Current defamation law delivers almost unlimited latitude into the hands of a judge hearing a case. It's not really about what a speaker says but about who the speaker is. Had the roles of the plaintiff and defendants been reversed in this case the judge has the power to arrange a completely different outcome. The left is not safe from this either because it all depends on the politics of the day and who is in political favor and who is not.
The left would have no thesis if they did not provoke discussions and then plagiarized by default in deleting the other side. They bait and kill. Never go to a forum there unless you know what you are doing or what they will do in the end.