Trump faces legal setback as judge backs CNN, poli...

Summary

• A US federal judge has extended White House access for journalists from CNN, MS NOW and Politico, ruling that President Donald Trump likely broke the law by attempting to ban the news organisations over coverage he considered biased and inaccurate.
• The affected news organisations rejected that explanation, arguing that the White House had revoked their press access in retaliation for reporting the president disliked.
• For CNN, MS NOW and Politico, the latest ruling provides continued access to the White House but does not end the legal fight.

AI Generated Summary

A US federal judge has extended White House access for journalists from CNN, MS NOW and Politico, ruling that President Donald Trump likely broke the law by attempting to ban the news organisations over coverage he considered biased and inaccurate.

US District Judge Timothy Kelly issued a preliminary injunction on Tuesday, maintaining access for the three outlets while their lawsuit against the Trump administration proceeds, unless an appeals court overturns the decision.

The ruling represents another setback for the administration in a legal dispute that has raised fresh questions about press freedom, presidential authority and the government’s treatment of critical media organisations.

Kelly’s decision elaborated on his September 24 emergency order, which temporarily restored the journalists’ access to the White House grounds after the outlets challenged the ban in court.

In his written opinion, the judge said Trump’s public statements indicated that the restrictions were imposed because he disagreed with the outlets’ reporting, rather than because of national security concerns cited later by government lawyers.

“Simply put, that is unlawful viewpoint discrimination,” Kelly wrote.

However, the judge added that his ruling should not be interpreted as a finding that all of Trump’s complaints about the news organisations were without merit.

Kelly was appointed to the federal bench by Trump in 2017, during the president’s first term.