Fresno Bee: “Altogether, Nunes has filed seven lawsuits against media organizations, anonymous online critics, and other political actors. The only case that has concluded is one his campaign filed and dropped against a retired farmer in Nunes’ congressional district who challenged the congressman’s description of himself as a farmer in materials sent to voters. Aside from [the defamation suit against Republican political consultant Liz] Mair, judges have dismissed or greatly diminished three of the cases. Each time, Nunes appealed the decision or attempted to file an amended complaint to restart the case. Defamation attorneys say they are confused by Nunes’ strategy and unsure what he’s trying to accomplish. ‘I think he’s trying to win against large media defendants, I just don’t think he’s very good at it,’ said Steven Krieger, a Virginia defamation attorney. ‘But winning may be a secondary strategy for him as the lawsuits bring attention to an issue that’s important to him.'”

“Paul Levy, an attorney for Public Citizen, a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization, had a different theory about the lawsuits, contending it’s ‘likely true that this is an exercise in intimidation.’ Levy has filed briefs on behalf of Public Citizen in Nunes’ suit against Twitter and two anonymous Twitter accounts known as Devin Nunes’ Cow and Devin Nunes’ Mom, supporting the accounts’ rights to remain anonymous. ‘I think it’s now clear that if you say negative things about Devin Nunes, you darn well better have libel coverage,’ Levy said. ‘Because he has a thin skin, he has a quick trigger finger, and he has no compunction about filing lawsuits for either vindicating his reputation or intimidating his critics.'”