Judge blocks Trump's White House media ban, orders access to be restored

A federal judge ordered US President Donald Trump on Thursday to restore White House access for journalists from CNN, MS NOW and Politico, saying his ban on the three media outlets was likely unconstitutional.

In a major setback for Trump in one of his biggest battles with the media, US District Judge Tim Kelly issued his order in a lawsuit that the news organizations filed contesting the ban that the Republican president announced on September 18.

Kelly ordered the Trump administration to ​immediately return the outlets' press passes and blocked officials from enforcing the ban for 14 days. The judge rejected the government's assertion that the ​ban was motivated by national security concerns.

"The record lacks factual support for defendants’ contention that the revocation of plaintiffs’ hard ⁠passes will in fact protect national security or that national security will be endangered if the court orders their passes reinstated while this litigation proceeds," he ​said, adding that Trump himself had stated the ban was due to "alleged lack of truthfulness and negativity" of the outlets' reporting.

The White House and representatives for the ​outlets did not immeidately respond to requests for comment.

Trump had said on social media that the three outlets "shouldn't be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES," and Justice Department lawyers had sought to justify the ban on national security grounds.

The three outlets sued Trump and other members of his administration in federal court in Washington on Monday, saying the ban ​violated the US Constitution's First Amendment protections for free speech and a free press, as well as their due process rights. They requested a temporary restraining ​order that would immediately reinstate their White House access while their legal challenge plays out.