The Associated Press (AP) has taken legal action against the White House, filing a preliminary injunction on Wednesday. This move seeks to enforce compliance with an earlier court decision that mandated the White House to grant AP reporters access to the press pool. This legal filing came promptly on the heels of a recent leak about a new White House Press policy set to once again restrict AP reporters’ attendance at select press conferences held at the White House and aboard Air Force One. The full court document is available here.
The new policy, announced by the White House on Tuesday, drastically reduces the number of spots available for wire services and print reporters in limited space areas, such as the Oval Office and Air Force One. Previously, there was room for reporters from AP, Bloomberg, Reuters, and one print reporter, a provision now revoked under the tightened regulations.
Further complicating the landscape, the media policy empowers Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt with the discretion to determine which reporters are permitted to question President Donald Trump, although this is reportedly irrespective of any particular media outlet’s expressed viewpoints. This adjustment follows the Trump administration’s prior courtroom defeat, as a federal judge recently adjudged restrictions on AP’s coverage as retaliatory, thereby breaching the First Amendment. Details of that ruling can be found here.
Asserting the necessity of judicial intervention, the AP petitioned the court to safeguard its previous ruling’s enforcement. In their brief, the AP stated emphatically: “Given Defendants’ refusal to obey this Court’s Injunction Order on its own terms, the AP respectfully requests that this Court enter such further relief as the Court deems necessary to ensure that Defendants immediately comply with the Injunction Order.” More details on the situation and its implications are available through the full article.