# Legal Expert: Trump’s Defamation Claims Are a “Side Business” 

President Trump’s side business — the launching of litigation that is designed to terrify and silence critics and to extract cash from them — is an outrage.

August 26, 2026 • News Releases 

Recently, President Donald Trump’s personal attorney sent a letter to the Center for American Progress (CAP) demanding that CAP rescind statements that President Trump claims are false, malicious, and defamatory.

A new [blog post](https://url.avanan.click/v2/r01/___https://zwly9k6z.r.us-east-1.awstrack.me/L0/https:*2F*2Fwww.cato.org*2Fblog*2Ftrumps-latest-attack-first-amendment/1/010001a03e5ff905-c7fb0c41-6f9e-4c4f-8ace-283f1e3abf11-000000/oGSNC7WKzE_YZ_-P0Sgf-tuK7xo=473___.YXAzOmNhdG9pbnN0aXR1dGU6YTpvOjhkZDc5YjliZjQxNmE1NDFmNTE0YmQ3NzQ0NTZmMDY3Ojc6NjlhMjozYWFhZWI3ZDRhMTEzM2JjYmY3M2E1YTcwZGY5MDlkNjk1Yzk1MTRlNjc3Nzc5ODlhMDQyM2U2ZjhhYWFjNzdlOmg6VDpO) by [Dan Greenberg](https://url.avanan.click/v2/r01/___https://zwly9k6z.r.us-east-1.awstrack.me/L0/https:*2F*2Fwww.cato.org*2Fpeople*2Fdan-greenberg/1/010001a03e5ff905-c7fb0c41-6f9e-4c4f-8ace-283f1e3abf11-000000/kxada6d1l7qU-z7WBqcW4kUy-AA=473___.YXAzOmNhdG9pbnN0aXR1dGU6YTpvOjhkZDc5YjliZjQxNmE1NDFmNTE0YmQ3NzQ0NTZmMDY3Ojc6YzQ0Njo0YWRlYjliNDQ0OTg1NWMyNjQwYmQyNmU0N2I5YzRiOGRjYTI1YWE0YTQwYTA1MWM4NDNhN2IwZmYxNjZmOGEyOmg6VDpO), a senior legal fellow in the Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional S tudies at the Cato Institute, details the problems with President Trump’s continual and weak defamation claims:

> President Trump’s side business — the launching of litigation that is designed to terrify and silence critics and to extract cash from them — is an outrage. It is an abuse of his office and an abuse of our legal system.

To speak with Daniel Greenberg further, contact Cato PR at [pr@​cato.​org](mailto:pr@cato.org).

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