White House faces mounting legal backlash after barring journalists from CNN, MS NOW and Politico

MS NOW said Saturday that its journalists have been denied access to the White House grounds, a day after President Donald Trump said in a social media post he had banned the news outlet alongside CNN and Politico over what he called their “constant ‘reporting’ FAKE NEWS.”

“The White House belongs to the American people and the decisions made inside are funded by our tax dollars,” MS NOW said in a statement posted on X.

“MS NOW intends to take any and all steps necessary to defend our First Amendment rights and the essential role of independent journalists in our democracy,” it added. The First Amendment guarantees freedom of the press.

MS NOW reporter Akayla Gardner said her White House badge did not work when she arrived Saturday morning.

“The officer asked me to hand over my badge,” she said on air. “He said that it was disabled. I asked why I was not able to get inside. He said it was above him.”

A MS Now photographer was also denied access, Gardner said, while one of the network’s producer was allowed onto the White House grounds. It was not immediately clear why their access differed.

The White House declined to further comment Saturday, referring NBC News to Trump’s previous comments.

In a Truth Social post Friday afternoon, Trump said media outlets “shouldn’t be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES when they’re covering the President of the United States.”

Trump also warned “other outlets” would “follow” but did not specify which.

All three outlets had continued to report from the White House on Friday after the announcement.

“CNN stands fully behind our White House team and their fair and accurate reporting,” the network said Friday.

Politico Press, the publication’s communications team, said in a post on X that Trump’s claims that Politico “received government subsidies are false and have been thoroughly debunked.”

“POLITICO will continue to fairly report on this White House and future ones. We will vigorously defend our First Amendment rights against any attempt to restrict them,” the post said.

Trump, responding to a reporter in the Oval Office shortly after announcing the ban, said the new policy was the result of “cumulative stories over the last few years.” He did not specify a particular news report, and a White House spokesperson referred NBC News to the president’s spoken comments.

The move has drawn broad criticism.

During a speaking engagement at Colgate University on Friday from which NBC News obtained audio, former President Barack Obama said: “I’m trying to think what would have happened if I had said, you know what, Fox News, you’re out of here. It’s unimaginable.”

He added that if a certain pocket of the country agrees with the proposed restriction, “we have not developed the kind of understanding of what democracy requires,” noting that people have to get to work to shore up that understanding.

“The Constitution protects the freedom of the press from government interference, White House Correspondents’ Association President Jacqui Heinrich said in a statement. “That protection does not depend on whether the president likes a news organization’s coverage, agrees with its reporting, or approves of the questions its journalists ask.”

“The WHCA stands in defense of our colleagues at CNN, MS NOW, and Politico who are being singled out for doing their jobs,” she added.

“The courts have twice found that the Trump administration violated the Constitution by suspending reporters’ White House press passes,” said Charlie Stadtlander, a spokesperson for The New York Times. “The Times stands in support of the news organizations being unfairly targeted by the president.”

The move is the latest in Trump’s ongoing efforts to punish news organizations and broadcasters for their coverage. Shortly after taking office, Trump banned The Associated Press from the Oval Office, Air Force One and some events after it declined to acknowledge his call to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.

The AP filed suit, and the case is ongoing.

Trump has also sued outlets including the BBC, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal for defamation. The suits against the Times and the Journal were subsequently dismissed, but have since been refiled. The BBC has filed to get Trump’s suit against it tossed.