
Wall Street Journal booted from White House press trip to Scotland after Epstein report
The reporters' removal, first reported by Politico, also follows the president's $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the newspaper and the journalists who wrote the story, as well as right-wing media mogul Rupert Murdoch and parent companies News Corp and Dow Jones.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement shared with The Independent that neither the newspaper nor 'any other news outlet are not guaranteed special access to cover President Trump in the Oval Office, aboard Air Force One, and in his private workspaces.'
'Due to the Wall Street Journal 's fake and defamatory conduct, they will not be one of the thirteen outlets on board,' she said. 'Every news organization in the entire world wishes to cover President Trump, and the White House has taken significant steps to include as many voices as possible.'
The Independent has requested comment from the WSJ and White House Correspondents Association.
Trump's lawsuit filed in federal court in Miami on July 18 claims the newspaper, its parent companies, executives and journalists falsely smeared the president by accusing him of writing a sexually suggestive birthday card to Epstein in 2003.
The birthday greeting is described by the newspaper as including a sexually suggestive drawing and a birthday wish that says 'may every day be another wonderful secret.'
A letter reportedly bearing Trump's name, which the WSJ report claims was reviewed by the newspaper, contains several lines of typewritten text framed by a drawing of a naked woman. His signature is a squiggly 'Donald' below her waist, mimicking pubic hair, according to the report.
The defendants 'failed to attach the letter, failed to attach the alleged drawing, failed to show proof that President Trump authored or signed any such letter, and failed to explain how this purported letter was obtained,' according to Trump's lawsuit.
'The reason for those failures is because no authentic letter or drawing exists,' the complaint claims.
This is a developing story

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Daily Mail
24 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
AOC hit with $3K bill for splashy 'Tax the Rich' dress at 2021 Met Gala appearance
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has been asked by a congressional ethics panel to repay costs associated with her Met Gala appearance where she wore a white and red 'Tax the Rich' dress. The House Ethics Committee released a sprawling 26-page report into AOC's lavish trip and recommended she pay $3,000. Once she does the probe will be considered finished. The congresswoman's office did not respond to a request for comment. Longtime Vogue boss Anna Wintour invited the young Democrat and her then-fiancé as a guests to the Met Gala in 2021 and ordered a designer to 'dress AOC for the Met.' White with bright red lettering, AOC's 'Tax the Rich' dress certainly stirred reports at the time. That same dress, along with some some accessories from designer Brother Vellies, should've cost the progressive over $3,700 in rental fees, the report found. Her team only paid $990 for the dress, shoes, jewelry, handbag, floral headpiece, according to the committee. It claimed that the fair market rental price of the dress was just under $3,000, but AOC's team only paid $300. The tickets to attend the event that year costed $35,000 each. 'While the Committee did not find that Representative Ocasio-Cortez's violations were knowing and willful, she nonetheless received impermissible gifts and must bear responsibility for the other conduct that occurred with respect to the delays in payment,' the report states. If Ocasio-Cortez declines to pay the bill requested, the committee could recommend a range of disciplinary actions from additional fines to a formal reprimand or censure. The 10-member ethics panel also concluded that AOC's 'conduct was inconsistent with House Rules, laws, and other standards of conduct.' Another point of tension over the visit was Ocasio-Cortez filing her then-fiancé as a spouse on House disclosures. The ethics panel won't seek any further action against AOC if she pays $2,733 for the fair market price of her rentals and dishes out $250 for her former partner's ticket. The progressive 'Squad' leader was previously ordered to pay back costs for her dress rental and other accessories in 2022. Staffing issues were called out by the committee investigators. They found that Ocasio-Cortez's staff was 'overly reliant on the vendors themselves to ensure the congresswoman's compliance with the Gift Rule.' At least one of the staffers that were involved with the misfilings have left the Democrat's office. The lawmakers reported that AOC's staff and counsel did attempt to 'keep costs down' and that the designers agreed. 'Committee did find evidence suggesting that the designer may have lowered costs in response to statements from Representative Ocasio-Cortez's staff, and that payments to vendors were significantly delayed and, in several cases, did not occur until after OCC (Ethics) initiated its investigation.'

