CNN, already in a contentious legal battle with the White House, is considering additional court action if its reporters remain barred from Air Force One and from the group of journalists traveling with President Donald Trump.
The network’s issues began about a month ago when Trump unexpectedly prohibited its reporters, along with those from MS NOW and Politico, from White House grounds, labeling their reporting as “fake news.” A federal judge recently ruled in favor of these news organizations, granting them a preliminary injunction against the administration’s ban as the case unfolds in court.
However, this ruling does not resolve all of their concerns.
The White House persists in preventing CNN from participating in the television pool coverage of Trump’s travel on Air Force One. Consequently, they may need to escalate their legal measures, as indicated by Theodore J. Boutrous Jr., CNN’s attorney, in a correspondence addressed to Justice Department attorney Michael K. Velchik.
Media lawyer emphasizes public access
Boutrous pointed out in his Monday letter that CNN has enjoyed “uninterrupted access to the Oval Office and Air Force One for 45 years.” He stressed that these locations belong to all Americans, not just a specific president or administration, and that CNN acts as a proxy for the public in reporting on the White House.
Currently, the White House seems to be implementing what looks like a new, unspoken policy aimed at hindering CNN’s responsibilities as part of the news pool, which typically includes ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, and Fox, with each network taking turns in coverage and sharing footage.
Boutrous noted that in his latest ruling, U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly had determined the three media outlets were likely to succeed in their claim that the White House’s ban infringed upon their First Amendment rights and due process, thus entitling them to the relief sought.
Nonetheless, CNN has been denied access to cover Trump’s travels on Air Force One at least four times so far, according to Boutrous.
He criticized these “retaliatory” actions against CNN based on its news coverage as both incorrect and unlawful. If this pattern continues, Boutrous warned that CNN would have no choice but to seek further legal protections, asserting their readiness to fight as long as necessary.
The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding Boutrous’s letter, which placed a two-day deadline for the White House to reply.
Conflict dates back to September
The intense conflict between Trump and CNN began over a month ago when Trump declared on September 18 that he was denying access to CNN reporters, along with those from MS NOW and Politico, to the White House. The following day, the journalists discovered that their passes had been revoked.
This marked a significant escalation in Trump’s ongoing quest to curtail news coverage he finds objectionable, effectively testing the boundaries of First Amendment protections in the U.S.
Initially, Kelly offered a temporary reprieve from the ban for two weeks, followed by an indefinite preliminary injunction last week.
Despite this, the letter outlined that CNN was barred from Air Force One during Trump’s trip to the U.N. General Assembly, a football game in Knoxville, Tennessee, and subsequent visits to Texas and Oklahoma. Most recently, the network was denied access for a trip to Georgia and Florida, even though it was slated to be the designated pool network.
Boutrous noted a glaring absence of communication from the White House, stating, “In fact, the White House has not even directly informed CNN about its exclusion from the Oval Office or Air Force One.”
