US Federal Judge Orders Trump Administration to Restore White House Access to CNN, MS NOW and Politico

Washington: US Federal Judge Timothy Kelly has ordered the Trump administration to immediately restore White House access for journalists from CNN, MS NOW and Politico, ruling that the reporters' press credentials were revoked without constitutionally adequate due process.

Kelly issued the order early Thursday (local time) after the three news organisations challenged US President Donald Trump's decision to bar them from the White House and revoke their press credentials.

According to reports, in his ruling, Kelly said the government generally must provide individuals with notice and an opportunity to be heard before taking away a constitutionally protected interest. He concluded that the administration had not met that requirement when the journalists' passes were confiscated.

Trump had announced the ban in a social media post, accusing the three outlets of repeatedly publishing what he described as “fake news” and warning that other media organisations could face similar action.

The news organisations subsequently filed a lawsuit seeking to halt the ban. Their lawyers argued that the administration's decision violated constitutional protections and that the outlets had not been given a meaningful opportunity to challenge the decision before their access was withdrawn.

The administration maintained that Trump had established an appeals process and argued that the restrictions were justified in part by national security concerns. However, that appeals procedure was communicated to the affected outlets only after their credentials had already been revoked.

During Wednesday's hearing, Justice Department attorney Michael Velchik argued that reporting by the three organisations had raised national security concerns and that the president had authority to determine access to the White House.

Lawyer Ted Boutrous, representing the news organisations, disputed that argument, saying national security had been invoked only after the ban and the subsequent lawsuit. He argued that the administration's stated justification amounted to a post-hoc explanation for a decision triggered by the outlets' reporting.

The latest ruling temporarily blocks the administration from keeping the three outlets' journalists out of the White House and requires their credentials to be restored.