South Wales Argus
25 minutes ago
- South Wales Argus
Get your act together on immigration, Trump tells Europe as he lands in Scotland
Mr Trump is in the country for a four-day visit to both of his golf clubs in Aberdeen and Ayrshire. Donald Trump speaks to the media after arriving in Scotland (Jacquelyn Martin/AP) Landing at around 8.30pm on Friday, the president was greeted by Scottish Secretary Ian Murray before speaking to reporters. Asked about illegal immigration – which successive UK governments have sought to curb – Mr Trump said: 'On immigration, you better get your act together. 'You're not going to have Europe anymore, you've got to get your act together. 'As you know, last month we had nobody entering our country – nobody, (we) shut it down.' The president spoke to journalists as he disembarked the plane (Jane Barlow/PA) He added: 'You've got to stop this horrible invasion that's happening to Europe.' Immigration, Mr Trump said, was 'killing Europe'. Some European leaders, he continued, 'have not let it happen' and are 'not getting the proper credit they should', though the president did not say who he was talking about. Mr Trump said: 'Many countries in Europe, some people, some leaders, have not let it happen, and they're not getting the proper credit they should.' Trump supporters gather at Prestwick Airport ahead of US President Donald Trump's arrival (Jane Barlow/PA) The president also praised Sir Keir Starmer ahead of a meeting between the two at one of his courses in the coming days, describing him as a 'good man'. 'I like your Prime Minister, he's slightly more liberal than I am – as you probably heard – but he's a good man. He got a trade deal done,' he said. 'You know, they've been working on this deal for 12 years, he got it done – that's a good deal, it's a good deal for the UK.' The president's motorcade – which contained more than two dozen vehicles – passed a small group of protesters as he entered his Turnberry golf club. The Trump motorcade on the A77 in Maybole, South Ayrshire, as it arrives at his Turnberry golf resort (Robert Perry/PA) Mr Trump also suggested he would be meeting Sir Keir 'tomorrow evening', although it is understood the pair will not meet until Monday. As well as the Prime Minister, Scottish First Minister John Swinney will meet with the president, as will European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, who confirmed on X she will come to Scotland on Sunday in a bid to hash out a trade deal between the US and Europe. Mr Trump told journalists there was a 'good 50/50 chance' of a deal being struck, adding that it would be the 'biggest deal of them all'. The president and Sir Keir are expected to discuss potential changes to the UK-US trade deal which came into force last month. Donald Trump waves as he disembarks from Air Force One (Jacquelyn Martin/AP) Mr Swinney has pledged to 'essentially speak out for Scotland'. Speaking as he boarded Air Force One in the US, Mr Trump said he would be having dinner with the Prime Minister at Turnberry, before 'going to the oil capital of Europe, which is Aberdeen'. He said: 'We're going to have a good time. I think the Prime Minister and I get along very well.' Police on horseback outside the perimeter of Turnberry golf course in South Ayrshire (Robert Parry/PA) Mr Trump added: 'We're going to be talking about the trade deal that we made and maybe even approve it.' He also told journalists he was 'looking forward' to meeting with the 'Scottish leader' Mr Swinney, describing him as a 'good man'. During his time in Scotland, the president is also likely to spark a number of protests, with concerns being raised about how such demonstrations are policed. Police Scotland has called in support from other forces in the UK to help bolster officer numbers, though senior officers and the organisation which represents the rank-and-file have accepted Mr Trump's visit will have an impact.


The Independent
25 minutes ago
- The Independent
Trump tells Europe ‘get your act together' on immigration as he arrives in Scotland
Donald Trump has claimed Europe 'had better get its act together' as he arrived at the start of a four-day visit to Scotland. Trump was greeted by Scottish Secretary Ian Murray as he landed at Glasgow 's Prestick Airport, before quickly launching a broadside at at EU migration policies as he spoke to waiting reporters. ' You better get your act together or you're not gonna have Europe anymore,' he said, adding: ' You've got to stop this horrible invasion that's happening to Europe.' Trump's comment come against a backdrop of tension over the housing of migrants in regional areas of the UK, with a string of violent protests taking place outside a hotel believed to be housing asylum seekers in Epping, Essex.