Federal Judge Extends Block on White House Ban of CNN, MS NOW, Politico

A federal judge on Tuesday extended an order blocking the Trump administration from banning reporters for CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House. U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly ruled the outlets are likely to succeed on their due process and First Amendment claims, finding the ban was retaliatory and constituted viewpoint discrimination.

Kelly wrote that President Trump likely banned the organizations because he believes their reporting is inaccurate and biased against him. The judge rejected the administration's national security justification, stating there was no evidence the decision was made on those grounds from the start.

“President Trump likely banned Plaintiffs from the White House because he believes that their reporting is generally inaccurate and biased against him.”

The ruling noted the White House gave no warning before revoking the outlets' hard passes following a Sept. 18 Truth Social post by Trump. Kelly found the outlets would suffer irreparable harm without an injunction and that the public interest favored restoring access.

Attorney Theodore Boutrous Jr., representing the three outlets, called the ban an explicit violation of due process and the First Amendment. He stated Trump has repeatedly admitted publicly he banned the outlets to punish coverage he dislikes.

The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The case continues to move through the legal system.