It’s a rare day when the phrase “you know, you’ve gotta hand it to George Stephanopoulos” escapes from my keyboard.
Today, July 15, is such a day. Because at least he’s not Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Let me explain. You may remember that back in March of 2024, alleged journalist and Clinton administration hack fraud Stephanopoulos was interviewing GOP Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina on ABC’s “This Week.” Mace, a survivor of sexual assault, was supporting then-Republican primary candidate Donald Trump, something Stephanopoulos decided to exploit in the most unseemly of ways.
“You endorsed Donald Trump for president. Judges and two separate juries have found him liable for rape and for defaming the victim of that rape,” Stephanopoulos said during the interview. “You don’t find it offensive that Donald Trump has been found liable for rape?”
Slight issue: Trump was not found “liable for rape.” In a civil kangaroo court case brought by the thoroughly daffy writer E. Jean Carroll, a Manhattan federal jury found him liable for sexual abuse, not rape.
There’s a significant difference legally — and considering the fact that Manhattan juries would have likely found Trump civilly liable for the deaths of Julius Caesar, Harambe, Jimmy Hoffa, and Judge Crater, the fact they declined to go that far speaks volumes.
But I digress, because saying someone was found liable of a crime they were not found liable of is legally actionable — and ABC and Stephanopoulos ended up paying $15 million for that rather avoidable blunder.
Anyway, Stephanopoulos has managed to avoid such stupidities in the year and change since. He’s also not running for president, so he has nothing to lose but his money.
AOC, however — not so much.
Should Trump sue AOC for libel?
She’s unhappy with the fact that the Trump administration hasn’t released the Jeffrey Epstein files, and she thinks she knows the reason why. It’s a libelous reason, sure — but that didn’t stop her from airing it on social media last Friday:
Wow who would have thought that electing a rapist would have complicated the release of the Epstein Files?
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) July 11, 2025
Note that AOC did not even say that he was a civilly adjudicated rapist, which would be false. She’s saying he’s a straight-up rapist — which is to say, he’s been convicted in a court of law — and that’s why he’s not releasing the Epstein files.
Utah Republican Sen. Mike Lee noted the problematic nature of this.
“Even under the ridiculously lenient standards of NY Times v. Sullivan, you’ve managed to incur defamation liability,” he wrote.
Even under the ridiculously lenient standards of NY Times v. Sullivan, you’ve managed to incur defamation liability
— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) July 12, 2025
For the uninitiated, New York Times v. Sullivan is a landmark 1964 Supreme Court case which is supposed to be the guidepost for libel claims. It sets an unusually high bar: Not only does the information have to be false or defamatory, but it needs to be made with “actual malice” — either putting forth false information due to a demonstrable animus toward the subject or with reckless disregard for the truth.
To say that AOC has an ax to grind against Trump is so obvious it needs no explication. Reckless disregard for the truth? She not only repeated the falsehood that cost ABC and Stephanopoulos $15 million, she didn’t even qualify it with the adjudication in the Carroll civil case.
I mean, say what you will about the other 2028 Democrat contenders’ pathetic attempts to garner attention — Gavin Newsom’s cringetastic podcasts, Kamala Harris’ will-she-or-won’t-she California gubernatorial run, whatever the heck Jasmine Crockett is up to — at least it doesn’t involve libeling a famously litigious president without any evidence.
Expect him to go after just as much money from her, as well. And why not? After all, she told us for years that no one is above the law, right?
I’ve heard plenty of bad takes on why the Epstein files appear to be gonzo, but none are this bad — or legally actionable.
And even George Stephanopoulos wouldn’t touch this. You’ve got to hand it to him, however barely. Can’t wait to see how awkward his next interview with AOC is, though.
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