Eric Trump is demanding answers from ABC News after the network published an inaccurate report linking his family’s business investments to billions of dollars in Pentagon contracts, then quietly removed the article before releasing a substantially revised version.
The president’s son publicly supported Republican Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio on Monday after the lawmaker called for a formal Federal Communications Commission investigation into the Disney-owned network’s reporting practices.
The controversy began October 7, when ABC published an investigative article examining investments associated with Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. The report suggested that companies connected to the brothers had received billions of dollars in federal defense contracts since President Trump returned to the White House.
One of the central claims involved Anduril Industries, a defense technology company that manufactures military equipment, autonomous weapons systems and other advanced technology for the Pentagon.
ABC originally reported that 1789 Capital, a venture capital firm where Donald Trump Jr. serves as a partner, had obtained a major ownership stake in Anduril through a $2.5 billion investment.
That figure was incorrect. The $2.5 billion represented Anduril’s overall fundraising round, which involved numerous investors, while 1789 Capital’s actual investment was approximately $50 million.
The distinction substantially changed the financial relationship described in the original article and prompted criticism from representatives of the investment firm.
ABC removed the report from its website Thursday after questions emerged about the accuracy of its claims. The network subsequently published a heavily revised version Friday, acknowledging factual errors involving investment amounts, federal contracts and the chronology of certain transactions.
The revised article also clarified that Donald Trump Jr. does not serve on 1789 Capital’s investment decision-making committee, an important distinction in evaluating his involvement in the firm’s financial activities.
The updated story appeared under a different headline focusing on a newly announced shipyard and Democratic concerns about potential conflicts of interest. The original reporter’s byline was replaced with a general ABC News attribution.
Eric Trump sharply criticized the network’s handling of the controversy, arguing that ABC allowed damaging allegations about his family to circulate widely before removing the original report.
Responding to Moreno’s request for an investigation, Eric Trump thanked the senator and said he looked forward to participating in the process.
He accused ABC of publishing a politically motivated attack and allowing it to spread across social media before deleting it without adequately explaining what had gone wrong.
Eric Trump also demanded to know who approved the original report, whether the journalist responsible had faced disciplinary action and why the network had not offered what he considered a sufficient apology.
Moreno raised similar concerns in a letter to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, urging federal regulators to investigate the circumstances surrounding the original publication and subsequent corrections.
The Ohio Republican accused ABC of misleading readers about the Trump family’s financial interests and questioned whether the network had fulfilled its responsibilities as a licensed broadcaster.
Moreno argued that the public deserved an explanation of how the inaccurate information reached publication, who approved the report and whether any individuals had improperly influenced its preparation.
His letter also raised questions about the potential economic consequences of the reporting, particularly for Anduril’s major manufacturing investments in Ohio.
Anduril is developing a large production facility known as Arsenal-1 in the state, with plans to invest nearly $1 billion and create more than 4,000 jobs.
Moreno maintained that inaccurate reporting about the company’s financial relationships could damage its reputation and create unnecessary uncertainty surrounding an important economic development project.
The dispute has also drawn attention to the editorial decisions made inside ABC News before the original article was withdrawn.
According to reporting about communications between ABC investigative journalist Nathan Lee and an Anduril spokesperson, editors initially defended the story despite objections to its characterization of the company’s financing.
Those communications have raised additional questions about the network’s explanation that the report had been published prematurely.
Representatives of 1789 Capital have disputed the original reporting and criticized ABC for confusing the total size of a corporate fundraising round with the amount invested by one participating firm.
The controversy comes amid broader scrutiny of business relationships involving members of the Trump family and companies receiving federal contracts.
Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump have invested in businesses operating in defense technology, including companies developing drones and other equipment used by the military.
Democratic lawmakers and government ethics advocates have questioned whether those financial relationships create potential conflicts of interest because their father oversees the executive branch responsible for federal contracting.
The Trump family has rejected suggestions of improper influence, maintaining that President Trump is not personally involved in his sons’ private investment decisions.
Although ABC’s original reporting contained significant factual errors, the corrections do not resolve every broader question about potential conflicts of interest involving politically connected investors and federal contractors.
The dispute over ABC’s reporting also comes during an ongoing legal confrontation between Disney and the FCC.
Disney has challenged the commission’s decision to require early license-renewal applications from ABC-owned television stations, arguing that the regulatory action threatens the network’s editorial independence and violates First Amendment protections.
The FCC has defended its regulatory authority, while ABC has accused the commission of using its oversight powers to pressure a news organization over coverage disliked by the Trump administration.
That separate legal dispute could complicate calls for another federal investigation involving the network.
The FCC licenses individual broadcast stations, but its authority over news reporting is limited by federal law and constitutional protections for freedom of the press. Publishing an inaccurate article does not automatically establish a violation of broadcasting regulations.
Moreno nevertheless maintains that the seriousness of the errors and the way ABC handled the corrections justify additional scrutiny.
ABC did not immediately provide a new public response to Eric Trump’s latest criticism or the senator’s demand for an investigation.
The network has acknowledged errors in its revised reporting, but questions remain about its internal review process and the editorial decisions that led to publication of the original article.
For Eric Trump, the controversy has become a broader argument about accountability in political journalism. He maintains that news organizations should face meaningful scrutiny when inaccurate reporting involving public figures spreads widely before being corrected.
Moreno’s request now places the issue before federal regulators, although the FCC has not announced whether it will open a formal investigation.
As the dispute continues, the controversy highlights the importance of accurately distinguishing between private investments, corporate fundraising and government contracts, particularly when reporting involves the president’s family and companies doing business with the federal government.
The post Eric Trump Blasts ABC News Over False Pentagon Contract Claims, Backs Republican Senator’s Demand for FCC Investigation appeared first on Real News Now.
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