Author Michael Wolff — known for his sensational and often controversial takes on former President Donald Trump — is now suing former First Lady Melania Trump after she warned of legal action over his remarks linking her to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Wolff, who has a long history of making provocative claims about the Trump family, accused the Trumps of “threatening those who speak against them.”
The dispute stems from a since-retracted story published by The Daily Beast in July, based on an interview with Wolff. The outlet later admitted the piece “did not meet editorial standards” and issued an apology after Melania Trump’s legal team challenged “the headline and framing.”
Despite the outlet’s own acknowledgment of its failure, Wolff is now claiming that the Trumps use legal action “to silence their speech, to intimidate their critics generally, and to extract unjustified payments and North Korean-style confessions and apologies,” according to the Associated Press.
He filed his lawsuit on the very day Melania Trump’s lawyer had given him to retract his statements, apologize, and pay damages.
The controversy began with comments Wolff made on The Daily Beast Podcast, hosted by Joanna Coles, during a discussion of Epstein’s connections to various public figures. Wolff alleged, without providing evidence, that “[Melania] was very involved in this Epstein relationship. There is this model thing, and she’s introduced by a model agent, both of whom Trump and Epstein are involved with. She’s introduced to Trump that way, Epstein knows her well.”
Wolff later told Fox News Digital that he “had nothing to do with the article” that The Daily Beast published — a statement critics see as an attempt to distance himself from the outlet’s retracted piece.
Melania Trump’s spokesperson, Nicholas Clemens, responded firmly:
“First lady Melania Trump is proud to continue standing up to those who spread malicious and defamatory falsehoods as they desperately try to get undeserved attention and money from their unlawful conduct.”
Wolff’s lawsuit now argues that it’s “fair to ask” whether Melania Trump “fits into the Epstein story,” and that he intends to put the Trumps under oath.
The former first lady, however, has consistently fought back against false claims and media attacks since her time in the White House — and this latest case appears to be another chapter in a long line of media figures using innuendo to generate headlines at her expense.
I hope and pray that Melania Trump sues Wolff into total bankruptcy. I also hope that he’s forced to go on worldwide media and publicly apologize for lying about her.