Rep. Nunes Files $150M Defamation Claim Against Publisher Of Fresno Bee
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Congressman Devin Nunes is suing a media company for $150 million, saying it engaged in "character assassination" with a 2018 story that linked him to a yacht where prostitution allegedly took place.
A lawyer for Representative Nunes, a central California Republican, filed the lawsuit against The McClatchy Co. and others in a Virginia court on Monday.
One of McClatchy's publications is The Fresno Bee, which reported on a 2016 lawsuit alleging prostitution and drug use on a yacht outing organized by a winery in which Nunes has a partnership stake. The lawsuit says Nunes was not on the yacht.
Nunes said he had nothing to do with the event.
McClatchy spokeswoman Jeanne Segal said Nunes' lawsuit is "wholly without merit."
Last month, Nunes sued Twitter and some of its users for more than $250 million, accusing them of defamation.
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