News orgs ask court to bar White House access ban enforcement until case is resolved

CNN, MS NOW and Politico asked a federal court late Monday to keep the Trump administration from enforcing its ban on their journalists at the White House while their lawsuit proceeds. In a 42-page filing, their lawyers argued the White House has applied the ban erratically even after a judge's temporary restraining order, pointing to the weekend decision to keep CNN from performing its turn in the television pool. They wrote that the administration would "immediately reinstitute a complete ban" of the three outlets if given the chance, and called the restrictions an unlawful attack on First Amendment freedoms, according to NewsNation.

Lead attorney Theodore J. Boutrous Jr. said the ban exists to punish coverage President Donald Trump dislikes, calling it retaliation and viewpoint discrimination. He noted the restraining order expires this week.

CNN was pulled from pool duties when the ban began. The pool consists of CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox News, and the other four suspended it in solidarity. CNN was allowed to cover Trump with Chinese leader Xi Jinping at the National Archives on Friday, but on Saturday it was kept off Air Force One for the president's trip to a Tennessee college football game. Attorney General Todd Blanche defended the move on ABC, saying access to the White House is "a privilege, and not a right." Judge Timothy Kelly, who issued the restraining order, voiced skepticism about the national security rationale, though his ruling did not directly address the pool.

Summarized by PolitiKool from NewsNation’s reporting. Read the full story at NewsNation →