CNN, MS NOW, Politico sue Trump over White House press ban

CNN, MS NOW and Politico have sued President Donald Trump and members of his administration for banning them from White House grounds, arguing the action violates their First Amendment rights to free speech and a free press, Reuters reports.

The outlets are seeking a temporary restraining order in federal court in Washington, with a hearing scheduled for Wednesday.

“This ban could not be a more direct assault on the First Amendment nor a more blatant violation of our most fundamental constitutional principles,” the lawsuit states, while the outlets added in a joint statement that “the government does not decide what the press reports or publishes.”

Trump announced the ban Friday, accusing the outlets of reporting “FICTION and LIES,” and further defended it Monday, calling it “an assault on the FAKE NEWS” tied to unspecified national security concerns.

In response, ABC, CBS, Fox News and NBC suspended presidential pool coverage entirely after CNN was blocked from providing its scheduled feed, cutting off the main video source for White House events just as Trump prepares to meet world leaders at the UN General Assembly.

A source familiar with the matter stated that aide Natalie Harp had shown Trump critical midterm coverage shortly before the ban, with his frustration reportedly deepening after last week’s Supreme Court ruling against his mail-in voting restrictions — adding fresh legal and political stakes to an already escalating standoff with the press.