CNN, Politico, and MS Now plan to sue Trump over White House ban

CNN, MS Now, and Politico are filing a lawsuit against the Trump administration after President Donald Trump banned the three outlets from the White House press pool on Friday.“This morning, we notified the government that we are filing a lawsuit today to protect our First Amendment rights and defend the principle that the government does not decide what the press reports or publishes,” the three outlets said in a joint statement.Reporters from all three outlets were denied access to the White House grounds on Saturday, in the latest Trump administration move to limit certain media access at the White House. Trump announced the ban on Friday in a Truth Social post, saying the ban came “as a result of their constant ‘reporting’ FAKE NEWS!” “Media Outlets shouldn’t be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES when they’re covering the President of the United States, the Trump Administration, or the United States of America. Other Fake News Media Outlets to follow,” Trump wrote.But the outlets are moving in lock-step, seeking to reverse the president’s actions together.“Without notice or process, the White House revoked our journalists’ credentials because it objected to our reporting. Left unchallenged, this threatens press freedom and the public’s right to independent journalism free from government interference,” the outlets said.Trump rejected the characterization in a Truth Social post Monday morning.“The White House is not instituting an assault on the Free Press, something which I cherish. It is instituting an assault on the FAKE NEWS, something that has grown like Cancer in our beloved United States of America,” he wrote. “It is corrupt, purposeful, pervasive, fully coordinated, and totally out of control. It is a threat to our National Security, and must be stopped, NOW!”Trump has lost in court on this issue before. In 2018, CNN’s Jim Acosta sued the Trump administration after the White House revoked his press pass following an intense Nov. 7 press briefing. Trump-appointed U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly ruled in that case that the White House violated Acosta’s Fifth Amendment right to due process, and the White House subsequently restored Acosta’s press pass.In 2025, another Trump-appointed district judge, Trevor McFadden, ordered the Trump White House to restore the Associated Press‘s access after it had banned the outlet for referring to the newly renamed “Gulf of America” as the “Gulf of Mexico.” The Trump administration, however, later cracked down on the newswire spots in the White House press pool, instead including them in a larger rotation of outlets.On Friday, when asked about his previous losses in court over similar outlet bans and why he thinks this time may be different, Trump said, “We’ll see.”TRUMP BANS CNN, MS NOW, AND POLITICO FROM WHITE HOUSE“I think it’s good to point it out whether it survives or doesn’t. I mean, I don’t think a court should allow — depends on the judge you get to be honest with you — I don’t think that a court should allow fake news to be written day after day after day,” Trump said. “I think that somebody has a right to keep them away if they’re going to write false stories all the time.”The Washington Examiner has reached out to the White House for comment on CNN, MS Now, and Politico‘s joint statement.