DOJ seeks to defend Trump in suit by E. Jean Carroll, who has accused him of sexual assault

[link to www.nbcnews.com (secure)]

The Justice Department filed court documents Tuesday seeking to represent President Donald Trump in a lawsuit brought by E. Jean Carroll, who claimed he sexually assaulted her in the 1990s.

The Justice Department, which is supposed to act as an independent federal law enforcement agency, argued that under the Federal Tort Claims Act, or FTCA, its lawyers can usurp Trump's private legal team and change the venue from New York state court to U.S. District Court in Manhattan.

"Because President Trump was acting within the scope of his office or employment at the time of the incident out of which the plaintiff's claim arose, the United States will file a motion to substitute itself for President Trump in this action for any claim for which the FTCA provides the exclusive remedy," the department argued in court documents.

The federal act gives federal government employees immunity from lawsuits. However, it is highly unusual for the Justice Department to intervene in a private legal matter on behalf of a sitting president.