[Steely Tom]

As someone right here on FR once said:

You don't threaten to sue.

You sue, and then threaten not to drop the suit.

[DouglasKC]

I hope they put them out of business.

[crz]

All those anon’ sources will have to be brought in front of the court.

If no sources, then he is in a huge pile of shit. Unless they ID’d the book as fiction. Even then they cant get away with it?

[Diogenesis]

"McGinniss, Random House Published (PRE-PLANNED Literary Hoax
In the email below, sent in January of 2011, McGinniss reveals that his manuscript,
then under legal review at Crown/Random House,
could not prove its most headline-grabbing allegations. "

---

"From: Joe McGinniss To: Jesse Griffin
Sent: Thursday, January 27, 2011 6:15 PM
Subject: I have to ask you for help
Jesse–
Legal review of my manuscript is underway and here’s my problem:
no one has ever offered documentation of any of the lurid stories about the Palins.
... I’ve neither seen nor heard anything that indicates that Ms. Tripp’s story has any basis in fact.
... No one has ever provided factual evidence that:
a) Todd had sex with a hooker, or with anyone else outside his marriage.
b) Sarah had an affair with Brad Hanson, or anyone else.
c) Track was a druggie who enlisted in the army to avoid a jail term. Or that he vandalized Wasilla school buses.
d) Willow was involved in the vandalism of the empty house in Meadow Lakes. Or that Sarah rushed back from Hawaii to put the lid on that.
e) Trig is not Sarah’s natural born child.
f) Bristol was promiscuous as a high schooler and drank and used drugs, or became pregnant again after Tripp’s birth.

Jesse, if you can put me in touch with people who are willing
and able to substantiate any of the above, now is the time to do so.
Otherwise, I hope you won’t complain that there are no startling new revelations in my book.
... My book represents the last best chance to put the truth about Sarah in front
of the American people in a documented, verifiable way.
But I need facts that I can rely on.
I didn’t live this long and work this hard over so many decades
to wind up as AlaskaWTF between hard covers.
Joe"

---

SSDD

"In 1987, McGinniss agreed to pay $325,000 to settle a lawsuit brought
by the convicted murderer who was the subject of McGinniss’s book Fatal Vision."

"In 2003, Random House released a larger-than-life, massive bestseller
by James Frey entitled A Million Little Pieces. Later, it was revealed that the book
was a fantastical literary hoax that made its way past some of the highest-paid
and most respected editors and lawyers in the literary world. Doubleday/Random House
felt compelled to offer full refunds to those who had bought the book."

---

[AuH2ORepublican]

*ping*

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

Oh dear. This e-mail does destroy the "Absence of Malice" defense.

You can publish the truth, you can publish things you believe to be true, you can not publish bald face lies knowing that is what you are doing.

[Marty62]

Well it’s about time she whacked the a-holes that have been lying about her for years.

[supremedoctrine]

In the delusional parallel universe McGinnis lives in, he and his publishers probably figured that this book would be
a useful roadblock to a Palin run for the Presidency. I don’t know what advance he got, but I’m sure most of it is already halfway down the drain, if the reviews are any indication-—this tome has already provided a fool’s gold standard for shabbily dishonest, hyper-partisan Sleaze Reportage—it’s as if a 2 page tabloid article was inflated to 100 times the length and given the cache of hardcovers and a dustjacket to buy it respectability. It’s obviously an embarrassment to all concerned if he didn’t get a rousing welcome on, of all places, “The View”. Palin should sue and let the lawyers handle it, but not before a coherent statement is made that makes the most of just what
the partisan intentions were. They obviously thought there was a big enough audience for this book to finance it, and they were wrong about that. They may lose even more, or McGinnis may well lose his advance if a lawsuit is successful and defamation is proved. But Palin should not personally let this take up her time and focus.

[Ronin]

This disturbs me in a vague sort of way. She can run for President, or she can sue the crap out of this scumbag, but I don’t think she can do both simultaneously.

If this letter results in a fast withdrawal of the book and an apology — something they are probably already thinking about in the aftermath of that smoking gun email, well and good. But I really want her to run for President and not get bogged down in a legal battle at this stage.

The book is already dead-in-water and sinking fast. No need to give it more attention than it deserves by appearing to take it seriously.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Because Sarah "quit," she now has enough resources that people who tell lies or file frivolous lawsuits against her will no longer get a free ride.

Sun Tzu taught her well.

"More Soldiers, Fight at Plain Less Soldiers, Fight in Forest"

We are in the "Fight at Plain" stage now.

[Student0165]

Go get ‘em, Sarah. Fight like a mama grizzly!!!

[Will88]

Tiemessen writes in the letter that the email “clearly describes the fact that Mr. McGinniss researched and investigated many false and scurrilous allegations, and concluded that there was absolutely no evidence anywhere backing these allegations.”

I'm continually amazed that so many people will put potentially incriminating information in emails.

[redpoll]

Well, in order for a public figure to sue for libel, the person has to prove “actual malice.”

Normally, that’s very difficult to do, but not in this case.

I’m an Alaskan, and the other book about Alaska written by McGinnis, “Going to Extremes,” was pure crap. The scenes that supposedly took place in the towns where I lived seemed to be based on fantasy and rumor. I can either believe his words or my own eyes.

My fervent hope is that Palin’s lawyers chew him up and turn him into bait. Not that a fish with any respect would bite on it.

[Sola Veritas]

I’m glad she is litigating. This was an obvious case of libel.

My only concern, is if this is an indication that Sarah may not be running for POTUS. Or does it signal just the opposite?

[Al B.]

Ping!

[waterhill]

Sic ‘em Sara, sic ‘em. Bankrupt ‘em.

[wardaddy]

If she did none of the salacious claims that even some nutty folks here think were cool....then she should sue

[BunnySlippers]

Make ‘em pay, Sarah!

[ScottinVA]

Sarah and Todd... McGinniss has written that book to disrupt your lives. Go after him and all the players with a vengeance. Make an example of them by wiping them all out to their last cent.

[DrewsMum]

I hope she has her lawyers throw a letter Levi’s way also....it would be cool if every dime made on that book ended up going to the Palins lol