Smartmatic Lawyer Tells Tapper They Want MORE Than $787.5 Million From Fox — And Will Be Demanding a Full Retraction and Apology

Fox News settled the defamation lawsuit filed by Dominion Voting Systems for a whopping $787.5 million, but left many of its critics seething with frustration when the network was not forced to apologize on air. But those angry voices may still find satisfaction because of the other whopper of a defamation suit still looming over Fox — and the plaintiff’s lead counsel vowed to seek retractions and apologies from Rupert Murdoch’s company in addition to a massive pile of cash.

Dominion sued Fox for $1.6 billion over twenty statements that aired on the Fox News Channel and Fox Business Network accusing their company of helping perpetrate fraud in the 2020 election. Right as the blockbuster trial was set to begin in Delaware — a jury had been picked — the judge announced that the parties had reached a settlement.

But prior to that settlement, pre-trial discovery uncovered a shocking trove of communications between Fox’s executives and on-air talent, admitting that they knew former President Donald Trump had lost the election and his claims of fraud were unfounded. In March, the judge issued a summary judgment ruling that was broadly viewed as devastating to Fox, finding that all twenty of the statements Fox made on air about Dominion were statements of fact and not protected opinion, and that it was “CRYSTAL clear” (emphasis in original) they were all false and constituted defamation per se.

Smartmatic, another voting technology company, has also sued Fox for $2.7 billion, arguing that it was “grievously harmed because of the deranged lies Fox aired,” said CNN anchor Jake Tapper Thursday afternoon as he introduced Erik Connolly, Smartmatic’s lead trial attorney.

Fox issued a statement Wednesday about the Smartmatic lawsuit, defiantly defending its coverage of the 2020 election with wording that strongly echoed the arguments it put forth in the Dominion case, claiming that the accusations against Smartmatic it aired were “extremely newsworthy” and the company’s damages claims were “implausible, disconnected from reality, and on its face intended to chill First Amendment freedoms.”

Tapper asked Connolly if Smartmatic would be able to “use what Dominion already dug up — all the depositions and text messages and emails showing that executives at Fox and hosts of Fox knew that they were airing lies for months on end.”

“Absolutely,” Connolly replied, saying that Dominion’s “shocking” evidence, had painted “a damning picture for Fox” and would be part of what they would use to show Smartmatic’s case was “as strong as possible.”

Smartmatic’s case was “really unique,” Connolly argued, because of the “recklessness” of Fox, since the company was “in L.A. County, L.A. County only, and you can confirm that we are in L.A. County only by doing about a one-minute Google search,” but Fox nonetheless had been “saying that we somehow masterminded an ability to rig a national election.”

Tapper brought up how he had interviewed the Dominion CEO John Poulos on Wednesday and asked him why the company hadn’t demanded an on-air apology and correction from Fox, and if after watching the Dominion case, if Smartmatic would be pushing for an apology and correction.

Connolly replied that he wanted everybody to “think of the long haul here,” as Smartmatic was.

“They are looking to take this case through trial,” he explained. “They are looking through the vindication of a jury verdict in their favor…that was their intention when they filed this lawsuit. That is their intention today.”

The attorney continued, saying it was “equally important” how Smartmatic was also wanting to be in the elections technology business for the long haul, and had “spent over 20 years building a global reputation as being one of the very best election technology companies in the world.”

That reputation was “critical to them,” said Connolly, “and in order for them to get back to where they were before this all started, where they can win the contracts that they’re now losing, they need to get an apology, they need to get a full retraction, because they’re in that business for the long haul….this is a family owned business that have spent their whole lives building this.”

Tapper asked him if Fox offered Smartmatic $787.5 million as a settlement — the same figure Dominion scored — but no apology or correction, would they take it?

Connolly replied that number was a “tremendous outcome for Dominion, and from our perspective that set down a marker — and it’s a marker that we think we should be exceeding,” because the “scope of the damage done by Fox to Smartmatic” was on a global scale because Smartmatic operates on a global scale and Dominion’s settlement was to compensate for the business they were losing just in the United States.

That number, $787 million, was “a good start” for a potential Smartmatic settlement, “but it’s not the right finishing point,” said Connolly.

Tapper closed the interview by urging Connolly not to settle: “Don’t forget about the American people. Don’t forget about the people who care about democracy. Don’t forget about the people who care about truth, because we don’t have an ability to sue for those lies. You do, but we don’t, so please don’t forget about us, when you’re when you’re coming up with the end of this case.”

“Thank you very much, sir,” replied Connolly. “We won’t.”

Reached for comment, a spokesperson for Fox sent Mediaite the same statement the network had previously released:

We will be ready to defend this case surrounding extremely newsworthy events when it goes to trial, likely in 2025. As a report prepared by our financial expert shows, Smartmatic’s damages claims are implausible, disconnected from reality, and on its face intended to chill First Amendment freedoms.

Watch above via CNN.

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