Justice Department Jumps In To Help Trump In Lawsuit Filed By Rape Accuser
Attorney General William Barr is once again going to bat for President Donald Trump, taking the unusual step of seeking to substitute the U.S. government for Trump as the defendant in a defamation lawsuit brought against him by a woman who claimed he raped her in the 1990s.
In a motion filed in New York state court on Tuesday, the Justice Department — citing a 1988 law known as the Westfall Act — said Trump had been “acting within the scope” of his office as president when he called author E. Jean Carroll’s rape accusation a lie during a June 2019 interview with The Hill. “She’s not my type,” the president said at the time. His remarks prompted Carroll to sue him for defamation.
The Westfall Act gives employees of the federal government immunity from lawsuits arising from actions undertaken within the scope of their employment. The Justice Department argued in its filing that since Trump was acting in an official capacity when he made those remarks about Carroll, the U.S. government should take Trump’s place as the defendant in the defamation case.
If the Justice Department’s request is approved, it will be responsible for defending the case, and the U.S. government would have to cover any damages that may be awarded ― all, ultimately, on the taxpayers’ dime.
The libel case will also be immediately moved from state court to federal court, The New York Times reported, although Carroll can seek its return to state court.
The Justice Department has yet to comment publicly on the case and did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for comment.
DOJ's argument for intervening in Trump's rape accuser @EJeanCarroll's suit:
"Trump was acting within the scope of his office or employment at the time of the incident out of which the plaintiff’s claim arose," i.e. when he allegedly defamed her.
Doc: https://t.co/M7uh08En21pic.twitter.com/VSBQ0hMEuH— Adam Klasfeld (@KlasfeldReports) September 8, 2020
Though the Westfall Act...
