The White House restored access for reporters from MS NOW, CNN and Politico on Thursday after Secret Service officers turned them away despite a judge’s order to reinstate their credentials. The 14-day temporary order remains in effect as the case continues.
The outlets said the ban punished them for their reporting and violated the First Amendment. Judge Timothy Kelly did not decide that claim; he found they were likely to prevail on a narrower Fifth Amendment due-process argument. Citing existing D.C. Circuit rulings, he said journalists must receive advance notice and a chance to respond before their credentials are revoked; that did not happen here.
The ban began the previous Saturday, a day after Trump said he was barring the outlets over what he called a pattern of dishonest reporting. Kelly questioned the administration’s national-security justification, saying the record did not show that concern motivated the revocations and that some cited reporting was months or years old. The outlets seek longer-lasting relief, and the administration is expected to challenge the ruling.
