A federal judge extended a preliminary injunction blocking the Trump administration from barring CNN, MS NOW and Politico reporters from White House grounds, ruling the outlets are likely to succeed on claims that the ban violated the First Amendment and due process. U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly found the initial September 18 ban likely amounted to unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination.
The ruling restored the outlets' general White House access, but the administration has continued to exclude CNN's journalists from traveling aboard Air Force One and from Oval Office pool coverage, prompting CNN attorney Theodore Boutrous to threaten further legal action in a letter to the Justice Department with a Thursday 5 p.m. deadline, according to TheWrap and Poynter.
The dispute sits at the intersection of press freedom and presidential control over limited-capacity spaces. The White House argues no journalist has a constitutional right to access Air Force One or the Oval Office, while CNN contends the restrictions retaliate against the network for its reporting and interfere with its duties as a member of the five-major-network TV pool. A separate legal battle involving the Associated Press over the same limited-capacity spaces is also proceeding.