Trump Threatens Iran With 'Major Military Punishment' as Red Sea Attacks Push Oil Above $100 
ASEAN Forum Puts Middle East Conflict, South China Sea Tensions in Spotlight 
Appeals Court Rejects Trump Bid to Reinstate $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee 
Russian Bomb Strikes Hit Zaporizhzhia, Sloviansk, Injuring Dozens in Eastern Ukraine 
Trump Orders Section 301 Probe Into EU Tech Fines, Signals New Tariffs 
Trump Administration Monitors OpenAI Incident as Lawmakers Push AI Kill Switch Bill 
US-Mexico USMCA Talks Advance as Auto Rules Remain Major Sticking Point 
Trump Signals More Iran Strikes While Leaving Door Open to Nuclear Deal 
UN Reappoints Volker Turk as Human Rights Chief Despite U.S., Russia, Israel Opposition 
Maduro U.S. Drug Trafficking Trial Set for June 2027 as Immunity Defense Looms 
Trump to Deliver ‘Unifying Yet Vicious’ Speech at White House Correspondents’ Dinner Amid Heightened Security 
EEOC Drops Penn Subpoena in Antisemitism Probe, Investigation Continues 
Russia Says It Hit Ukrainian Ports, Cargo Ships in Odesa and Chornomorsk 
US Military Completes 13th Straight Night of Iran Strikes as Trump Warns of Further Action 
Trump Says No Decision on Major Iran Strikes as U.S.-Tehran Talks Intensify 
Trump Orders Warning Signs Outside Smithsonian Museum Over ‘Anti-American’ Exhibits 
Global Leaders Push Back as Trump Imposes New Forced Labor Tariffs 
Among the heap of lawsuits that former President Donald Trump is facing is the rape defamation case by author E. Jean Carroll. In a new court filing last week, Carroll’s attorneys have criticized the controversial move by the Justice Department attorneys to represent him.
In a court brief that was filed last week, Carroll’s attorney Roberta Kaplan criticized the Justice Department for continuing to represent Trump. This follows the challenge of the court ruling by federal attorneys at the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Kaplan accused the DOJ of trying to set a new rule that would still give federal officials some immunity who would engage in defamation, whether as a response to critics or while speaking to the press.
“That rule is both wrong and dangerous, and this Court should reject Appellants’ effort to avoid answering for Trump’s conduct,” wrote Kaplan. Kaplan argued that the former president’s defamatory comments towards Carroll were personal and not presidential and that there was no legal basis for the comments to be part of his presidential duties.
Carroll herself also criticized the DOJ’s argument that Trump’s attacks towards her were part of his duties as president at the time. Carroll added that she hopes that Joe Biden’s Justice Department would also find the attacks “offensive.”
“This is offensive to me. This is offensive to sexual assault survivors everywhere,” said Carroll. “I hope that it is offensive to the Justice Department under Biden...I am confident that the Second Circuit will make it clear that no president, including Donald Trump, can get away scot-free while maliciously defaming a woman he sexually assaulted.”
In other news, the former president was previously trolled by actor Sacha Baron Cohen’s character Borat, including Trump’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani. In a new trailer for his multipart special titled “Borat Supplemental Reportings Retrieved from Floor of Stable Containing Editing Machine” that features previously unseen footage from “Borat Subsequent Movie Film,” the character takes another swipe at the former president.
In the trailer, Borat mocks Trump’s baseless claim that the 2020 election was stolen or rigged from him. Baron Cohen previously shared that the former president inspired him to make the movie.
