Judge blocks Trump’s media ban, but CNN, Politico and MS NOW are still locked out of White House

A federal judge ordered the Trump administration early Thursday to “immediately return, reinstate, and restore” press credentials for CNN, MS NOW, and Politico journalists. Hours later, reporters from all three outlets were still being turned away at the gates, according to NPR. They were finally let back in around noon, shortly before the administration had to answer to the judge.

CNN reporter Betsy Klein was refused entry several times. MS NOW correspondent Laura Barrón-López and a producer were turned away and had their press credentials confiscated, while Politico said at least one of its reporters was blocked. However, a CNN producer got in after 6 a.m., and another MS NOW producer was admitted.

The outlets filed a notice of noncompliance and asked U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly for an immediate hearing, arguing that top White House officials kept violating his order. Their filing said a Secret Service agent had confiscated the press credentials of journalists from all three organizations. Kelly gave the Justice Department until 12:30 p.m. to respond.

The White House says it started turning the badges back on just after 7 a.m.

In a sworn declaration, White House press operations director Micah Stopperich said his office was told to restore access at 7:10 a.m. and began 15 minutes later. The Secret Service reactivated the badges at 9:07 a.m., and the confiscated press credentials were left at the press entry gate just before 10 a.m.

The standoff played out as Trump hosted Chinese President Xi Jinping for a state visit. ABC, CBS, Fox News, and NBC suspended pooled TV coverage on Monday, as the White House had kept CNN from its assigned turn on the rotating pool camera. Klein said it is still unclear whether CNN will be put back into that rotation.

Kelly’s ruling centers on the Fifth Amendment and the lack of due process, as the government did not dispute that the outlets got no notice or chance to respond. The White House only sent letters explaining the ban after the lawsuit started, and the standard they offered was “so vague it hardly does the trick,” Timothy Kelly wrote.

Kelly was also skeptical of the administration’s national-security defense, as Trump never mentioned national security when he first announced the White House ban. Instead, Trump accused the outlets of reporting “fiction and lies.” Kelly added that the reporters behind the stories cited in the letters did not even hold hard passes.

Kelly is the same judge who, back in 2018, ordered the restoration of CNN reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials after a contentious press conference. Trump appointed Kelly to the federal bench in 2017, but he attacked the judge as disloyal ahead of Wednesday’s hearing.

The ruling does not give journalists an unlimited right to go anywhere they want on White House grounds. However, the 1977 case of Sherrill v. Knight established that once the government sets up a system for press credentials, it cannot revoke them arbitrarily.

Kelly’s order lasts 14 days while both sides submit more arguments and evidence. Trump has vowed to appeal even though Kelly noted such orders are generally unappealable.