CNN is warning that it may pursue additional legal action against the White House if its journalists continue to be excluded from Air Force One and the traveling “pool” of reporters that covers President Donald Trump on the road.
The network has already been locked in a legal battle with the Trump administration since the president abruptly barred its reporters from the White House grounds a month ago, along with journalists from MS NOW and Politico. Trump accused the outlets of producing “fake news.” Last week, a federal judge granted the organizations’ request for a preliminary injunction blocking the government’s ban while the case proceeds.
That ruling, however, addresses only one part of the dispute.
The White House has continued to prevent CNN from participating in the television pool that covers Trump’s travel aboard Air Force One. In a letter to Justice Department attorney Michael K. Velchik, Theodore J. Boutrous Jr., CNN’s lawyer, said the network may have to seek further relief in court.
Media attorney says the spaces in question ‘belong to all Americans’
In the letter sent late Monday, Boutrous said CNN had enjoyed “uninterrupted access to the Oval Office and Air Force One for 45 years.” He argued that those spaces belong not to any individual president or administration, but to the American public, with CNN and other news organizations acting as the public’s representatives in covering the White House.
Boutrous said the administration now appeared to be pursuing “a new unstated policy to interfere with CNN’s ability to fulfill its duties” as a member of the video pool. The pool includes the five major U.S. television networks — ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN and Fox — which rotate coverage responsibilities and share footage.
He also cited U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly’s latest ruling, in which the judge determined that the three media organizations were likely to prevail on their claims that the White House had violated the First Amendment and due process through Trump’s ban. That finding led Kelly to grant the requested preliminary relief.
Despite the ruling, Boutrous wrote, the White House has selectively blocked CNN from covering Trump’s travel aboard Air Force One at least four times.
“Efforts to retaliate and discriminate against CNN based on the content of its news coverage are mistaken, counterproductive, and unlawful,” Boutrous wrote.
“If these actions persist, CNN will have no choice but to return to the court to defend its rights, and it is prepared to fight as long as is necessary to secure them.”
The Justice Department did not respond to The Associated Press’ request for comment on the letter. Boutrous gave the White House two days to respond.
The showdown began in September
The extraordinary conflict between Trump and CNN, a network whose personalities he has repeatedly mocked in public, began more than a month ago. On Sept. 18, Trump announced that CNN reporters, along with journalists from MS NOW and Politico, would be barred from the White House grounds. The following day, reporters discovered that their access passes had been deactivated.
The move marked a significant escalation in Trump’s long-running efforts, through lawsuits and administrative measures, to limit coverage he considers unfavorable. It also raised broader questions about First Amendment protections for the press in the United States.
Kelly initially issued a two-week reprieve from the ban before expanding that relief last week through an open-ended preliminary injunction.
Even so, CNN was excluded from Air Force One in September during Trump’s trip to the U.N. General Assembly, a visit to Knoxville, Tennessee, for a football game, and a journey to Texas and Oklahoma, according to Boutrous’ letter. This month, the network was also denied access for trips to Georgia and Florida. CNN had been the designated pool network for each of those journeys.
The White House has offered no explanation, Boutrous wrote. “In fact, the White House has not even directly stated to CNN that it is being excluded from the Oval Office or Air Force One.”
