Judge bars White House ban on CNN, MS NOW and Politico pending trial

Mixed · 2On Tuesday 13 October, US District Judge Timothy Kelly, who was appointed by President Trump, granted CNN, MS NOW and Politico a preliminary injunction that blocks the administration from enforcing its ban on their journalists from White House grounds while the case proceeds. 1 2 Mixed · 2In a 26-page decision, Kelly found the outlets likely to succeed not only on their due process claim but also on their two First Amendment claims. 1 3 Mixed · 2Trump announced the ban on 18 September, saying the outlets were guilty of "constant 'reporting' FAKE NEWS"; the next day, reporters were turned away and their hard passes were deactivated. 1 3

Mixed · 2The outlets sued on 21 September, arguing the ban was retaliation for their coverage and that they had received no notice or chance to respond. Kelly then issued a temporary restraining order, based only on due process, that required the White House to restore hard passes to dozens of reporters and staff; it expired on Tuesday. 1 3 Left · 1The day after the suit was filed, the White House sent letters citing violations of professionalism standards and national security concerns and setting a 25 September response deadline. The Justice Department has argued in court that national security and professionalism, not coverage, were the reasons for the ban. 1 Mixed · 2Kelly found no evidence that Trump decided on national security grounds at the outset. He noted that Trump's 18 September announcement and his answer to a question that day about the "particular reason" did not mention national security, and he said the later use of the phrase appeared to be another way of describing alleged inaccuracy and unfairness. He called national security "merely a post-hoc justification", though not dispositive. 4 1

Left · 1CBS News reported that most of the articles the White House flagged were written by journalists without White House hard passes, and that one flagged Politico story came from a White House-organised press call at which reporters were told to attribute quotes to a "senior administration official". 1 Mixed · 2Kelly wrote that the revocation would likely deter a reasonable reporter from publishing stories Trump objects to. He cited Trump's remarks that the outlets "purposely write negative news" and that he would "love it" if they "could straighten themselves out." 1 4 Centre · 2Kelly also wrote that the ruling should not be read as suggesting Trump's concerns about accuracy and fairness in reporting are unfounded, or that the government is powerless to protect national security when classified information is unlawfully disclosed. 3 5

Left · 1Conor Fitzpatrick of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, speaking on CNN, called the ruling a "comprehensive win for the media organizations". He said the government supplied no evidence for its national security claim, not even ex parte in camera evidence. 6 Left · 1Trump said on Truth Social last month that the Justice Department would appeal if Kelly ruled against him, and the case has not been decided on the merits. CBS also noted a separate dispute in which an appeals court let Trump restrict the Associated Press's access to the Oval Office and Air Force One, though it has not ruled on the merits there. 1