Defend Democracy Against MAGA Lawsuits

This fundraiser arises from our legal defense of FRED WELLMAN, the former Executive Director of The Lincoln Project, as an example of offensive MAGA litigation warfare, as described below.

Enforcement of the rule of law is an important and valuable principle in our Democracy. Unfortunately, the law can be abused as a weapon to try and intimidate those who stand up against government corruption and misconduct.

As part of MAGA’s efforts to silence those who challenge their actions to undermine Democracy, President Trump’s former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, who in 2017 pled guilty to a felony count of “willfully and knowingly” making false statements to the FBI (and was subsequently pardoned by President Trump in 2020) has filed a defamation lawsuit against Fred in the U.S. District Court of the Middle District of Florida.

Many of you know Fred, as noted above, as the former Executive Director of The Lincoln Project (an organization created to protect the American Republic from Donald Trump and those who identify (publicly or privately) as MAGA supporters) but he is also a highly decorated West Point graduate and 22-year Army combat veteran as well. Over his career in uniform, he served from the troop level to the Pentagon including combat tours in Operation Desert Storm and three deployments in Operation Iraqi Freedom as a combat helicopter pilot and spokesman. Fred retired as a Lt. Colonel and launched an award-winning veteran’s advocacy firm that was instrumental in supporting companies and nonprofits fighting everything from veteran’s homelessness to wounded warrior’s healthcare for nearly a decade until he joined the Lincoln Project, which he left in 2021.

Mark S. Zaid, PC (Washington, D.C.) is representing Fred pro bono (i.e., no legal fees are charged to him) to defend him against this intimidation effort. Our law firm has been continually and actively standing up to former President Donald J. Trump and his allies since 2017. Among others, the Zaid law firm represented the Intelligence Community whistleblower whose complaint led to President Trump’s first impeachment, several U.S. Capitol Police officials who helped defend the U.S. Capitol including the late Officer Brian Sicknick, who died in the aftermath of the attempted January 6th insurrection, and defended Olivia Troye against a defamation lawsuit brought by Trump’s former Ambassador to Germany Rick Grenell. The firm has also represented several of Trump’s former Cabinet Officers to ensure their books were published for the American people and the world to read.

This lawsuit is just one of many MAGA has been filing to silence those protecting American Democracy. The Binnall Law Group (Alexandria, Virginia), which is representing Mr. Flynn, has been repeatedly filing or defending lawsuits on behalf of the MAGA world, including for prominent public officials such as President Trump, Ambassador Grenell, former Congressman Devin Nunes and Kash Patel. The rule of law cannot be subverted by those who seek to undermine our country. Our plan is do more than just defend Fred and we will embark upon an aggressive response, to include seeking sanctions against Mr. Flynn and his attorneys, and pursue all available avenues to expose those who are financially bankrolling these litigious efforts.

Litigation of any sort becomes expensive very quickly. There will be countless legal hours devoted to this effort and especially out-of-pocket costs for travel and possibly many depositions, as well as payments to local counsel. We would not be able to defend these types of lawsuits without the assistance of the public. Please help us fight back against MAGA by contributing even a small donation. As we inch closer to 2024, help us use the judicial system to make a difference and preserve our Democracy.