The war of words between Donald Trump and Rosie O’Donnell is an interesting one. It started when O’Donnell slammed Trump’s decision to let Miss USA keep the title after drug- and sex-related incidents. O’Donnell alleged he’d filed for bankruptcy and that he’d had extramarital affairs. You can see Trump’s response — in which he calls her “unattractive,” threatens to steal her girlfriend, promises to sue and basically comes off like a 13-year-old — here. (Sue me, Donald.)

Judging from Trump’s statements he plans to sue for slander, though he hasn’t come out and said what grounds the lawsuit will rest on. He disputes the bankruptcy allegation.

This is unlikely to succeed for a number of reasons.

For one, truth is basically an absolute defense against a slander allegation. I can’t find evidence Trump ever personally filed bankruptcy (this TIME article says no, Wikipedia says he came “to the brink”).

But it’s an absolute fact that Trump’s company has filed bankruptcy, twice. So the statement that Trump has “filed for bankruptcy,” without the word “personally,” is quite arguably truthful.

Also, Trump is a public figure who has been prominent in the media for something like two decades. He voluntarily started a huge network TV show. This means he’ll be held to the “actual malice” standard, having to prove not only that Rosie was wrong, but that she knew she was wrong or made the statement with “reckless disregard” for the truth.

Considering Trump vs. his company is an easy mistake to make, it will be hard to show that Rosie went out of her way to say something false.

Trump knows all of this, and maybe he plans to sue on some other grounds with a lower burden of proof, but it’s likely the whole thing is a publicity stunt.

It also, however, fits into his reputation as a bully. John Stossel has documented how Trump has tried to use the government to force people from their homes — to make room for Trump’s casinos. When Stossel confronted Trump, Trump responded, “no one talks to me that way.”

I quite enjoyed the second season of The Apprentice; Trump’s firing Bradford was probably the most brilliant reality TV moment I’ve ever seen. But the guy has some serious ego problems (with that hair, I wouldn’t call anyone else “unattractive”).

It would be nice to see Rosie cut down to size though. The whole gun-grabbing thing really gets to me.

Robert VerBruggen blogs at http://www.therationale.com and http://robertsrationale.blogspot.com.

UPDATE: I’ve just noticed how often Trump plays the “she’s ugly” card, to the degree of using the term “fat slob.” Why is there no Kramer-style oh-my-god reaction here?

Awhile back I made the point that Michael Richards’s problem wasn’t in telling off the hecklers — they deserved it — but in using terminology that insulted an entire community. Trump is doing the same thing, but it’s OK, because it’s socially acceptable to insult the unattractive and overweight.