President-elect Trump’s attorney unsuccessfully asked a federal judge to move forward with his lawsuit against journalist Bob Woodward over published audio tapes of interviews the famed Watergate reporter conducted with Trump for a 2020 book.
U.S. District Judge Paul Gardephe, an appointee of former President George W. Bush who is overseeing the case, denied the request to expedite it around five hours after the request was filed.
“The Court is at work on the outstanding motion,” Gardephe wrote. “To the extent Plaintiff seeks to embark on discovery before the motion to dismiss is resolved, that application is denied.”
The case has stalled for months as the judge weighs the defendants’ bid to dismiss the lawsuit, but the sudden activity comes as Trump assumes a more emboldened posture in scrutinizing media outlets in the wake of his November presidential victory.
“Since President Trump’s decisive victory resulting him being due to become the 47th President of the United States, there has been a renewed accountability among those who violated his rights over the last four years,” Trump attorney Robert Garson wrote in Tuesday’s letter.
Garson went on to note how ABC News and anchor George Stephanopoulos on Saturday apologized and paid $15 million toward Trump’s presidential library to settle a defamation lawsuit.
