CNN, MSNOW, and Politico Request Permanent Injunction to Restore White House Press Access
The outlets argue the White House is violating Judge Timothy Kelly's rulings by excluding them from the presidential press pool.
By Anthony Shevchenko ·
CNN, MSNOW, and Politico filed an amended complaint in federal court on Wednesday, requesting that a judge make his previous orders regarding their access to the White House permanent. The legal action challenges the current administration's decision to keep the three news organizations out of the rotating press pool that covers President Donald Trump.
The outlets assert that the White House continues to violate U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly's directives by blocking their reporters from covering the president in key locations. Attorney Theodore J. Boutrous Jr. stated in a filing that the administration is preventing journalists from working in the specific areas where the president most frequently interacts with the media. These locations include the Oval Office and Air Force One.
The complaint alleges that the president is retaliating against the three newsrooms because of reporting content he dislikes. The organizations describe this action as viewpoint discrimination, a practice they argue is forbidden by the First Amendment's free speech protections. They contend that punishing outlets for their coverage sets a precedent that allows the government to restrict speech based on its message.
Judge Kelly previously ruled that the three outlets were likely to succeed in their lawsuit. On October 13, he expanded a temporary ruling that found the administration had violated the outlets' Fifth Amendment right to due process. In that same decision, Kelly accepted the argument that the ban breached the organizations' First Amendment rights. He rejected the White House argument that the exclusion served policy goals such as national security, instead finding that the ban resulted from Trump's belief that the outlets' reporting was inaccurate and biased.
The judge wrote in his opinion that the government taking action against types of speech it does not like constitutes unlawful viewpoint discrimination. Trump maintains that he is not required to allow news outlets whose reports he dislikes onto White House grounds or other presidential facilities. The White House had not responded to the amended lawsuit as of Thursday morning.
The filing notes that every news organization now faces the risk of similar punishment for coverage the president deems insufficiently favorable. The outlets argue that this dynamic deprives the public of current and complete information about the government. The request for a permanent order comes approximately two weeks after Kelly issued his ruling in the case.
