Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, has asked the Federal Communications Commission to investigate ABC News over a story about the Trump family’s business ties to defense contractor Anduril Industries that the network deleted without explanation and later republished with corrections.
The original story, published last week with the headline “Trump sons’ investments have won billions in Pentagon contracts since his election,” claimed companies linked to Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. had secured billions in government contracts, including through the venture capital firm 1789 Capital, where Trump Jr. is a partner.
Moreno sent a letter to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr demanding answers about how the report was approved and whether ABC News, as a broadcast licensee, violated its obligations.
“Thus, I urge the Commission to open a formal investigation into ABC News’s political hit job. We must know who signed off on the publication of this false story, who may have asked to profit from the attack, and whether ABC News’s conduct violated its obligations as a licensee,” Moreno wrote.
Eric Trump responded to Moreno’s letter on X, writing, “Thank you @berniemoreno — can’t wait to participate!” He also criticized ABC News directly.
“You can’t publish a bulls**t hit-piece, let it spread and go viral, then delete it 24 hours later, under the cover of darkness with no explanation or apology. Who approved it? Has the author been fired? @ABC owes us answers,” Eric Trump wrote.
At the center of the dispute is how ABC News described Anduril’s financing. The original article said 1789 Capital acquired a major stake in Anduril through a $2.5 billion investment. In fact, that figure reflected Anduril’s broader fundraising round; 1789 Capital’s actual investment was approximately $50 million.
ABC News republished a substantially revised version of the story on Friday, acknowledging errors regarding investments, government contracts and the timeline of events. The piece also clarified that Trump Jr. does not sit on 1789 Capital’s investment decision-making committee. The new headline reads, “New shipyard announced amid earlier Democratic concerns about potential conflicts of interest,” and the byline was changed from the original reporter’s name to “ABC News.”
A source at 1789 Capital told Fox News Digital that an ABC News journalist defended the story over the phone before it was deleted. Semafor reported Sunday that editors initially stood by the story, citing emails between ABC News investigative reporter Nathan Lee, who wrote the original piece, and an Anduril spokesperson — a detail that appears to contradict the network’s characterization to other media reporters that the story was published “prematurely.”
ABC News did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
