Federal Judge Orders Trump Administration To Restore White House Access To CNN, MS NOW & Politico

Federal Judge Orders Trump Administration To Restore White House Access To CNN, MS NOW & Politico

A federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from keeping CNN, MS NOW and Politico out of the White House, ordering officials to restore the news organizations’ press credentials.

U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly, who was appointed by President Donald Trump in 2017, granted the outlets a 14-day temporary restraining order Thursday (Sept. 24). Kelly ordered White House officials to “immediately return, reinstate, and restore” the hard-pass credentials held by journalists from the three organizations. He found the outlets were likely to succeed in showing that their passes were revoked without constitutionally adequate due process.

CNN, MS NOW and Politico sued the Trump administration after their credentials were revoked last week. Trump previously said the decision followed what he described as “two years of unfair and negative coverage.” The Justice Department later defended the restrictions by arguing that reporting by the outlets jeopardized national security and spread falsehoods.

Kelly questioned that explanation, writing that the government had not provided evidence showing how the reporting cited in its letters to the outlets damaged national security. He also said the record lacked clear standards governing the type of conduct that could result in a journalist losing White House access.

The ruling does not permanently resolve the lawsuit. The temporary order is set to remain in effect for 14 days unless the court orders otherwise while the legal battle continues.