CNN, Politico and MS NOW reporters were denied access to the White House Thursday, just hours after a federal judge ordered the Trump administration to immediately restore media access.
Just days ago, President Donald Trump banned all three from the White House, saying it was “a result of their constant ‘reporting’ FAKE NEWS!”
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But around 1 a.m. ET Thursday, U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly, a Trump appointee, ruled Trump’s ban was unconstitutional and ordered that the networks be granted access.
Hours later, those same networks were denied access. Now, they’ve filed an emergency request for a hearing Thursday morning, but as of now, they’re not allowed in the White House.
Judge’s ruling
In his ruling, Kelly said the White House did not give journalists the due process required before revoking their press credentials.
The judge’s order granting a temporary restraining order allows reporters from all three outlets to return to the White House while legal challenges proceed. Kelly’s temporary order lasts 14 days.
In its filing, the Justice Department said the president has the authority to restrict access, citing national security concerns.
Kelly challenged that argument, however, saying the record doesn’t support the claim of national security concerns.
“Nothing in the record that predates this suit suggests that the revocation of plaintiffs’ hard passes was motivated by national security concerns,” Kelly wrote.
Kelly also pointed out that when Trump first announced the ban, he didn’t cite national security. He complained about what he called the outlets’ untruthful and negative reporting.
In addition to removing some reporters from the White House, the ban also disrupted the White House TV pool. After CNN was blocked from its scheduled pool duties, ABC, CBS, Fox News and NBC joined CNN in suspending coverage.
The three outlets argued Trump punished them for coverage he didn’t like.
Past White House battles with the press
This isn’t the first time the White House has battled with the press.
In 2025, the White House restricted access for Associated Press reporters after the news organization declined to adopt Trump’s preferred name for the Gulf of Mexico. The AP sued, arguing the restrictions violated its First Amendment rights. A federal judge ruled the government could not deny access based on viewpoint. However, an appeals court later paused most of that order while the case continued.
The administration also faced legal challenges over restrictions on press access to the Pentagon. In March, a federal judge blocked enforcement of the Defense Department’s policy requiring credentialed reporters to agree not to gather or report information that had not been formally authorized for release.
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