President Donald Trump holds up an image taken from his Truth Social account during a meeting to sign an executive order about vaccines, Monday, Aug. 10, 2026, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin).
Requests for President Donald Trump and his assistants to hand over records related to his Truth Social platform’s new $100,000 data subscription service are a waste of time, the Trump administration argues.
In a five-page filing asking to delay discovery, attorneys with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) argued that “because the Court could dismiss all or some of Plaintiffs’ claims,” Trump should not be compelled to share information that may not even turn out to be relevant, and U.S. District Judge J. Paul Oetken should either hold off on creating a schedule or delay discovery until the court rules on whether the case should proceed.
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The case can be traced back to July 16, when Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) — the parent company of social media platform Truth Social — announced a new service called “Truth API” in which entities could gain “real-time access” to posts from the “highest-ranking Truth Social accounts,” namely Trump himself. The service, which launched on Aug. 1, costs between $60,000 and $100,000 a month based on the length of the subscription, per CNBC reporting.
On Aug. 12, The Intercept and the Freedom of the Press Foundation filed a lawsuit against Trump, the White House and staffers such as Natalie Harp, alleging they’re violating the First Amendment, as Law&Crime previously reported. “This scheme is extraordinary, corrupt, and unconstitutional,” the media outlet and press group wrote. Later that month, the plaintiffs asked Oetken, a Barack Obama appointee, for a preliminary injunction blocking the official government announcements while Truth API operates.
Since then, TMTG — which is not a party to the lawsuit — filed an amicus brief in support of the government. The DOJ has filed a motion to dismiss the case, while The Intercept and the Freedom of the Press Foundation have tried to move the case forward by seeking records from the White House and TMTG.
“Discovery is presently unwarranted,” the DOJ filing says. “Plaintiffs’ response focuses on potential discovery requests to Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG). But TMTG is neither a party nor, as Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss explains, subject to the Constitution.”
“Any discovery—including discovery requests directed at third parties like TMTG—should therefore await resolution of the motion to dismiss. Otherwise, both the parties and third parties risk unnecessarily expending resources, and this Court would be confronted with issues already raised in the Motion to Dismiss,” the filing adds.
The DOJ argues that the lawsuit is legally flawed because TMTG is a private company not engaging in “state action” and thus not bound by the Constitution. Furthermore, making a sitting president hand over records presents “separation of powers” concerns between the judicial and executive branches, the DOJ argues, and the media outlet and press group will not be harmed by being made to wait a little while longer.
TMTG reported on Monday that its revenue surged 205% in the third quarter, driven by Truth API.
The post Trump DOJ wants immediate stop to lawsuit discovery over Truth Social’s new $100,000 service, calls request for records a waste of time first appeared on Law & Crime.
