France's First Couple Sues Candace Owens

French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, have filed a 22-count defamation lawsuit against US conservative commentator Candace Owens in a Delaware court. The Macrons allege that Owens has repeatedly spread false claims about them, using the resulting controversy to boost her media profile and monetize her audience. Owens, known for her provocative style, asserted earlier this year that she would "stake [her] entire professional reputation on the fact that Brigitte Macron is in fact a man," per the suit, which accuses her of continuing to amplify this claim through her platforms, including an eight-part podcast series, the Guardian reports.

• According to the lawsuit, Owens' "far-fetched fictions included that Mrs Macron was born a man, stole another person's identity, and transitioned to become Brigitte; Mrs Macron and President Macron are blood relatives committing incest; President Macron was chosen to be the President of France as part of the CIA-operated MKUltra program or a similar mind-control program; and Mrs Macron and President Macron are committing forgery, fraud, and abuses of power to conceal these secrets."
• In a statement, a lawyer for the Macrons said they had demanded Owens retract the statements and had provided her with "incontrovertible evidence disproving her allegations and proving, among other things, that Mrs. Macron was born a woman named Brigitte Trogneux, that she is not a blood relative of President Macron," per CNN.

The lawsuit states that after the Macrons repeatedly asked Owens to retract her remarks, she instead "mocked them and used them as additional fodder for her frenzied fan base." In their statement, the couple argued legal action was their only remaining option after Owens refused to back down, describing her conduct as a calculated campaign for attention that has caused them "tremendous damage." They are seeking punitive damages against Owens and her businesses. A spokesperson for Owens slammed the lawsuit as a "foreign government attacking the First Amendment rights of an American independent journalist," Politico reports.