President Donald Trump’s Justice Department is now reportedly hitting back hard against three major media outlets that sued the administration over the president’s decision to ban them from the White House.
In a late-night court filing Tuesday, the Justice Department delivered a blistering response to the lawsuit brought by CNN, MS NOW and Politico, which are challenging the president’s move to bar them from White House grounds.
The filing, submitted to the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., was signed by four attorneys, among them Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate. In it, the government’s lawyers laid out and defended the reasoning behind the president’s decision.
According to the attorneys, the president determined that the three outlets had fallen short of the basic expectations placed on anyone granted access to the White House.
“The President concluded that they have failed to maintain basic minimum ‘standards of professionalism and decorum expected of those given access to the White House Complex, including’ by ‘publishing sensitive or classified information,'” the attorneys wrote.
The Justice Department made clear that the administration believes it acted well within its authority.
“In response, the President has preliminarily revoked their continued access to White House grounds…After all, access to the White House is a privilege — not a right,” the filing stated.
The government did not pull any punches in its description of the outlets’ conduct. The filing accuses CNN, MS NOW and Politico of “trafficking in verifiable falsehoods about national security and other issues, and publishing sensitive or classified information.”
Notably, the filing also points to a heated moment from Tuesday at the United Nations, when President Trump berated CNN’s Kaitlan Collins. The Justice Department cited the episode to argue that the president has not cut off the press, including the very outlets suing him.
“The President continues to engage the press, including Plaintiffs, but believes they should not have access to White House grounds in light of his national security concerns,” the filing reads.
A footnote attached to that portion of the filing links to video of the president’s exchange with the CNN correspondent.
The confrontation with Collins is now being used by both sides. The plaintiffs have also submitted the same exchange as evidence in their case against the administration.
The high-stakes legal battle now heads to the courtroom. U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly, who was appointed by President Trump, is scheduled to hear arguments at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
However, the president has not been shy about voicing his displeasure with the judge. Trump has complained publicly about Kelly, saying that he “sadly” appointed him.
The president is also already preparing for the next round. Trump is planning for an appeal, signaling that the fight over White House access for CNN, MS NOW and Politico may be far from over, no matter how Judge Kelly rules on Wednesday.
For now, the administration is standing firm on its position that the three outlets lost their place on White House grounds because of their own conduct, and that the president’s national security concerns justify keeping them out.
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