Trump's 2024 campaign manager Chris LaCivita abruptly settled his defamation lawsuit against the Daily Beast on Friday evening before a federal holiday, abandoning demands for triple damages and claiming he had suffered millions in lost business opportunities.
The sudden backtrack came as the Beast planned to serve about 50 subpoenas to LaCivita associates — among then senior Trump aides and even the president himself, the news outlet revealed Monday.
LaCivita had sued over a Daily Beast investigation by Pulitzer Prize finalist Michael Isikoff that disclosed how millions flowed through LaCivita's company, Advancing Strategies LLC, while he managed Trump's campaign. According to The Atlantic, Trump confronted LaCivita after the report and ordered him to sue the Beast.
LaCivita heavily promoted his lawsuit on social media, comparing it to a Marine dropping a grenade into a building and posting provocative messages. Before the sole court hearing, he declared he had "a date with the liars of the Daily Beast" and subsequently boasted about presenting his case before a jury.
However, the voluntary settlement granted him none of his demands. The Daily Beast issued no retraction, offered no apology, and made no payment. A Daily Beast spokesperson stated: "We stood by the reporting, paid nothing, and the truth hasn't been challenged. The meritless case is over. LaCivita and the RNC got nothing for the money they wasted on a high-priced Hollywood lawyer and a groundless lawsuit."
By settling, LaCivita avoided discovery proceedings that would have required disclosure of sensitive financial documents. The Daily Beast had planned to serve approximately 50 subpoenas to associates and business partners, and had signaled intent to subpoena White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and potentially Trump himself. Discovery would have demanded LaCivita's tax returns, bank statements, campaign contracts, audits, and records of business offers.
The Republican National Committee paid LaCivita's attorney Mark Geragos' firm over $650,000 in legal fees, the Beast reported. The first $50,000 payment occurred on November 5, 2024 — election day — the same day Geragos demanded the Daily Beast retract its story. Geragos has previously represented Hunter Biden, Colin Kaepernick, and Michael Jackson.
In dropping the defamation claim, LaCivita included only an editor's note stating the parties had "mutually resolved their dispute," building on a previous Beast correction acknowledging that LaCivita's firm received $19.2 million rather than the initially reported $22 million from Trump's campaign and affiliated PACs.
LaCivita falsely claimed victory, insisting the Beast "admitted their 'reporting' was wrong," despite no such admission occurring, Beast Executive Editor Hugh Dougherty wrote. LaCivita's attorney told the New York Times the settlement represented "a white flag of surrender" by the Beast, while CNN's Brian Stelter argued the outlet had prevailed.
Since the campaign ended, LaCivita has remained active in Republican politics, advising multiple Senate campaigns and serving as senior adviser to the Elon Musk-funded Republican PAC Building America's Future. His family has also benefited, with his daughter appointed as White House regional communications director and his son registered to lobby for dozens of clients through a Republican lobbying firm.