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CNN, MS NOW, and Politico stated that on Thursday, the White House prevented their journalists from accessing the presidential residence grounds, despite a court ruling ordering that they be allowed entry.
The three media outlets indicated that the Secret Service prevented their journalists from entering the presidential residence early Thursday, thereby bypassing the decision of a federal judge who had ordered the White House hours earlier to grant them access to its facilities.
"This morning, journalists from CNN, MS NOW, and Politico attempted to enter the White House and were turned away," the outlets said in a court filing in which they requested an urgent hearing.
Accusing them of spreading "fake news," Trump announced last Friday that he was banning them from the White House.
The judge specified that the press credentials of the employees of the three media outlets must be restored "until further order of the court or until the expiration of this temporary restraining order," which will remain in effect for 14 days.
Judge Timothy Kelly explained in his ruling that this ban "likely violated their constitutional due process rights."
"The 'general rule' is that 'individuals must receive notice and an opportunity to be heard before the government deprives them' of a constitutionally protected interest," Kelly wrote.
Trump's attacks on journalists are nothing new. The Republican has long been lashing out at media outlets that criticize his administration and labels the press as the "enemy of the people."
Theodore Boutrous, who represented the media outlets in court, told the judge that Trump "said nothing about national security" in his Truth Social post announcing the bans.
"The idea that reporters can be punished by the government simply for reporting on national security issues (...) that the government would prefer not be reported on is simply contrary to the principles of the First Amendment," he added.
CNN, MS NOW, and Politico filed a joint lawsuit seeking a temporary restraining order against the ban, arguing that it violated the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which protects the right to freedom of the press.
Before the ruling, the Justice Department had argued that Trump can "control journalists' access to restricted presidential areas, such as the Oval Office."
"Access to the White House is a privilege, not a right," it maintained.
- "National Security" -
In a letter addressed to CNN, the White House press office accused the news network of "trafficking in verifiable falsehoods about national security and other topics, and of publishing sensitive or classified information."
Similar accusations were leveled against MS NOW and Politico.
The letter to CNN mentioned several articles about the war in Iran and another about Trump's plans to build a military bunker under the proposed East Wing ballroom of the White House that allegedly "revealed 'top-secret' construction details."
Judge Kelly stated that the articles mentioned in the letters sent to the three media outlets were "routine."
"The court is skeptical, at least based on the elements presented so far, that the defendants' interest in safeguarding national security is the true motivation for revoking the plaintiffs' permanent credentials, or is even served by that measure," the magistrate noted in reference to White House press credentials.
- Trump TV -
In a show of solidarity, the broadcasters CBS, ABC, NBC, and Fox announced on Monday that they would stop rotating coverage of the president's public activities, as they had been doing along with CNN.
Such joint filming is known as a "pool," a modality in which the designated outlet shares the material with the rest.
The White House Correspondents' Association and nearly 50 media outlets also filed a brief with the court asking that the bans imposed on CNN, MS NOW, and Politico be revoked.
On Monday night, the White House launched a streaming channel called "Trump TV," which it claimed will show "the best videos, important speeches, and can't-miss highlights, broadcast 24 hours a day and updated in real time."
Once a television star, Trump is a fierce critic of the media, which he accuses of presenting a negative image of his administration.
In a previous case involving CNN during Trump's first term, Judge Kelly ordered the White House to temporarily restore access to a network correspondent whose pass had been revoked.
[Publicidad]