Media Outlets Stand Up to Authoritarian Trump Over White House Access Ban
Select a version of the text written from a presumed ideological perspective. This is not the original text, but a hypothetical version — how someone with that viewpoint might have phrased it. Tapping the current version again will return to the original or select cleaned version.
MS NOW, CNN, and Politico are courageously suing President Trump in federal court, challenging his undemocratic ban on their journalists from the White House and exposing violations of the First Amendment and due process.
Three major news organizations—MS NOW, CNN, and Politico—are bravely filing a joint lawsuit in Washington federal court on Monday, demanding that a judge overturn President Donald Trump's latest attack on press freedom: banning their reporters from the White House. The outlets assert that this arbitrary and authoritarian ban, announced on Friday, was imposed without any notice, due process, or transparent standards, constituting a blatant violation of constitutional protections for a free press.
The complaint highlights that the President’s action is a direct assault on the First Amendment, punishing these outlets for their critical reporting and discriminating against them based on their viewpoints. It further alleges a violation of the Due Process Clause, as the journalists were denied any advance notice or opportunity to contest the revocation of their hard-pass credentials, which are essential for holding those in power accountable.
"The First Amendment prohibits the president from punishing journalists because he doesn't like their coverage," said Jameel Jaffer, executive director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University.
"The American people, through a free and independent press, must be able to scrutinize those elected to power," said Jacqui Heinrich, president of the White House Correspondents' Association.
The lawsuit names President Trump, his communications aide Steven Cheung, White House chief of staff Susan Wiles, and Secret Service director Sean Curran as defendants. It seeks a temporary restraining order to immediately restore the journalists' credentials and prevent further abuses of power.
This ban comes on the heels of the White House’s exclusion of CNN from the travel pool for President Trump’s upcoming United Nations General Assembly trip, a move the plaintiffs argue inflicts irreparable harm on their ability to report the truth. The case is being heard in the same district where The Associated Press is fighting a similar ban, previously ruled unconstitutional by a judge appointed by Trump himself. The administration and the Department of Justice have, unsurprisingly, refused to comment, further demonstrating their contempt for transparency.