President Donald Trump on Monday filed a federal defamation lawsuit against the New York Times, four of its reporters and Penguin Random House over coverage of his 2024 campaign.

The suit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, which covers the area where Trump resides outside the White House, accused the newspaper of attempting to ruin his reputation as a businessman, sink his campaign and prejudice judges and juries against him in coverage of his campaign.

The reporters and defendants are Susanne Craig, Russ Buettner, Peter Baker, and Michael S. Schmidt. Penguin Random House published a book by Craig and Buettner titled “Lucky Loser: How Donald Trump Squandered His Father’s Fortune and Created the Illusion of Success.”

The newspaper, the suit alleges, “continued spreading false and defamatory content about President Trump” and refused to recognize he “secured the greatest personal and political achievement in American history” with his 2024 win.

The suit singles out a New York Times editorial endorsing Democratic opponent Kamala Harris.

“The [editorial] Board asserted hypocritically and without evidence that President Trump would ‘defy the norms and dismantle the institutions that have made our country strong,'” the suit states.

It also points to three long-form articles in 2024 by the paper’s reporters named in the filing challenging narratives on Trump’s success as a businessman, looking at past scandals and analyzing his character as one that could move the Oval Office toward dictatorship.

“Today, the Times is a full-throated mouthpiece for the Democrat Party,” the filing alleges. “The newspaper’s editorial routine is now one of industrial-scale defamation and libel against political opponents. As such, the Times has become a leading, and unapologetic purveyor of falsehoods against President Trump.”

The New York Times said the suit is without merit.

“It lacks any legitimate legal claims and instead is an attempt to stifle and discourage independent reporting,” a spokesperson for the New York Times said in a statement Tuesday. “The New York Times will not be deterred by intimidation tactics. We will continue to pursue the facts without fear or favor and stand up for journalists’ First Amendment right to ask questions on behalf of the American people.”

Penguin Random House and the reporters named in the suit did immediately responded to requests for comment early Tuesday.

The suit includes letters sent by Trump’s lawyers to the New York Times and Penguin Random House in October, along with responses from the two media organizations’ lawyers. The letter to the Times demanded it cease and desist from making “false and defamatory statements” about the president, while listing a litany of complaints about Times coverage.

Newsroom lawyer David McCraw responded by defending the reporting in articles mentioned by Trump’s lawyers.

“Little needs to be said about the rest of your letter, which is principally a litany of personal complaints about The New York Times and its reporters, punctuated with falsehoods and premised on the deeply troubling notion that anyone who dares to report unfavorable facts about a presidential candidate is engaged in “sabotage” (as opposed to, say, contributing to the free exchange of information and ideas that makes our democracy possible),” McCraw wrote, according to the letter attached to Monday’s suit.

Carolyn K. Foley, Penguin Random House senior vice president and associate general counsel, responded to Trump lawyer Edward Andrew Paltzik: “The fact that the authors of the book do not share your favorable view of your client’s career, does not provide the foundation for a defamation claim.”

Monday’s filing seeks no less than $15 billion in compensatory damages for the alleged defamation, as well as unspecified punitive damages.

The reporters Schmidt, Craig and Baker have been contributors to MSNBC and NBC News.

ABC and Paramount, the parent company of CBS, have settled lawsuits brought by Trump and the president launched a new one against the Wall Street Journal and its ownership in July.

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered:

Section 1.  Extension.  (a)  The enforcement delay specified in section 2(a) of Executive Order 14166 of January 20, 2025 (Application of Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act to TikTok), as extended by Executive Order 14258 of April 4, 2025 (Extending the TikTok Enforcement Delay), and Executive Order 14310 of June 19, 2025 (Further Extending the TikTok Enforcement Delay), is further extended until December 16, 2025.  During this period, the Department of Justice shall take no action to enforce the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (the “Act”) (Public Law 118-50, Div. H) or impose any penalties against any entity for any noncompliance with the Act, including for distributing, maintaining, or updating (or enabling the distribution, maintenance, or updating of) any foreign adversary controlled application as defined in the Act.  In light of this direction, even after the expiration of the above-specified period, the Department of Justice shall not take any action to enforce the Act or impose any penalties against any entity for any conduct that occurred during the above-specified period or any period prior to the issuance of this order, including the period of time from January 19, 2025, until the date of this order.

(b)  The Attorney General shall take all appropriate action to issue written guidance to implement the provisions of subsection (a) of this section.

(c)  The Attorney General shall further issue a letter to each provider stating that there has been no violation of the statute and that there is no liability for any conduct that occurred during the above-specified period, as well as for any conduct from the effective date of the Act until the date of this order.

(d)  Because of the national security interests at stake and because section 2(d) of the Act vests authority for investigations and enforcement of the Act only in the Attorney General, attempted enforcement by the States or private parties represents an encroachment on the powers of the Executive.  The Attorney General shall exercise all available authority to preserve and defend the Executive’s exclusive authority to enforce the Act.

Sec. 2.  General Provisions.  (a)  Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

(i)   the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or

(ii)  the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

(b)  This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.

(c)  This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

(d)  The costs for publication of this order shall be borne by the Department of Justice.

                             DONALD J. TRUMP

THE WHITE HOUSE,

    September 16, 2025.