A lawyer for President Donald Trump has demanded that the author and publisher of an explosive new book about the White House cancel its release next Tuesday.
In a letter sent Thursday to journalist Michael Wolff and publisher Henry Holt & Co., attorney Charles Harder accused them of publishing “false/baseless statements” about Trump. He cited grounds including defamation and invasion of privacy related to the controversial book, Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, CNBC reports.
Videos by PopCulture.com
The letter demanded that Wolff and his publishing partners stop the release of any material from the book, including excerpts or summaries, and that they retract and apologize for excerpts already published.
“Mr. Trump hereby demands that you immediately cease and desist from any further publication, release or dissemination of the Book, the Article, or any excerpts or summaries of either of them, to any person or entity, and that you issue a full and complete retraction and apology to my client as to all statements made about him in the Book and Article that lack competent evidentiary support Wolff and Henry Holt and Company did not immediately respond to requests for comment,” the letter read in part.
Fire and Fury is set for release on January 9, but excerpts published Wednesday featured questionable quotes from former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, among other shocking revelations about the Trump family’s work and private lives.
Bannon told Wolff that Donald Trump Jr.’s meeting with a Russian lawyer in June 2016 was “unpatriotic” and “treasonous,” and he was quoted saying there was “zero” chance President Trump did not meet with Russians during his 2016 campaign.
In a statement Wednesday, Trump declared that his former key adviser had “lost his mind” in an attempt to discredit his serious claims. Harder also sent a cease and desist letter to Bannon over what he called “disparaging” comments about the entire Trump family.
The book also claims that Trump did not plan to win his presidential election and that Trump’s top advisers have called him things like “idiot” and “dumb as s—t.”
Most Viewed
-
(Kelsey McNeal/ABC, Getty) -
(Credit: EON Productions / MGM) -
Photo Credit: Getty Images -
Cropped CBS News logo (Photo Credit: Al Drago/Bloomberg/Getty Images) -
Hugh Jackman (Credit: Laurent KOFFEL/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images) -
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 16: Bobby Bones attends the "Dancing With The Stars" Season 28 show at CBS Television City on September 16, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images) -
Retired football player and Fox analyst Tom Brady walks the sidelines before the start of Super Bowl LIX between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, February 9, 2025. (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP) -
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MAY 12: (L-R) NFL Player Stefon Diggs and rapper Cardi B sits court-side during the first quarter in Game Four of the Eastern Conference Second Round NBA Playoffs between the Boston Celtics and the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on May 12, 2025 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
