Republican Rep. Devin Nunes of California is suing MSNBC host Rachel Maddowfor defamation.
Maddow, who is one of MSNBC’s most popular anchors, spent years covering allegations that former President Donald Trump conspired with Russia to win the 2020 presidential election.
Former special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation found no evidence of a Trump-Russia conspiracy, but Maddow has repeatedly accused Trump and other Republicans of working for the Kremlin.
In March this year, she accused Nunes of working for Russia and is now getting sued for defamation.
Nunes Explains His Move
Nunes appeared Wednesday evening on Newsmax to explain why he is taking legal action.
"I’ve had a policy now for about three years that if you defame or slander me, you will get a court date, a court appearance," he told host Greg Kelly, predicting that Maddow and MSNBC won’t even try to defend their claims in court.
"They’ll claim First Amendment, that they’re media, that I’m public figure. Because the one thing I’ve learned through all of this is these media companies never want to meet me in court," the congressman said.
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Nunes said that Maddow would be willing to face him in court if she actually had evidence to back up her claims.
"She just dreamed it up, but that’s when it goes over the line because you’re effectively accusing me of treason, you’re accusing me of obstruction of justice, and nothing could be further from the truth," Nunes said.
"This is not normal behavior," the congressman stressed, stating that there is no evidence whatsoever that he illegally received a "package" from a Ukrainian national during the Trump-Russia investigation.
‘Joke’s On Her’
"So. look, she just concocted this out of thin air. Ha ha ha! The joke’s on her. We’ll see her in court," Nunes said of Maddow, calling on MSNBC to face him in court and present evidence that he works for Russia.
The congressman once again said that MSNBC and Maddow "will do everything but meet me in court" because they have no evidence.
"But the bottom line is: This crap has to stop of running around the country, calling everybody a Russian agent, if you disagree with them."
Suing Maddow
As Pulitzer prize-winning journalist Glenn Greenwald recently reported via substack, Maddow seems to have a habit of accusing her political opponents of working for Russia.
In 2019, she accused the right-leaning One America News (OAN) network of being a paid propaganda outlet for the Russian government.
In response, OAN sued Maddow.
However, federal judge Cynthia Bashant dismissed the lawsuit, emphasizing that Maddow offers her opinion on the news, which is why "a reasonable viewer would not conclude that the contested statement implies an assertion of objective fact."
