According to Dallas Morning News, Tomi Lahren is suing Glenn Beck and his conservative media network, The Blaze, for wrongful termination.
The former commentator, who was "banned for life" from The Blaze after serving a one-week suspension after making pro-choice comments as a guest on ABC's "The View," hasn't specifically addressed the lawsuit, but she did appear to throw a jab at her former employer on Friday afternoon.
"Lay down and play dead isn't my style," tweeted Lahren.
Lawsuit claims Beck embarked on a smear campaign against Lahren
The Daily Caller has reported that Lahren's lawsuit claims she is also suing Beck because he “embarked on a public smear campaign" by attacking Lahren on the air and undermined the 24-year-old commentator's reach to her audience on social media.
In March, TMZ reported that Glenn Beck cut off Lahren's access to her Facebook page, effectively holding Lahren's 4.2 million followers hostage. Lahren's Facebook page, which is owned by The Blaze, could have a significant impact on Lahren's ability to connect with her audience if and when she decides to take her talents to a new employer.
The lawsuit also argues that the expression of one's pro-choice comments is not just causing for a suspension or termination of employment.
Lahren is also suing for control of her Facebook page.
The Blaze finds the whole situation puzzling
After news of Lahren's lawsuit broke, The Blaze issued its statement, reading, in part: “It is puzzling that an employee who remains under contract (and is still being paid) has sued us for being fired."
Obviously, Glenn Beck and his team are merely playing with semantics; although Lahren is still being paid, by keeping her off air The Blaze is preventing Lahren from working, and by keeping her under contract, Beck is also preventing the popular political commentator from working for another employer.
From a legal perspective, this is known as de facto termination. While she has not been fired in the technical sense of the word, she might as well have been, because the result is the same.
Lahren's departure will undoubtedly impact Beck's struggling network. After Lahren had been suspended, Page Six reported that The Blaze's website lost more than two-thirds of its audience since the presidential election.
Beck's radio show has seen a similar decline. During the recent election, Glenn Beck was a vocal member of the "Never Trump" movement, much to the chagrin of a large segment of his audience.
Sources with direct knowledge of the matter claim that Lahren was already on her way out, due to frequent clashes with a staff of The Blaze. Her contract with Beck's company is set to expire on September 30.
