Trump threatens lawsuit against nonprofit that questioned whether National Guard plan lessened crime
PBS News Hour – Politics — 2026-08-22 12:36:00 — www.pbs.org
Trump Threatens $5 Billion Lawsuit Over Report Disputing Crime Claims
President Donald Trump is threatening legal action against the Center for American Progress, a left-leaning think tank, demanding it retract a report that contradicts his claims about the effectiveness of National Guard deployments in reducing crime.
Trump’s Legal Threat
Through his attorney, Trump sent a letter to the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit, insisting it “immediately retract the false, malicious, and defamatory statements made about President Trump.” The letter warned that failure to comply would result in a $5 billion lawsuit. The Center for American Progress declined to retract the report.
The Disputed Report
The report, published July 13, analyzed crime data and concluded that Trump’s deployment of the National Guard “had no measurable effect on violent crime trends.” It specifically criticized the administration for taking credit for a drop in violent crime that was already underway, stating, “In an effort to falsely claim his policies have reduced crime, the president is exploiting the fact that violent crime and murder were already declining in the cities his administration targeted with these extreme interventions.”
Fact-Checking Trump’s Claims
According to the nonprofit’s analysis, the decline in violent crime predated Trump’s interventions. The Center for American Progress described its findings as “inconvenient to the Trump administration,” but based on available crime data. The organization’s general counsel responded to Trump’s threat by calling the defamation allegation “utterly absurd: truth is not and cannot be defamation. The legal standards here are clear, well-established, and speech-protective.”
Pattern of Legal Threats
The article notes that threatening lawsuits over unfavorable media coverage is a recurring tactic for Trump. Experts cited in the report argue that such threats are often intended to intimidate critics rather than address actual harm.
Conclusion
Trump’s threat to sue over the report highlights his ongoing efforts to challenge and silence criticism, particularly when independent analysis contradicts his public claims. The Center for American Progress stands by its findings, emphasizing the importance of truth and data in public debate.