Iowa judge dismisses Trump’s lawsuit against pollster Ann Selzer and Des Moines Register

DES MOINES, Iowa — A judge on Wednesday dismissed President Donald Trump’s lawsuit accusing The Des Moines Register and its former pollster of misrepresenting the state of the 2024 presidential race, rejecting the president’s claim that the newspaper’s poll coverage violated Iowa’s consumer fraud law.

Calling the case extraordinary, Iowa District Judge Scott J. Beattie said that allowing the lawsuit and its “faulty” claims to proceed could have a chilling effect that “can discourage others from reporting on and debating public affairs.” He sided with pollster J. Ann Selzer and the newspaper in affirming that the poll and coverage of it were constitutionally protected political speech, not a commercial product.

The ruling Wednesday came hours after a judge heard arguments but did not rule from the bench in a case on Trump’s ban of CNN, MS NOW and Politico from White House grounds. Trump banned the three outlets last Friday, assailing what he called “fake news.”

After the ruling in Iowa Wednesday, a spokesman for Trump’s legal team said the president will take his case to the Iowa Supreme Court.

Trump filed the lawsuit against Selzer, The Des Moines Register and the newspaper’s parent company in December 2024, accusing them…

Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/business