Trump tells New York Magazine he'll sue its 'a-- off' if reporter writes 'bad story' on his health
President Donald Trump told a New York Magazine writer that he would "sue the a-- off" the magazine if it wrote a "bad story" about his health, according to a piece published Monday.
In an article headlined, "‘The Superhuman President’: A good-faith attempt to ascertain the truth about Donald Trump’s health," New York Magazine correspondent Ben Terris wrote that he joined Trump, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, Captain Sean Barbabella, Trump's lead physician, and Colonel James Jones, a physician assistant with a Ph.D. in health science, for an interview in the Oval Office about the president's health.
"Let’s sit for a couple of minutes," he said. "I hate to waste a lot of time on this, but if you’re going to write a bad story about my health, I’m going to sue the a-- off of New York Magazine. There will be a time when you can write that story, maybe in two years, three years, five years — five years, no one is going to care, I guess. Go ahead and sit down."
The article noted recent headlines about the president's bruised hand, as well as other speculation surrounding Trump's fitness.
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The article quoted multiple administration officials, as well as Eric Trump, praising the president's health.
"When he signed the Epstein transparency bill, he was here until I think 9:50, 9:45," White House communications director Steven Cheung told Terris. "And the next day, he was here till 9:30. As much as I hate to admit it, I’m exhausted going into the workday and I’m exhausted at the end of the workday trying to keep up with the president."
Terris also quoted Trump asking the doctors in the room about his health.
"Real fast," Trump said, speaking to the doctors present for the interview, according to the article. "Is my health perfect?"
"Your health is excellent, sir," Jones responded.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
Leavitt recently used similar language to threaten CBS News after the president sat for an interview with "Evening News" anchor Tony Dokoupil.
The New York Times obtained audio from the moments that followed Trump's interview with Dokoupil in Michigan earlier this month, which included Leavitt warning, on behalf of the president, not to cut the tape.
"He said, ‘Make sure you guys don’t cut the tape, make sure the interview is out in full,'" Leavitt said, according to the audio.
"He said, ‘If it’s not out in full, we’ll sue your a-- off,'" Leavitt continued, according to the outlet.
The Times reported that some of the CBS staffers present believed the remarks were meant as a joke.
Dokoupil responded to Leavitt with humor and said, "He always says that!"
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Trump previously sued CBS News over a "60 Minutes" interview the network conducted with former Vice President Kamala Harris ahead of the 2024 presidential election. CBS’ editing of the interview and how it aired the footage across two different nights was at the center of the suit, with Trump claiming it was election interference.
CBS settled the lawsuit with Trump ahead of parent company Paramount's merger with Skydance Media last year. The president has also sued the BBC, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal.