WASHINGTON, D.C. — Tanden said in a statement: "This threatened lawsuit’s attack on facts and evidence is baseless. A fundamental protection of the First Amendment is to allow for the publication of facts and analysis that are contrary to the arguments and claims of any administration. A lawsuit is a transparent attempt to silence us. We will neither cower nor bend in the face of it." Kevin Metz, general counsel for the Center for American Progress, responded in a letter stating that the defamation allegation is absurd because truth cannot be defamation.

The report noted that violent crime began falling before Donald Trump took office in 2025. Donald Trump announced in August 2025 that National Guard troops would deploy to Washington, D.C. National Guard deployments to Memphis followed the deployments to Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.

The letter stated that the effect of the report's statements was that Donald Trump knowingly deceived the American people, manipulated crime statistics for political advantage, exploited public fear, abused military and executive authority for an ulterior purpose, staged a sham law enforcement operation, and lied about its success. The letter demanded the Center for American Progress immediately retract statements it characterized as false, malicious, and defamatory. The letter stated that failure to retract the report would leave Donald Trump no choice but to seek remedies for overwhelming financial and reputational harm.

Why It Matters

The dispute centers on conflicting assessments of the effectiveness and cost of National Guard deployments under the Trump administration. The Center for American Progress estimates the National Guard deployments will cost taxpayers $1.7 billion, whereas the Department of War reported to Congress that the extended deployment could cost at least $1.4 billion in additional expenses. That is a fall from $1.70 billion to $1.40 billion — 17.6%.

The legal threat raises questions about the boundaries of policy criticism and defamation claims against research organizations. An analysis by the Center for American Progress estimates that the Iran conflict has pushed long-term interest rates about half a percentage point higher than they otherwise would have been. The Center for American Progress calculation estimates the Iran conflict results in an extra $4.6 billion in borrowing costs for households, $12.7 billion for businesses and $30.8 billion for the federal government this year alone.

Timeline

The Center for American Progress was founded in 2003 by John Podesta. The Center for American Progress released a report on July 13 arguing that National Guard deployments in Washington, D.C. Memphis, and Los Angeles failed to have a measurable impact on crime. Donald Trump announced in August 2025 that National Guard troops would deploy to Washington, D.C.

Alejandro Brito, a lawyer for Donald Trump, sent a letter to the Center for American Progress on August 17 threatening a lawsuit unless the organization retracted a report. The Center for American Progress's report, published July 13, 2026, found no evidence that National Guard deployments have reduced violent crime over the past year and estimated that the deployments would cost more than $1.7 billion in taxpayer money if they lasted through the end of 2026.

What's New

The Center for American Progress declined to retract the report.

Donald Trump announced in August 2025 that National Guard troops would deploy to Washington, D.C. National Guard deployments to Memphis followed the deployments to Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. The letter demanded the Center for American Progress immediately retract statements it characterized as false, malicious, and defamatory.

How Sources Differ

Regarding cost estimates for national guard deployments, americanprogress.org states that the Center for American Progress's report, published July 13, 2026, found no evidence that National Guard deployments have reduced violent crime over the past year and estimated that the deployments would cost more than $1.7 billion in taxpayer money if they lasted through the end of 2026.

On the cap response to lawsuit threat, Neera Tanden said that based on analysis of crime data, their report demonstrated facts about the National Guard deployments that are inconvenient to the Trump administration.