President Donald Trump is facing a barrage of criticism after threatening a well-known veteran reporter who asked about his Attorney General saying that she would target people who engage in hate speech, which is largely seen by experts as a constitutionally-protected right.

“We’ll probably go after people like you because you treat me so unfairly. It’s hate. You have a lot of hate in your heart,” the President told ABC News Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl.

Asked if that was “appropriate,” Trump replied, “Well, ABC paid me $16 million recently for a form of hate speech, right? Your company paid me $16 million for a form of hate speech. So maybe they’ll have to go after you.”

READ MORE: ‘Not a Monarchy’: Trump’s Lawsuit Against NYT Sparks Mockery — and Free Speech Warnings

After claiming, “we want everything to be fair,” Trump went on to say that “the radical left has done tremendous damage to the country, but we’re fixing it.”

Critics blasted the President.

“Donald Trump says he will send the DOJ after the press if they say things he doesn’t like,” declared California Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom.

“Totally normal behavior from a president and not at all a sign of some kind of emotional issue,” charged The Atlantic’s Tom Nichols, a retired U.S. Naval War College professor and expert on Russia and national security.

“The logical and obvious companion to turning the government loose to harass and criminalize political opposition is doing the same thing to the free press,” warned Aaron Fritschner, Deputy Chief of Staff to U.S. Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA). “People will doubt his intentions, as they somehow always do, but once again Trump is just coming out and saying it here.”

READ MORE: Greene Says Kirk Killing Sparked ‘Spiritual Revival’ for Christ — Urges ‘National Divorce’

“Trump is overtly saying that DOJ is going to use Charlie Kirk’s assassination to silence anyone he perceives as an enemy,” observed former Obama official Tommy Vietor.

“He isn’t even pretending not to play dictator. This is third world s– and I’m so tired of the MAGA excusing,” lamented “On Democracy” podcaster Fred Wellman.

“This First Amendment is under attack, and it has never been a scarier time,” warned attorney Aaron Parnas.

Trump to Jon Karl: “Your company paid me $16 million for a form of hate speech, so maybe they’ll have to go after you … You should take your beautiful wife tonight and have dinner. You won’t be shot. You won’t be accosted. You won’t even be looked at incorrectly by anybody.” pic.twitter.com/VOB4LAZxHR

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 16, 2025

READ MORE: Vance Hosts Stephen Miller on Kirk’s Show to Preach ‘Real Unity’ — While Blaming the Left

President Donald Trump has filed another lawsuit against The New York Times, drawing warnings from legal experts about free speech and First Amendment implications — even as they mock the filing itself.

Trump filed the $15 billion defamation and libel lawsuit against the paper of record, which he called “one of the worst and most degenerate newspapers in the History of our Country, becoming a virtual ‘mouthpiece’ for the Radical Left Democrat Party.”

At issue, he said on his Truth Social website, is their endorsement of then-Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, which Trump called “the single largest illegal Campaign contribution, EVER.”

READ MORE: Greene Says Kirk Killing Sparked ‘Spiritual Revival’ for Christ — Urges ‘National Divorce’

“The New York Times has been allowed to freely lie, smear, and defame me for far too long, and that stops, NOW!” he declared.

According to Politico, the lawsuit “alleges the reporting had harmed Trump’s ‘unique brand’ and business interests, including his media company’s stock value, causing ‘reputational injury’ worth ‘billions of dollars.'”

Bloomberg News reported that “The New York Times said in a statement that the lawsuit ‘has no merit’ and ‘is an attempt to stifle and discourage independent reporting’.”

“It lacks any legitimate legal claims and instead is an attempt to stifle and discourage independent reporting,” a Times spokesperson said on Tuesday. “The New York Times will not be deterred by intimidation tactics.”

Critics and legal experts have mocked the legal filing.

“Is it possible for a legal pleading to be psychotic?” asked attorney George Conway, a well-known Trump critic. “I think we have an answer.”

Former U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance, a professor of law and MSNBC/NBC News legal analyst, wrote: “I’d like to see the judge dismiss and grant rule 11 sanctions. That’s not a stretch here. We do, after all, have a 1st Amendment and a constitutional republic, not a monarchy/dictatorship.”

READ MORE: Vance Hosts Stephen Miller on Kirk’s Show to Preach ‘Real Unity’ — While Blaming the Left

Rule 11 sanctions refer to penalties a court may impose on attorneys for filing frivolous lawsuits.

“The 85-page lawsuit reads like a pro-Trump op-ed, with page after page of gushing praise for the president,” wrote CNN chief media analyst Brian Stelter. “The suit demands $15 billion in damages, which exceeds the entire market cap of The New York Times Company.”

But Stelter also called Trump’s lawsuit “the latest example of what First Amendment experts have described as a presidential strategy to silence critical news coverage and curb free speech by filing legally dubious suits.”

Others also warned of the First Amendment implications.

Former Biden White House senior advisor Neera Tanden, president and CEO of the Center for American Progress, remarked, “So much for free speech.”

Attorney Ron Filipkowski, the editor-in-chief for MeidasTouch News, urged, “No Settlements! Needs to be the rally cry for every press outlet, university, business, law firm, nonprofit, and other entity that is targeted by the regime. Settlements sell us all out.”

READ MORE: Trump Teases Threat to Defund NYC After Governor’s Endorsement for Mayor

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U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) revived her call for a “national divorce” in a lengthy social media statement where she declares the assassination of Charlie Kirk has sparked a “spiritual revival building the kingdom for Christ.”

“There is nothing left to talk about with the left,” Greene’s missive begins. “They hate us.”

“They assassinated our nice guy who actually talked to them peacefully debating ideas,” she added, despite a lack of definitive evidence of the shooter’s motives or beliefs.

“Then millions on the left celebrated and made clear they want all of us dead,” she wrote, also without definitive evidence.

READ MORE: Vance Hosts Stephen Miller on Kirk’s Show to Preach ‘Real Unity’ — While Blaming the Left

After calling for a “national divorce,” Greene declared that the “country is too far gone and too far divided, and it’s no longer safe for any of us.”

Earlier this year, Greene was labeled “one of the most polarizing figures in American politics” by a Fox affiliate in Atlanta.

“What will come from Charlie Kirk being martyred is already happening,” the Georgia lawmaker continued. “It is a spiritual revival building the kingdom for Christ.”

After lashing out at an upcoming vote on legislation she claimed funds transgender policies, Greene declared, “Government is not [the] answer, God is. Turn your full faith and trust to our Almighty God and our Savior Jesus. Tighten your circle around your family and protect them at all times. I will pray for the left, but personally I want nothing to do with them.”

The Hill reported that at least one national poll found the idea of a national divorce “was overwhelmingly unpopular with the majority of Americans, though.”

The media outlet added that “dozens of people not directly linked to the assassination have faced backlash and, in some cases, lost their jobs over comments they have made about Kirk’s political beliefs following his death.”

As part of what he called an effort to promote “unity,” Vice President JD Vance on Monday said, “When you see someone celebrating Charlie’s murder, call them out. And hell, call their employer.”

READ MORE: Trump Teases Threat to Defund NYC After Governor’s Endorsement for Mayor

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