Judge Blocks White House Ban on CNN, MS NOW and Politico

A federal judge has barred the White House from enforcing its ban on journalists from CNN, MS NOW and Politico, ruling that President Donald Trump likely broke the law when he revoked their credentials last month.

US District Judge Timothy Kelly, a Trump appointee, issued a preliminary injunction on Tuesday, Oct. 13. The order keeps access in place while the lawsuit proceeds toward trial, unless an appeals court lifts it. The Trump administration appealed on Wednesday, Oct. 14.

The ban hit more than 70 journalists. The outlets lost the hard passes that give reporters daily access to the White House grounds. Kelly had already restored access on a temporary basis on Sept. 24, six days after the administration revoked the passes.

What the judge found

Kelly found the outlets are likely to succeed on two First Amendment claims and on a due process claim, NPR reported. The outlets got no advance notice that their credentials were at risk and no chance to object before access was cut. Letters explaining the move arrived only after the passes were gone.

The judge also found almost no evidence for the reason the government later gave in court. Justice Department lawyers argued national security. Kelly wrote that there was just about no evidence in the record to explain or justify the ban on security grounds, Bloomberg reported. He pointed to Trump's own public remarks, which he said showed the president wanted to pressure the outlets to change their coverage. Kelly wrote that the ban threatens to cut the outlets off from a press area open to many of their competitors, where reporters watch events firsthand and question officials.

The media outlets were required to post a bond of one dollar.

The two sides

Theodore Boutrous, a lawyer for the outlets, said the harm from the ban to his clients, the First Amendment and the public was profound, and he welcomed the ruling against what he called an unconstitutional ban on the free press.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the injunction, Bloomberg reported. After the appeal, a White House official said the three outlets can report on Trump from outside the White House grounds, and attacked their reporting in strong terms, Reuters reported.

Why it matters, and what is next

Hard passes decide who can ask questions in the room, every day. A ruling that a president cannot pull them because he dislikes coverage sets a limit that will outlast this case. The fight now moves to the appeals court. If the injunction is lifted on appeal, the outlets lose access again while the case continues. If it holds, the reporters keep working in the building until a final judgment.