It turns out that Fox News and Tucker Carlson used this defense when Carlson was sued for defamation by former Playboy model Karen McDougal. She claimed Carlson had defamed her in 2018 by suggesting she was extorting then President Donald Trump based on the allegation that he'd had an affair with her.
That was actually a little different because Carlson was talking on TV, his show was known to be more about opinion than fact and he wasn’t making the claims in court or at supposedly serious news conferences. The court found in the Carlson case:"The Court concludes that the statements are rhetorical hyperbole and opinion commentary intended to frame a political debate, and, as such, are not actionable as defamation,"
I don’t think any “reasonable person” would have taken what Powell said as “rhetorical hyperbole” or “opinion commentary.” If the court allows this defense for Powell then I’ll be very surprised. Not shocked, because stranger stuff has happened, but very surprised.
If the court does accept this then defamation in a political context would almost cease to exist. I can claim any political statement, regardless of how derogatory, to be “opinion commentary intended to frame a political debate.”
I think the judge was wrong in the Carlson case as well but to accept this defense in Powell’s case would be really ridiculous.
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