U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly ruled in the early hours of Thursday that President Donald Trump’s ban on the three outlets should be temporarily lifted for 14 days, finding it “likely violated their constitutional due process rights.” The order came after an emergency hearing on Wednesday in which Kelly appeared skeptical of the White House’s arguments.
But compliance with the order was immediately contested. CNN said senior White House reporter Betsy Klein was denied entry, though a producer was allowed in. Politico reported that one of its reporters was barred and had his press credentials confiscated. MS NOW said its White House reporter Laura Barrón-López and a producer were turned away and had their passes taken, while another producer was granted access.
In response, lawyers for the three outlets filed a fresh request with the court, alleging the White House had “repeatedly violated” the judge’s directive. The White House has not yet commented publicly on the ruling, and lawyers for the president may pursue further legal action.
The standoff unfolded as Trump welcomed Xi Jinping to the White House on Thursday morning. In a sign of solidarity, major U.S. television networks boycotted pooled coverage of the meeting, leaving the event without cameras from the largest American news organizations.
Trump initially said he banned the outlets because of “fake news.” The White House later cited national security as the rationale. It remained unclear Thursday whether the refusal to admit some reporters was due to an administrative lag as the White House worked to comply with the order, or a deliberate defiance of the court’s ruling.