Stories
Trump Unaware of Judge's Order to Restore White House Media Access
- •Donald Trump claimed he was unaware of a federal judge's order to restore White House access for CNN, MS NOW, and Politico, despite the ruling being issued the previous week.
- •When questioned by Time magazine, Trump stated, "What order? I’m not even aware," and denied ignoring the ruling, instead questioning the scope of access required.
- •White House spokesperson Steven Cheung clarified that the order mandated restoring access to the White House premises, distinct from press pool access for events.
- •US District Judge Timothy Kelly issued the temporary restraining order on September 24, requiring the immediate reinstatement of credentials after their revocation.
- •Kelly's ruling suggested the outlets were likely to prove their hard passes were revoked without due process and questioned national security justifications, though it did not resolve broader First Amendment claims.
Key Questions Answered
US District Judge Timothy Kelly issued a temporary restraining order requiring the administration to reinstate the hard passes after finding that the outlets were likely to succeed in showing their credentials were revoked without constitutionally adequate due process. The judge also questioned the administration's national security justification for the ban.
President Donald Trump stated in an interview that he was not aware of the federal judge's order. He questioned what specific access the ruling required, noting that he was not intentionally ignoring it while maintaining that the affected outlets published unfavorable stories.
The Trump administration revoked the White House hard passes and restricted access for CNN, MS NOW, and Politico. The administration initially enacted the ban after accusing the three organizations of publishing false or negative reporting.
