President Donald Trump was sued in federal court this week over a Truth Social service that sells Wall Street traders early access to his posts on tariffs, war and other market-moving policy — for a six-figure price.
The lawsuit was filed by the Freedom of the Press Foundation and news outlet The Intercept in New York federal court on Wednesday.
According to court documents obtained by Fox News Digital, the plaintiffs allege the Truth API service offered by the Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG) is in direct violation of the Constitution and that information released by Trump should be available to everyone simultaneously.
Trump’s deputy chief of staff Daniel Scavino and his executive assistant Natalie J. Harp are also named as defendants.
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The monthly subscription was rolled out on Aug. 1 and charges Wall Street firms an eye-watering monthly fee of $60,000 to $100,000 in exchange for early access to market-moving posts from Truth Social accounts with large followings, including Trump’s own account with 13 million followers.
"Trump had a right to say whatever he wants, but he can’t sell access to official statements through a private business while he uses his public office to undermine the Freedom of Information Act, the Presidential Records Act and virtually every other mechanism for transparency," Seth Stern, chief of advocacy at the Freedom of the Press Foundation, said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
TMTG previously said in a press release that the feed of commercial data will be available to subscribers "within milliseconds," and is expected to provide continuous 24/7 coverage and includes a historical archive of posts dating back to 2022."
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Trump has previously used Truth Social as a method of direct communication with the public regarding market-sensitive information, including providing updates on the Iran war or newly implemented tariffs.
"Markets already move on Truth Social posts," Kevin McGurn, interim CEO of TMTG, said in a statement. "Truth API delivers a direct, licensed, real-time feed of the platform's most market-moving Truths while advancing our strategy to monetize proprietary assets through a high-margin, recurring revenue stream. As adoption grows, we expect Truth API to become a meaningful, ongoing source of revenue for the company, creating lasting value for shareholders."
The lawsuit aims to block Trump’s White House from posting official government announcements solely on Truth Social, with the plaintiffs alleging the service violates the First Amendment right to equal access to the president’s comments and Fifth Amendment prohibitions barring unreasonable conditions for government resources.
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Trump serves as the largest shareholder of Trump Media, accounting for 40% of its share ownership.
The plaintiffs also took aim at a separate agreement between Trump Media and Trump that provides Truth Social with six hours of exclusive access to his posts before they can be shared on other platforms, asking the court to bar Trump from "posting official government information exclusively" on his own website.
The offering has sparked ethical questions among watchdogs, with media expert Kaivan Shroff telling Fox News Digital Trump’s financial stake in the company could harm his defense in the case.
"Trump’s financial stake matters legally here because it gives the plaintiffs a much stronger argument that the alleged preferential treatment isn’t serving some legitimate government purpose, but instead a private financial interest," Shroff said, adding, "The ownership stake doesn’t make the arrangement unconstitutional by itself, but it makes the private financial benefit much harder to dismiss as merely incidental. And therefore that weakens the defense that there is some legitimate government interest in this practice at all."
However, former state attorney Dave Aronberg believes Trump's ownership in the company is not the plaintiffs' primary hurdle in the case — it's the Constitution.
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"President Trump’s ownership stake itself isn't necessarily the smoking gun for a violation, but it certainly strengthens the plaintiffs’ argument that government action and the president’s private financial interests have become unusually intertwined," Aronberg told Fox News Digital.
"The biggest challenge for the plaintiffs is the substantive issue of whether the Constitution requires essentially simultaneous access to an official presidential communication, as opposed to merely preventing the government from excluding a particular news organization altogether," he added. "The courts will separate what may be distasteful from what is unconstitutional."
Jason Mudd, CEO of Axia Public Relations, echoed the same sentiment surrounding questions about the six-figure subscription service and presidential ethics.
"This does not sit well with the electorate. Charging for faster access to a public official’s statements tells citizens their government may not be working in their interest," Mudd told Fox News Digital. "Financial advantages already exist. Turning it into a published policy with the President’s direct involvement raises the stakes and the ethics concerns."
Mudd went on to relay his own piece of advice as to how Trump Media should proceed regarding the service.
"Sunlight is the best disinfectant," Mudd said. "If this were my client, I would advise Trump Media to put real distance between the President’s financial interest and any product built on access to him and his views. Recusal is often a stronger position than litigation."
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House and Trump Media for comment but did not immediately receive a response.