“Shockingly baseless”: Legal experts mock “bad faith, unethical” Trump lawsuit trying to silence CNN

Former President Donald Trump on Monday filed a lawsuit accusing CNN of defamation, seeking $475 million in punitive damages.

The 29-page suit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, accuses of CNN playing a part in a "campaign of dissuasion in the form of libel and slander against the Plaintiff," that "escalated" recently as the TV network "fears" Trump will run for president in 2024. 

The lawsuit claimed that as part of CNN's effort to "tilt the political balance to the Left," its hosts used "scandalous, false, and defamatory" labels like "racist," "Russian lackey," "insurrectionist," and "Hitler," when describing Trump. 

The lawsuit highlights several examples of CNN appearing to compare Trump to Hitler. In one, it mentions a January 2022 special report called "The Fight to Save Democracy" by host Fareed Zakaria, which included footage of Hitler. 

Another example includes an interview conducted by former anchor Brian Stelter in which psychiatrist Allen Frances claimed that "Trump is as destructive a person in this century as Hitler, Stalin, and Mao were in the last century."