Overview

• Chris LaCivita, a senior adviser for Donald Trump's 2024 campaign, filed a defamation lawsuit against The Daily Beast on March 24, 2025, in U.S. District Court in Virginia.
• The lawsuit alleges that The Daily Beast falsely suggested LaCivita personally profited $22 million from Trump campaign funds, later corrected to $19.2 million, damaging his reputation and business.
• LaCivita claims that most of the funds attributed to his firm, Advancing Strategies LLC, were used for campaign advertising and vendor payments, not personal income.
• The Daily Beast has labeled the lawsuit as meritless, standing by its reporting and signaling plans to involve Trump and his aides in the discovery process.
• This legal action is part of a broader trend of Trump and his allies using litigation to confront media outlets over perceived inaccuracies or damaging narratives.