Hours after a federal judge ordered the White House to restore press access for three news organizations, security guards turned reporters away at the gates regardless.
U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly had ruled shortly after midnight Thursday, granting CNN, MS NOW, and Politico a 14-day temporary restraining order against Trump’s ban and ordering credentials restored without delay. By sunrise, some journalists walked right through while others didn’t get anywhere near the building.
MS NOW reporter Laura Barrón-López and a producer had their credentials taken on the spot and were turned away. A second MS NOW producer made it in fine. Politico said at least one of its reporters got blocked outright. CNN reported a mixed bag too, some staffers in, others stopped cold despite trying multiple times past 9 a.m.
🚨 BREAKING: Secret Service just confiscated press passes and blocked MS NOW, CNN, and Politico journalists from the White House after a federal judge ordered them restored.
Laura Barrón-López (MS NOW) still looks shaken as she reports live outside. Watch. pic.twitter.com/7BOLINujjX
— CALL TO ACTIVISM (@CalltoActivism) September 24, 2026
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Kelly’s ruling spelled things out clearly. “Individuals must receive notice and an opportunity to be heard before the Government deprives them” of a constitutionally protected interest, he wrote, citing established due process case law. Credentials were to be restored “immediately,” full stop, no asterisks attached.
Attorney Theodore Boutrous, representing all three outlets, had been celebrating that same ruling just hours earlier. “This is a strong ruling vindicating freedom of the press, due process and the rule of law,” he said in a statement. “We greatly appreciate the court’s swift action.” That celebration didn’t last long once reporters actually showed up at the gates.
CNN, MS NOW, and Politico filed for an emergency hearing Thursday morning, trying to force compliance with an order that was, on paper, already binding.
The White House Correspondents’ Association jumped in before that hearing even happened.
WHCA President Jacqui Heinrich pointed straight back at Trump’s own words to make her case. “The president said it plainly in the Oval Office, describing his own planned action as a ‘ban on the free press,'” she said. “The Constitution protects the freedom of the press from government interference. 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 president said it plainly in the Oval Office, describing his own planned action as a “ban on the free press.”
The Constitution protects the freedom of the press from government interference. That protection does not depend on whether the president likes a news organization’s…
— Jacqui Heinrich (@JacquiHeinrich) September 18, 2026
Trump had already braced himself for a loss, at least publicly. Before Wednesday’s hearing, he posted that he expected the “totally disloyal” Kelly to rule against him, adding, “as usual, we’ll go for appeal.” He nominated Kelly to the bench himself during his first term.
Featured image via Political Tribune Gallery
