President Donald Trump is being sued over a new service from his social media platform, Truth Social, that charges customers up to $100,000 for early notifications to his posts, with plaintiffs arguing that “the scheme is extraordinary, corrupt, and unconstitutional.”
“The President stands to gain financially by giving ‘market-moving’ government information to those who are willing and able to pay his personal company,” states the complaint filed by news group The Intercept Media and the nonprofit Freedom of the Press Association in the Southern District of New York on Wednesday.
“The First Amendment guarantees equal access to the President’s public announcements, and even content-neutral burdens on that access must be narrowly tailored to serve a significant government interest. There is no legitimate interest, let alone a significant one, in permitting President Trump to profit from selling government
information,” the complaint says. “Similarly, the Fifth Amendment prohibits charging unreasonable sums that cannot be justified to offset the cost of the government benefit, and granting preferential access to crucial government information for arbitrary and irrational reasons, as is the case here.”
Truth Social’s parent company, Trump Media and Technology, launched the paid data service known as Truth API on Aug. 1. Trump Media said earlier this week that at least 10 companies have signed up for the service.
Ben Muessig, editor-in-chief of The Intercept, said in a statement that the president “is trying to enrich himself by privatizing government information that he has no right to sell.”
MS NOW has reached out to the White House and to Trump Media for comment.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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