Judge preserves White House access for three news outlets

A federal judge on October 13 barred the Trump administration from enforcing its decision to revoke White House press credentials for journalists from CNN, MS NOW and Politico while their lawsuit proceeds, keeping their access to the White House grounds in place during the case. U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly issued a preliminary injunction extending an earlier temporary order that restored the outlets’ hard-pass credentials. Kelly found the organizations likely to succeed on claims that the revocations violated due-process protections and the First Amendment. The ruling is not a final judgment on the lawsuit. The injunction applies to the administration’s September 18 decision to revoke the credentials. The outlets sued on September 21, arguing that the White House acted without adequate notice or process and in response to their reporting. The preliminary injunction preserves the existing access arrangement while litigation continues, unless an appeals court changes it. Kelly wrote that the record supported the conclusion that President Donald Trump likely acted because he considered the outlets’ reporting inaccurate or biased.