A federal judge on Monday cleared the way for the White House to continue barring The Associated Press from covering news events with President Trump as the fight over freedom of speech plays out in court.
The Associated Press sued several top Trump administration officials last week, accusing them of violating the First and Fifth Amendments by barring its reporters from press events. The White House has objected to the wire service’s decision to continue to refer to the Gulf of Mexico in its coverage, rather than calling the body of water the Gulf of America.
Judge Trevor N. McFadden of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, who was appointed by Mr. Trump, said that The Associated Press’s circumstances were “not the type of dire situation” that would require emergency intervention against the White House, in part because the organization was still able to report the news through shared reports sent out to all media organizations in the White House Correspondents’ Association.
While Judge McFadden said he was hesitant to force the Trump administration’s hand, he seemed sympathetic to arguments against the White House, including that its actions appeared to be designed to coerce or punish the news organization over a language choice, which, he repeatedly said, amounted to “viewpoint discrimination.”
The news organization had requested a restraining order to prevent the White House from excluding its journalists from events where the president routinely makes news, such as when he signs executive orders in the Oval Office and often speaks unscripted to the journalists assembled to watch.
The White House celebrated the judge’s move.
“As we have said from the beginning, asking the president of the United States questions in the Oval Office and aboard Air Force One is a privilege granted to journalists, not a legal right,” the statement said.