US judge orders White House to restore press passes for CNN, Politico and MS NOW

A judge has ordered the Trump administration to restore White House access immediately for three news organisations barred from the building last week by the president. The District of Columbia court issued a temporary restraining order against the ban, meaning CNN, MS NOW and Politico must have their access reinstated for 14 days, after ruling that the move likely violated their constitutional due process rights. The three outlets launched a legal challenge after their reporters had their White House passes confiscated and were denied entry. The Trump administration defended the ban in court, accusing the outlets of publishing false information and threatening national security, an argument the court rejected. The White House has yet to comment on the ruling, and lawyers acting for the president may pursue further legal action.

Judge Timothy Kelly ruled that CNN, Politico and MS NOW were likely to succeed in showing the White House had not exercised adequate due process in imposing the ban. He also cast doubt on the administration's contention that national security concerns motivated the bans, noting that the president made no mention of them in his initial announcement. The record lacks factual support for Defendants' contention that the revocation of Plaintiffs' hard passes will in fact protect national security, the ruling continued, or that national security will be endangered if the Court orders their passes reinstated while this litigation proceeds.

In defending the ban, the Trump administration cited a number of articles published by the outlets, including some about construction at the White House and work on a new ballroom. The judge said that in most cases the stories the White House took issue with were written by journalists who did not even hold card passes, and that in the remaining cases the administration had not demonstrated reason to believe that the reporter's possession of the hard pass was integral to the stories identified. In its original filing, the administration cited declarations from defence department officials supporting the ban, but the judge said they had no direct knowledge of how reporters operate in the White House, or about any of the facts at issue here.

Ted Boutrous, the lawyer representing the news outlets, told CNN: This is a strong ruling vindicating freedom of the press, due process and the rule of law. On Monday, major US television networks pulled out of White House pool duties in protest at the ban, an arrangement under which media organisations share material with one another to save on costs and space when broadcasting presidential events to the American public. Forty-nine media organisations, among them CBS News, The New York Times and Fox News, also filed a legal brief in support of the lawsuit brought by CNN, MS NOW and Politico.

President Trump frequently criticises news organisations, and his administration has launched legal action against a series of outlets, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and the BBC. Some of those lawsuits have ended with media organisations agreeing to pay multi-million-dollar settlements. Mr Trump's lawsuit against the BBC is ongoing.