The press dehumanization of anyone associated with Trump continues unabated. The intent is threefold.
1. To serve as a warning for anyone in the future to stay out of conservative administrations or have your life destroyed.
2. To continue to try and delegitimize Trump as literally Hitler thru accusations of racism, etc. that they are made up accusations is irrelevant to the propaganda.
3. To agitate the real crazies on the Left into an assassination attempt against Trump in particular or Republicans in general. If this occurred, the MSM would tisk-tisk the event as unfortunate, but understandable considering the decisive politics of Trump, which of course they inflamed.
The MSM is like a deranged arsonist waving around a lit match in a warehouse full of propane tanks.
You nailed it!
Still, I think to win a lawsuit you'd have to prove the AP story was false and they knew it was false.