Trump’s Personal Lawyer Sues Fusion GPS And Buzzfeed Over Russia Dossier

Michael Cohen in October 2017. Image by Getty

By Ari Feldman January 10, 2018

President Donald Trump’s longtime personal lawyer filed defamation suits against Buzzfeed and Fusion GPS over the publication of the infamous Steele dossier, the New York Times reported.

Michael Cohen filed separate suits against Fusion GPS and Buzzfeed. The dossier, compiled by Christopher Steele, a British spy, for the opposition research firm Fusion GPS, describes Cohen as a central figure in a grand conspiracy involving Russia and the Trump Organization.

“Enough is enough of the #fake #RussianDossier,” Cohen tweeted on Tuesday.

Enough is enough of the #fake #RussianDossier. Just filed a defamation action against @BuzzFeedNews for publishing the lie filled document on @POTUS @realDonaldTrump and me!

— Michael Cohen (@MichaelCohen212) January 10, 2018

Buzzfeed published the Steele dossier last year. It was funded by both Democrat and Republican backers. The dossier contained unsubstantiated information about Trump’s real estate dealings in Russia, and claimed that Trump spent salacious evenings with prostitutes while in Moscow on business.

In an op-ed published late Tuesday, Ben Smith, the editor of Buzzfeed News, said that “a year of government inquiries and blockbuster journalism has made clear that the dossier is unquestionably real news.” Buzzfeed is also being sued by another person named in the dossier.

Contact Ari Feldman at [email protected] or on Twitter @aefeldman

Ari Feldman is a staff writer at the Forward. He covers Jewish religious organizations, synagogue life, anti-Semitism and the Orthodox world. If you have any tips, you can email him at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @aefeldman.

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