Rudy Giuliani vehemently denied on Wednesday the veracity of a New York Times report that said for more than a decade his friends worried the ex-New York City mayor’s “drinking had been a problem.”
The Times report highlighted how prosecutors in the federal election case against former President Donald Trump have shown an interest in Giuliani’s drinking, particularly given claims that Giuliani appeared inebriated while advising Trump on election night.
In a press conference on Wednesday, Giuliani hit back at the article, calling it “a malicious lie.”
“I do not have an alcohol problem, I have never had an alcohol problem,” Giuliani continued. “And the reason I have told you what I have achieved is, nobody could have achieved that if they did. When the hell was I drinking? I was working 24 hours a day.”
Giuliani went on to describe the story as “a big damn lie by a newspaper that’s a disgrace” before criticizing Times reporter Maggie Haberman, though not by name. Haberman was one of two journalists to have a byline on the story.
He said that if it wasn’t for the precedent established by the Supreme Court’s 1964 New York Times v. Sullivan ruling, which found that the First Amendment limits public officials’ ability to sue for defamation, “then she should be sued for libel.”
“She should also be thrown out of the profession for being a damn liar, but that’s okay,” Giuliani added.
The embattled former mayor’s remarks came during a press conference he held to announce that he was suing President Joe Biden for calling him a “Russian pawn” during a 2020 presidential debate, which he said cost him clients and podcast listeners.
However, during the press conference, the most anyone could focus on was his suit, which contained an odd stripe.
He has not determined the exact amount he is seeking but said at the press conference that “it’s in the millions and billions of dollars.”
The lawsuit comes amid reports of Giuliani’s financial woes following massive legal bills stemming from his work defending Trump’s false claim that widespread voter fraud cost him the 2020 election.
In August, Giuliani listed his Upper East Side apartment for $6.5 million. And a month later, his former lawyers sued him for $1.36 million in unpaid legal fees.
