Trump-Appointed Judge Blocks White House Ban on Three News Outlets

Caption: CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia, photographed in March 2019. Credit: Warren LeMay, via Wikimedia Commons, CC0 1.0.

A federal judge appointed by President Donald Trump has temporarily blocked the White House from excluding journalists from CNN, MS NOW and Politico. U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly found that the three organizations were likely to succeed in their constitutional challenge to the ban, allowing their journalists to regain the disputed White House access. The administration says it plans to appeal.

Three Newsrooms Regain White House Access

The dispute began after Trump criticized the outlets’ coverage and the administration revoked their White House credentials.

CNN, MS NOW and Politico challenged the decision in court, arguing that the White House had excluded their journalists because officials objected to their reporting.

The organizations maintained that the restrictions amounted to retaliation against news coverage the administration disliked.

Kelly’s order blocks enforcement of the challenged exclusion, restoring the journalists’ access to White House grounds while the lawsuit continues.

The Judge Questions the White House’s Justification

Kelly found that the news organizations were likely to succeed on claims involving the First and Fifth Amendments.

The decision examined the administration’s national-security justification alongside public statements made about the outlets and their coverage.

The judge concluded that the organizations had presented a sufficiently strong constitutional case to warrant temporary protection while the court considers the underlying dispute.

The order does not guarantee access to every restricted presidential event. It addresses the broader exclusion challenged in the lawsuit.

The White House Plans to Appeal

The administration criticized Kelly’s ruling and said it intends to challenge the decision on appeal.

For now, the three news organizations can resume the White House access covered by the injunction. The next significant development will be whether an appeals court changes that order while the lawsuit proceeds.

References: Judge blocks Trump’s White House ban targeting CNN, MS NOW and Politico, saying it likely violated First Amendment | Judge extends order blocking Trump from banning CNN, MS NOW and Politico reporters from White House