MSNBC legal analyst worries about 'chilling effect' ABC settlement in defamation suit might have on Trump critics
MSNBC legal analyst Barbara McQuade said Saturday that she was worried about the "chilling effect" the ABC settlement with Donald Trump might have on others who criticize him.
ABC's "The View" ignored the media outlet and news host George Stephanopoulos' settlement with President-elect Donald Trump over repeatedly saying that the president-elect was "found liable for rape."
The ABC talk show discussed the New Jersey drone story, as well as Sen. Mitt Romney's interview on CNN on Sunday, during which he said, "give him a chance to do what he said he’s going to do and see how it works out."
The settlement was publicly filed on Saturday, revealing that the two parties have come to an agreement and avoided a costly trial. According to the settlement, ABC News will pay $15 million as a charitable contribution to a "Presidential foundation and museum to be established by or for Plaintiff, as Presidents of the United States of America have established in the past." Additionally, the network will pay $1 million in Trump's attorney fees.
The co-hosts of "The View" have been outspoken about the legal cases against Trump throughout the election cycle. They frequently refer to him as a convicted felon.
The co-hosts of "The View" ignored ABC's settlement with Donald Trump over the weekend. (Screenshot/ABC)
Fox News Digital has reached out to ABC for comment.
Stephanopoulos and ABC News also had to issue statements of "regret" as an editor's note at the bottom of a March 10, 2024, online article, about comments made earlier this year that prompted Trump to file the defamation lawsuit.
"ABC News and George Stephanopoulos regret statements regarding President Donald J. Trump made during an interview by George Stephanopoulos with Rep. Nancy Mace on ABC’s This Week on March 10, 2024," the note reads.
Stephanopoulos repeated that Trump was found "liable for rape" ten times during his spat with Mace, despite the fact that a jury actually determined Trump was liable for "sexual abuse," which has a distinct definition under New York law.
The settlement has been criticized by members of the media.
"I do worry about the effect this could have on others and the chilling effect it might have on people who otherwise would be critical of Donald Trump," MSNBC legal analyst Barbara McQuade said during a discussion about the defamation settlement on Saturday.
ABC news host George Stephanopoulos, media outlet settle with Donald Trump after he sued for defamation. (Getty Images)
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Marc E. Elias, a Democratic election lawyer, accused ABC News of bending the knee and kissing the ring by settling.
"Knee bent. Ring kissed. Another legacy news outlet chooses obedience," he wrote on X.
"I got to think that the ABC boardroom was involved in this decision somehow," LA Times legal columnist Harry Litman said during the MSNBC appearance on Saturday. "And my big worry to put a finer point on what Barb is saying is it is somehow caught up in the fact he will be president soon."
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Some of the co-hosts of "The View" have been critical of their fellow outspoken Trump critics, Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough, for meeting with Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago after the election.
Ana Navarro and Sunny Hostin took issue with the meeting, and accused them of kissing Trump's ring at his Palm Beach home.
Fox News' Gabriel Hays and Brooke Singman contributed to this report.
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