said.

He added: “When I get treated unfairly, I do things about it.”

Mr Trump’s lawsuit called the alleged birthday greeting “fake” and said the Journal published its article to harm the US President’s reputation.

In a court filing on July 28, Mr Trump asked a US court to order a swift deposition for Mr Murdoch.

A spokesperson for Dow Jones, the parent company of The Wall Street Journal, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A lawyer for Mr Murdoch and the Journal referred comments to Dow Jones. REUTERS