Federal judge grants preliminary injunction continuing to block Trump's White House media ban
A federal judge continued to block the Trump administration's move to bar CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House.
U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly's preliminary injunction orders the defendants to continue to preserve the status quo while the case proceeds.
The preliminary injunction was sought by the media organizations.
It follows a temporary restraining order the same judge issued last month blocking Trump's attempt to ban the news organizations from the White House.
"We are grateful that the Court ruled in favor of our clients CNN, MS NOW and POLITICO and secured access to the White House for these news media organizations and their journalists,” Theodore J. Boutrous, Jr., attorney for CNN, MS NOW, and POLITICO, said in a statement obtained by ABC News.
“When the President issued his ‘ban on the free press,’ he blatantly and explicitly violated due process and the First Amendment. Since then, the President has repeatedly, candidly, and consistently admitted in public that he banned our clients from the White House to punish reporting he doesn’t like and to try to force journalists to cover him in ways he prefers,” Boutros Jr. added.
“The harm this ban did to our clients, the First Amendment, and the public as a whole is profound. The Court was right to enjoin the White House from enforcing this ‘unconstitutional ban on the free press’ for the foreseeable future," said Boutrous Jr.
Last month, CNN, MSNOW and Politico requested a temporary restraining order to restore their reporters' access to the White House complex after Trump instituted the ban. In the lawsuit, the news organizations called Trump's decision at "direct assault on the First Amendment" and a "blatant violation of our most fundamental constitutional principles."
Trump said in a social media post in September that the "Media Outlets shouldn't be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES when they're covering the President of the United States, the Trump Administration, or the United States of America."
The Department of Justice defended the ban, citing specific stories from each outlet that it claimed violated "standards of professionalism and decorum" by “trafficking in verifiable falsehoods about national security and other issues, and publishing sensitive or classified information."
Justice Department lawyer Michael Velchik last month argued that President Trump has broad authority to remove outlets based on national security determinations and the letters sent to the media organizations provided sufficient due process to justify revoking their passes.
"Access to the White House is a privilege, not a right," Velchik said.
