Sheldon Adelson sues Jewish Democratic group
Sheldon Adelson is suing the National Jewish Democratic
Council for defamation.
Lawyers for Adelson, the casino magnate and major
Republican donor, had sent a warning letter to the NJDC and to the Democratic
Congressional Campaign Committee last week after each body publicly stated that
Adelson had approved of prostitution at his properties in Macau, China. That
allegation appeared in a lawsuit file by a former Adelson employee, Steven
Jacobs, who had managed Adelson's Macau business until being fired in 2010.
The DCCC apologized last week for referencing the
allegation in press releases sent June 22 and July 2 that called on Republicans
not to take Adelson's money. But NJDC has refused to excise the allegation from
an online petition calling on Republicans to stop accepting money from Adelson.
Adelson filed the defamation lawsuit this week; the NJDC
shared news of the lawsuit in a statement sent to reporters.
"Referencing mainstream press accounts examining the
conduct of a public figure and his business ventures -- as we did -- is wholly
appropriate," NJDC said in a statement. "Indeed, it is both an
American and a Jewish obligation to ask hard questions of powerful individuals
like Mr. Adelson, just as it is incumbent upon us to praise his wonderful philanthropic
endeavors."
The statement called Adelson's lawsuit a "strategic
lawsuit against public participation," or SLAPP, a term used for legal
maneuvers aimed not at obtaining justice but silence.
"We know that we were well within our rights, and we
will defend ourselves against this SLAPP suit as far and as long as
necessary," NJDC said. "We simply will not be bullied, and we will
not be silenced."
Adelson's publicist, Ron Reese, had no immediate comment.
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