The U.S. Supreme Court declined on Tuesday to hear Republican former Iowa congressman Steve King's bid to avoid paying a small judgment for having used without permission an internet meme - the "Success Kid" photo of a determined-looking 11-month-old baby at the beach - to promote his 2020 reelection campaign.

The controversial former congressman said the mother of "Success Kid" singled him out for "lawfare" after promoting the meme for billions of other uses.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to revive former Rep. Steve King’s (R-Iowa) bid to receive attorneys’ fees in a copyright fight that stemmed from a meme posted by his campaign. A jury ordered King’s campaign to pay $750 for using the “Success Kid” meme in its fundraising materials,