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A federal US judge fined former President Donald Trump and his lawyers nearly $1 million on Thursday for a “frivolous” lawsuit alleging Hillary Clinton attempted to rig the 2016 election.
The Republican, who is seeking reelection to the White House in 2024, has a “continuous habit of manipulating the courts,” according to District Judge John Middlebrooks, and filed the lawsuit “in order to dishonestly push a political narrative.”
The lawsuit, which Middlebrooks dismissed last year, claimed that Clinton, who lost the 2016 presidential election to Trump, and others had created a false narrative that his campaign had colluded with Russia.
Trump had sought $70 million in damages.
The suit, however, “should never have been brought,” Middlebrooks wrote in the 45-page written court order.
“Its inadequacy as a legal claim was obvious from the start. No reasonable lawyer would have filed it. The amended complaint was intended for political purposes, and none of the counts stated a cognizable legal claim “The judge wrote.
The order also punishes Trump’s lawyer, Alina Habba.
The entire amount of sanctions issued by Middlebrooks to pay the defendants’ legal fees and expenses is $937,989.39, and the two are jointly and severally accountable for it.
Trump, according to Middlebrooks, is “a prolific and skilled litigant who frequently uses the courts to seek retribution on political rivals.
Because he is the instigator of intentional legal system exploitation, he cannot be seen as a litigant who is deferentially acting in accordance with legal advice. He was completely conscious of the effects of his conduct.
