CNN, MSNOW and Politico ask judge to make White House access ruling permanent

Reporters from CNN, MSNOW and Politico are currently barred from covering President Donald Trump in the Oval Office and on Air Force One. The three news organizations filed an amended complaint on Wednesday asking a federal judge to make his earlier access orders permanent. They argue the White House continues to ignore those orders by keeping their journalists out of the rotating press pool.

The dispute began when the administration restricted access for these specific outlets. The news groups claim the president is punishing them for reporting he dislikes. This action, they say, violates the First Amendment. They describe the ban as viewpoint discrimination, which forbids the government from targeting specific types of speech or coverage.

U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly has already ruled in favor of the outlets. On October 13, he issued a decision stating that the administration likely violated the Fifth Amendment right to due process. He also agreed that the ban breached the First Amendment right to free speech. Kelly rejected the White House argument that the restrictions were necessary for national security. Instead, he found the ban was based on the president's belief that the reporting was inaccurate and biased.

The judge called the government's action unlawful viewpoint discrimination. In his opinion, he wrote that simply put, that is what was happening. The White House has maintained that the president does not have to allow news outlets with unfavorable coverage onto its grounds. The administration had not responded to the new lawsuit filing as of Thursday morning.

Theodore J. Boutrous Jr., the attorney representing the outlets, said the White House was still blocking reporters from the locations where the president most frequently engages with the press. The news organizations noted that every outlet now faces the risk of similar punishment if their coverage is not deemed sufficiently favorable. They stated that the public is being deprived of current and complete information about its government.

The latest filing seeks to solidify the legal victory the outlets gained two weeks ago. The court will now decide whether to make the temporary orders permanent. The case centers on whether a president can punish news organizations for the content of their reports.