Donald Trump 2024 Campaign

Senior Trump political adviser Chris LaCivita has settled his federal defamation lawsuit against The Daily Beast over a 2024 story alleging he made tens of millions from Trump’s campaign, dropping the case in exchange for the outlet appending an editor’s note but receiving no money. The Virginia suit, filed in March 2025, challenged an article that initially said LaCivita made $22 million, later edited to $19.2 million, and accused the site of damaging his reputation as an "honest" operative. Under the deal, The Daily Beast added a note saying it "corrected and clarified" its reporting on compensation and removed an uneditable podcast episode, while leaving the core story text intact. The outlet’s executive editor told staff the outcome was a victory that showed it would stand by its reporting despite legal threats, while LaCivita’s attorney Mark Geragos publicly cast the note as a "white flag of surrender" and "total capitulation." The case is one of several Trump‑world defamation actions against media organizations in the post‑2024 landscape, and the no‑payout settlement will be read inside newsrooms and campaigns as a data point on how far such suits actually get.