Former President Donald Trump has filed a lawsuit against Hillary Clinton, the Democratic National Committee, and 26 other defendants he claims tried to undermine his 2016 presidential campaign by suggesting he had links to the Russian government.According to The Hill, the sprawling 108-page lawsuit alleges that liberal politicians deliberately and maliciously tried to sink his presidential bid—a bid that was ultimately successful, despite Trump losing the popular vote by several million ballots.“Acting in concert, the Defendants maliciously conspired to weave a false narrative that their Republican opponent, Donald J. Trump, was colluding with a hostile foreign sovereignty,” the lawsuit states.“The actions are taken in furtherance of their scheme—falsifying evidence, deceiving law enforcement, and exploiting access to highly-sensitive data sources—are so outrageous, subversive, and incendiary that even the events of Watergate pale in comparison,” the complaint says.The lawsuit, which was filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, estimates that former President Trump suffered at least $24 million in reputational and business damages.Trump said that he is continuing to suffer other losses on account of Clinton, the Democratic National Committee, and the other defendant individuals and entities.

Hillary Clinton; image by Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons, no changes.

CNN notes that many of the defendants are people Trump actively targeted while in the White House. They include former F.B.I. Director James Comey, retired British intelligence operative Christopher Steele, and several of Clinton’s campaign advisers.“Under the guise of ‘opposition research,’ ‘data analytics,’ and other political stratagems, the Defendants nefariously sought to sway the public’s trust,” Trump attorneys wrote. “They worked together with a single, self-serving purpose: to vilify Donald J. Trump.”CNN reports that Trump’s lawsuit appears riddled with factual inaccuracies and exaggerated claims.Aitan Goelman, who represents defendant and former F.B.I. official Peter Strzok, said he has yet to review the complaint—but has already assumed that much of what Trump alleges is not grounded in reality.“We haven’t had the chance to read the complaint, but knowing the former President, there’s probably very little in there that’s true,” Goelman told CNN.The lawsuit also alleges that the defendant individuals and entities continued their “conspiracy” against Trump even after he was elected to the White House."The Defendants, blinded by political ambition, orchestrated a malicious conspiracy to disseminate patently false and injurious information about Donald J. Trump and his campaign, all in the hopes of destroying his life, his political career and rigging the 2016 Election in favor of Hillary Clinton,” Trump attorneys wrote. "When their gambit failed, and Donald J. Trump was elected, the Defendants' efforts continued unabated, merely shifting their focus to undermining his presidential administration."The Hill observes that Trump’s lawsuit follows the former president’s criticism of John Durham, the special counsel appointed to investigate the origins of the F.B.I.’s 2016 probe of his campaign.While Durham has issued at least three indictments, he has yet to uncover or publicize any evidence of a vast conspiracy against Trump.

Sources

Trump files lawsuit against Clinton, Democrats for Russia claimsTrump sues Hillary Clinton, DNC and others, alleging conspiracy to link his campaign to RussiaTrump sues Hillary Clinton, DNC over Russian collusion allegations