'Profoundly corrupt': Trump sued in federal court over selling early access to Truth Social posts

Key Points:

• A federal lawsuit filed in New York accuses the Trump administration of violating the First Amendment by selling early access to Truth Social posts before they are made public, alleging the scheme allows the president to profit from government information.
• The lawsuit, brought by the Freedom of the Press Foundation and The Intercept, challenges Truth Social’s new Truth API service, which offers early access to posts for up to $100,000 per month and reportedly has at least 10 customers.
• The complaint argues that presidential statements on Truth Social are official public announcements and that selling early access violates constitutional guarantees of equal access, with no legitimate government interest justifying the practice.
• President Trump owns a 41% stake in Truth Social’s parent company, Trump Media & Technology Group, raising concerns about profiting from his official position, which critics say violates ethics rules prohibiting use of government resources for personal gain.
• Democratic lawmakers and legal experts have condemned the practice as a blatant constitutional violation and called for investigations into potential securities law breaches related to Trump’s financial interests in the company.