Rep. Lauren Boebert, Colorado Republican, threatened Wednesday to file a defamation lawsuit against an anti-Republican super PAC that accused her of working previously as a paid escort and having two abortions.
Mrs. Boebert released a letter from her attorney to the American Muckrakers PAC and issued a statement denying the “blatantly false and disgusting accusations” posted Tuesday on the group’s “Fire Boebert” website.
“Partisan organizations putting out blatantly false and disgusting accusations won’t stop me from advancing freedom and conservative values,” she said in a statement to The Washington Times. “This group’s vile conduct demonstrates why people are fed up with politics. I am not going to stand by and pretend this is normal behavior.”
In a letter to Muckrakers president David B. Wheeler, Denver attorney Jonathan Anderson said the first-term congresswoman plans to bring a civil defamation claim.
He also warned that the group could also face criminal liability for making false statements about her in letters to Colorado and Utah authorities requesting investigations.
Mr. Anderson said that “we also have evidence, including internal Muckrakers’ text and email communications, that demonstrates Muckrakers did in fact publish statements knowing those statements to be false.”
Mr. Wheeler said Wednesday that the organization stands by its accusations.
“We have received the letter and our legal counsel will respond directly to her counsel,” he said in an email. “We stand by our information.”
He added that it “was Lauren Boebert who created these problems and she never takes any responsibility. It’s also interesting to us that the press had the lawyer’s letter before we did. Coincidence or collaboration?”
Muckrakers was founded last year to defeat Rep. Madison Cawthorn, North Carolina Republican, by Mr. Wheeler and Moe Davis, the Democratic candidate who lost to Mr. Cawthorn in 2020.
After Mr. Cawthorn lost his Republican primary bid last month, the North Carolina-based group announced on its “Fire Madison” website that “Now it’s Lauren Boebert’s turn.”
Mrs. Boebert said the independent-expenditure committee, “funded by far-left Democrat donors and run by two left wing political operatives, published pages of false statements knowing they were completely fabricated.”
“The law on this type of defamation is clear and this conduct will be subject to civil and criminal penalties,” she said.
The group’s Tuesday press release claimed that she worked as an “unlicensed, paid escort” and underwent two abortions, citing its “exhaustive investigation and a tip from a verified source close to the matter.”
“All the facts came from a source we trust and others on our team know,” said the group in a Wednesday update. “We verified the abortion claims with another source. We stand by our story. We’ve not seen nor heard anything that would refute our allegations. If we do, we’ll let you know.
Muckrakers also said it had removed a photo of a woman originally identified as Mrs. Boebert that “we have been told is someone else.”
“We have contacted the Daily Mail to confirm the identity of the photo as our source still claims it is Boebert,” said Muckrakers in its post.
In his letter, Mrs. Boebert’s attorney refuted a dozen accusations made by Muckrakers about Mrs. Boebert, including claims that she worked as an escort; that she met Sen. Ted Cruz through a client who belonged to the Koch family; and that she had abortions in 2009 and “2004 or 2005.”
Mr. Anderson said Mrs. Boebert, who has four sons, was pregnant during those times.
“To be clear, Rep. Boebert was pregnant with her first son in 2004 and 2005 and he was born in 2005, she was pregnant with her third son in 2008 and 2009 and he was born in 2009, and she has never had an abortion,” Mr. Anderson said in the letter.
Mr. Anderson said his client has “irrefutable evidence that each one of these statements is patently false.”
“Muckrakers’ sloppy, reckless, and wildly irresponsible actions have created substantial legal liability for Muckrakers, David Wheeler in his personal capacity, and each donor to the organization who chose to fund the effort knowing it would result in defamation,” the letter to Mr. Wheeler said.
Muckrakers had raised nearly $191,000 as of the April 27 reporting deadline, according to the Federal Election Commission.
The congresswoman faces a June 28 primary challenge from Republican state Sen. Don Coram in her bid for a second term.
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.
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