Federal Judge Dismisses Devin Nunes Defamation Lawsuit Against Rachel Maddow

Devin Nunes, CEO of Trump Media and former California congressman, has lost a defamation lawsuit against MSNBC host Rachel Maddow and NBC Universal. The suit, which began in 2021, accused Maddow of acting with actual malice when she reported that Nunes refused to hand over a package he received from Andrii Derkach, a Ukrainian legislator tied to Russian intelligence, to the FBI. U.S. District Judge Kevin Castel dismissed the case, ruling that no reasonable jury could find Maddow or NBC demonstrated constitutionally-defined actual malice. This marks another legal defeat for Nunes, who has previously lost multiple high-profile lawsuits, including cases involving parody accounts on social media and libel claims against Esquire magazine. Maddow has been a consistent critic of President Trump, and Nunes remains a close Trump ally. The dismissal underscores the challenges Nunes faces in proving defamation against media figures reporting on politically sensitive matters.