Lawsuit seeks to stop Trump charging for early access to his online posts

U.S. President Donald Trump is facing a federal lawsuit seeking to prevent him from charging for early access to his online posts on Truth Social, a new paid service at his Truth Media & Technology company. The lawsuit, filed by the Freedom of the Press Foundation and news outlet The Intercept, alleges that the service violates the Constitution's First Amendment and Fifth Amendment.

The new subscription service, called Truth API, offers Wall Street firms up to US$100,000 a month to receive exclusive, early access to Trump's posts on U.S. policy, including matters like war and tariffs. According to Seth Stern, chief of advocacy at the Freedom of the Press Foundation, the president's decision to sell priority access to his news for profit is "so blatantly corrupt and unconstitutional."

Trump Media & Technology, the parent company of Truth Social, claims that selling fast access to traders is common in their industry and accuses the plaintiffs of attempting to silence the president through the courts. The company argues that other platforms and news outlets already offer subscription APIs for access to Trump's posts.

The lawsuit argues that the service violates the First Amendment's right to equal access to a president's comments and the Fifth Amendment's prohibition on charging unreasonable conditions for government benefits. The plaintiffs are seeking to stop Trump Media from continuing the paid service, called Truth API, which offers access to Trump's posts milliseconds faster than anyone else.

Trump Media also benefits from a separate deal with Trump that grants its Truth Social six hours of exclusive access to his posts before he can distribute them elsewhere.