A far-right group that claims to be defenders of the 1st Amendment quietly filed a $100 million lawsuit against the New York Times early in January stating the venerable newspaper defamed them by pointing out their ties to participants in the festivities that led up to the riot at the U.S. Capitol.
In an early January story, the times reported that the 1st Amendment Praetorian isn't as well known as the Proud Boys or the Oath Keepers, but was still a presence before the insurrection attempt that caused lawmakers to flee for the lives.
As the Times reported at the time, "Known in shorthand as 1AP, the group spent much of the postelection period working in the shadows with pro-Trump lawyers, activists, business executives and military veterans to undermine public confidence in the election and to bolster Mr. Trump’s hopes of remaining in the White House," adding, "By their own account, members of the 1st Amendment Praetorian helped to funnel data on purported election fraud to lawyers suing to overturn the vote count. They guarded celebrities like Michael T. Flynn, Mr. Trump’s former national security adviser, at 'Stop the Steal' rallies, where huge crowds gathered to demand that Mr. Trump remain in office."
This, in turn, led 1AP to file a massive lawsuit suit alleging, "Assault Libel & Slander" in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York.
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According to Rolling Stone's Tim Dickinson wrote, "More than two dozen 1AP members were serving as 'demonstration marshalls' to 'help maintain order among participants, according to the [Stop the Steal] rally’s permit."
The report notes that 1AP founder Robert Patrick Lewis spoke to the crowd and told them, "Not far from here, General George Washington — in weather just like this — loaded up a ragtag group of soldiers who crossed the Delaware River. This is our Delaware!” before adding, "This is our time… to make sure that we don’t cede this country and have my kids grow up in a communist hellhole. I need each of you to fight as hard as you can to ensure that that does not happen!”
Now Lewis is protesting how the Times portrayed them -- and he wants to be paid.
"The lawsuit against the Times, filed in early January, has not been reported previously. It denounces what 1AP calls the paper’s 'egregious lies,' while denying that 1AP members 'played any part in the attack," Rolling Stone is reporting before adding the suit seeks 'compensatory damages and punitive damages in the sum of $100,000,000.00.'"
Rolling Stones Dickinson added, "The litigation is part of a pattern of high-dollar defamation suits brought by 1AP that are ostensibly attempting to clear its reputation. Seen in another light, the lawsuits present a vivid irony: They are filed by an organization that presents itself as a protector of first amendment rights, against parties who’ve leveraged their own freedom of the press to raise concerns about 1st Amendment Praetorian."
You can read more here.
