Well, it looks like a defamation lawsuit against Donald Trump is about to collapse. It’s been a long time coming. Jean Carroll is suing the former president for defamation. It was brought while Trump was still president. Trump called her a liar, among other things, when she alleged that he raped her while shopping in New York City. Trump’s denial was an official act relating to “matters relating to his fitness for office as part of an official White House response to press inquiries,” and therefore cannot be sued in the process. The New York Times even admitted that most government employees are protected from most defamation lawsuits. What made this action different is that the Department of Justice under the Trump administration intervened, which drew some controversy. Joe Biden attacked Trump for this matter, saying the then-president was treating the Justice Department as his own law firm. Well, he pretty much reversed course. Biden’s DOJ is now going to defend Trump. They said while Trump’s words were “crude”, he was still in the right legally (via NYT):
During the presidential campaign, Joseph R. Biden Jr., then the Democratic candidate, slammed his opponent, Donald J. Trump, for a highly unusual legal move: bringing in the Justice Department to represent him in a defamation lawsuit stemming from a decades-old rape allegation.--
More...
