Obama Has “Very Good” Libel Case Vs Trump

Richard Painter, a former ethics lawyer for George Bush, says Barack Obama would likely have a very good libel case against President Trump, based on Trump’s accusation that he had been wiretapped by Obama, “even under the high standard for libel against public figures.” If Obama did do such a thing, Painter reasons, it would be a criminal act, and accusing someone of a crime can be libel. Painter notes two key elements in the standard for libel, as articulated in the Supreme Court case New York Times v. Sullivan, and says that in this case they are both “clearly met.”