Michael Wolff, the controversial author famous for his insider accounts of the Trump White House, has escalated his legal battle against former First Lady Melania Trump by announcing plans to subpoena and question her under oath.

This development comes in the wake of Michael Wolff’s legal response to Melania Trump’s team, which had initially threatened him with a $1 billion defamation lawsuit.

During an exclusive chat on the Daily Beast’s Inside Trump’s Head podcast, Wolff elaborated on his legal approach and its broader implications. “My attorneys have filed a lawsuit against the First Lady,” Wolff stated unequivocally. He clarified that the countersuit leverages New York’s anti-SLAPP statutes, which safeguard against lawsuits intended to suppress free speech. Wolff contends that Melania’s legal threat is precisely such a tactic, describing it as a bid to stifle him. “Her lawsuit is a SLAPP suit—designed to silence me,” he expressed.

Wolff’s claims arise from numerous interviews with Epstein, which contributed to his 2018 bestseller, Fire and Fury. He recounted Epstein’s claim that he and Trump were deeply involved in each other’s social, sexual, and business affairs, indicating a long-standing, complex relationship.

The legal skirmish began after Melania’s lawyers issued a warning to Wolff’s team, threatening a defamation suit over his podcast remarks, which they argued included “false, defamatory, and lewd statements.” The warning demanded that Wolff retract his assertion that Melania first met Trump aboard Epstein’s notorious “Lolita Express” aircraft—a claim that has stirred significant media interest.

Wolff criticized these threats as a common intimidation tactic employed by the Trump camp to mute dissenters, commenting, “They sue the press, and the press gets quiet.” Despite the challenging legal battle ahead, Wolff remains steadfast, arguing that the lawsuit aims to obscure the truth about the Epstein narrative.

Wolff condemned these threats as a “trick in the book” regularly used by the Trump camp to intimidate and silence critics, noting, “They sue the media and the media goes quiet.” Despite the daunting nature of the litigation, Wolff refused to back down, emphasizing that the lawsuit was an effort by the Trumps to “cover up” the Epstein saga.

Legal experts point out that this countersuit is significant because it targets a sitting First Lady—an unprecedented move that underscores the high-stakes nature of the dispute. Wolff is pushing for the court to dismiss Melania’s defamation threats under anti-SLAPP provisions and to impose punitive damages, asserting the claims “lack substantial basis in law or in fact.”

The Daily Beast, which initially aired the contentious podcast episode titled “Trump’s Epstein Scandal Can’t Stop Won’t Stop,” subsequently removed the episode and retracted portions of the coverage following complaints from the First Lady’s attorneys. They apologized to the First Lady and readers, noting the episode “did not meet our standards.”

Wolff’s suit aims not only to defend his right to free speech but also to compel transparency about Epstein-related matters that have long eluded public scrutiny. He described the lawsuit as “an opportunity to reconstruct their lives together.”

With subpoena power, Wolff could also extend his inquiry to Epstein’s alleged accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, and other figures connected to the infamous social circle. “Everybody who was involved in that circle during that time period is someone who we’ll certainly think about calling,” Wolff said.

As this lawsuit unfolds, it promises to reopen blistering debates about the Trumps’ ties to Epstein and the lengths to which they will go to suppress inconvenient truths. Wolff’s determination to continue the investigation despite mounting legal pressure serves as a litmus test for free speech and accountability among America’s political elite.