Judge orders Donald Trump to bring 'fake news' media outlets back to White House
A US federal judge has ordered Donald Trump to immediately restore White House press credentials for CNN, MS Now and Politico.
US District Judge Timothy Kelly issued a 14-day temporary restraining order today, finding that the three news organisations were "likely to succeed" in demonstrating that the White House had failed to exercise "adequate due process" when it stripped their journalists of access.
The District of Columbia court's ruling means reporters from all three outlets must be allowed back into the building while the legal challenge continues.
President Trump announced the ban on 18 September, taking to social media to declare that the three outlets "shouldn't be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES".
Reporters from CNN, MS Now and Politico were then denied White House hard passes and refused entry to the building.
The networks also withheld television footage of the president's visit to New York in response to the restrictions.
On Monday, the three organisations launched a joint legal challenge, describing the ban as a "blatant violation" of their First Amendment right to press freedom.
Their lawsuit accused Donald Trump and senior officials of mounting a direct assault on media access.
Judge Kelly dismissed the administration's attempt to frame the ban as a national security measure, observing that President Trump himself had made no reference to such concerns when he first announced the restrictions.
The court found the argument lacked credible evidence, it said in its ruling: "The record lacks factual support for Defendants' contention that the revocation of Plaintiffs' hard passes will in fact protect national security or that national security will be endangered if the Court orders their passes reinstated while this litigation proceeds."
While stopping short of a definitive judgment, Mr Kelly indicated he would look to established First Amendment case law in reaching his final decision.
He questioned whether the administration had fulfilled its legal obligations before removing the outlets' credentials.
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The White House has not yet responded to the ruling, though the president's legal team may opt to mount a further challenge.
Judge Kelly drew on established legal precedent in reaching his decision, citing two earlier cases, one of which reached the Supreme Court, that affirmed a journalist's right to a hearing before their press credentials could be withdrawn.
The temporary restraining order will remain in force for a fortnight, during which time the court will continue to examine the broader constitutional questions raised by the lawsuit.
Justice Department lawyers had argued in proceedings that the banned outlets had published false information posing a threat to national security.
The three organisations initially hit back, saying they were pursuing litigation "to protect our First Amendment rights and defend the principle that the government does not decide what the press reports".
In a joint statement, they added: "Without notice or process, the White House revoked our journalists' credentials because it objected to our reporting.
"Left unchallenged, this threatens press freedom and the public's right to independent journalism free from government interference."
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