Dow Jones defended the Wall Street Journal's reporting in a lawsuit brought by Donald Trump. Photo: AP PHOTO

The Wall Street Journal has asked a US judge to dismiss President Donald Trump's lawsuit alleging the newspaper defamed him in a July 17 article asserting Trump's name was on a 2003 birthday greeting for the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, calling the case a threat to freedom of speech.

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"This meritless lawsuit threatens to chill the speech of those who dare to publish content that the President does not like," lawyers for the Journal and its billionaire owner

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