Judge Rejects Associated Press Bid on White House Access (1)

A federal judge denied the Associated Press’ request to immediately allow its reporters to resume covering White House events and travel aboard Air Force One after they were banned over how the news organization references “Gulf of America” in its style guide.

US District Judge Trevor McFadden in Washington said he will allow the ban to remain in place as the legal fight moves forward after hearing arguments on Monday.

McFadden, who was nominated by President Donald Trump, said the situation presented by the AP’s case was different from past legal fights involving broad access to the White House, as opposed to specific areas.

The judge put the litigation on an expedited track to consider the merits of the AP’s claims, saying he would keep an “open mind,” but at this early stage the outlet hadn’t met its burden for getting immediate intervention from the court.

“As we have said from the beginning, asking the President of the United States questions in the Oval Office and aboard Air Force One is a privilege granted to journalists, not a legal right,” the White House said in a statement after the ruling.

Read More: Associated Press Sues White House Officials to Restore Access

The litigation is focused on AP’s access to restricted areas and other events with Trump as part of the so-called “pool” that provides round-the-clock coverage of the president. The next hearing before McFadden is scheduled for March 20.

“We look forward to our next hearing on March 20 where we will continue to stand for the right of the press and the public to speak freely without government retaliation. This is a fundamental American freedom,” AP spokesperson Lauren Easton said in a statement.

The White House in recent days has barred the newswire’s reporters and photographers from pooled events, citing a style guidance note that said that the “Gulf of Mexico has carried that name for more than 400 years” and that the organization would “refer to it by its original name while acknowledging the new name Trump has chosen.”

White House officials said that the style guide is the basis for many other news outlets, and that its guidance is also utilized by non-media organizations. Bloomberg News is among the media companies whose style is informed by the AP guide.

In a lawsuit filed last week in Washington, the AP alleged that the administration’s decision to restrict its access was unconstitutional, violating the First Amendment’s free press protections. The news organization also argued it violated their due process rights under the Fifth Amendment to have advance notice of the ban and a chance to contest it.

“This targeted attack on the AP’s editorial independence and ability to gather and report the news strikes at the very core of the First Amendment,” lawyers for the outlet wrote in court papers ahead of Monday’s hearing.

‘Presidential Choice’

The administration argued it wasn’t violating the Constitution because the AP still had general access to the White House along with other media. But it was Trump’s “quintessentially discretionary presidential choice” about who to invite to “exclusive gatherings” in the Oval Office, Air Force One and his Mar-a-Lago residence in south Florida.

Government lawyers described the Oval Office and Air Force One as Trump’s “personal workspace” and “personal plane.”

“The President’s discretion over these small spaces simply does not implicate constitutional rights—for citizens, journalists, or news organizations alike,” the Justice Department wrote in its brief.

The White House Correspondents’ Association, which represents hundreds of White House reporters, including those from Bloomberg News, filed a friend-of-court brief in support of the AP. The brief argues that a ban of one outlet based on its viewpoint “will chill and distort news coverage of the President to the public’s detriment.”

The case is The Associated Press v. Budowich, 25-cv-532, US District Court, District of Columbia.

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To contact the reporter on this story:
Zoe Tillman in Washington at ztillman2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story:
Sara Forden at sforden@bloomberg.net

Elizabeth Wasserman, Justin Sink

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