By Dietrich Knauth
NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Thursday ruled that pro-Trump news site the Gateway Pundit should be dismissed from bankruptcy, exposing the site to lawsuits from election workers and others who faced harassment after the site made false claims that the 2020 U.S. election was stolen.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Mindy Mora ruled that the Gateway Pundit's bankruptcy was a litigation tactic, rather than a good-faith effort to reorganize a struggling business.
The company had about $3 million in annual revenue – enough for owner Jim Hoft to buy a Florida oceanfront condo and a Porsche – and no significant debts other than the lawsuits working their way through other courts, Mora wrote.
"That's not a basis for bankruptcy relief; it's the justice system in operation," Mora wrote.
The Gateway Pundit, which publishes news commentary and conspiracy theories that sit to the far right of U.S. politics, filed for bankruptcy protection in April. Hoft said at the time that the bankruptcy was the result of "progressive liberal lawfare attacks" meant to "silence" his company.
The site, which started as a tiny opinion blog, emerged as a major player in the far-right media universe by bolstering former President Donald Trump's false stolen-election narrative with coverage that generated outrage and helped increase its audience.
Its readership surged to nearly 50 million views a month as it established itself as one of Trump's most dogged promoters in the 2016 presidential race.
The Gateway Pundit faces lawsuits by people who allege they received numerous threats after being vilified in false stories. One of the lawsuits was filed by Ruby Freeman and Wandrea "Shaye" Moss, Georgia election workers who recently won a $148 million defamation verdict against former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani.
Defamation lawsuits have driven several right-wing figures into bankruptcy in recent years, including Giuliani and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.