Journalists from CNN, MS NOW and Politico were back at work inside the White House complex this week after a federal judge ordered their press credentials restored, capping a dispute that began when the administration revoked their access on or about September 18.
US District Judge Timothy Kelly issued a temporary restraining order just after midnight Thursday, directing the White House to "immediately return, reinstate, and restore" the hard passes held by employees of the three outlets. In his written ruling, Kelly found that the revocations had been carried out without what he called constitutionally adequate due process. He also wrote that the administration had not offered evidence showing how the specific reporting it cited had damaged national security, noting that some of the journalists named in the government's own letters did not even hold hard passes themselves.
The White House had argued in court filings that the credential revocations were necessary to prevent the disclosure of classified and sensitive national security information, pointing in part to a January CNN report describing construction details of the White House's East Wing bunker. The administration did not dispute the accuracy of that report. Judge Kelly wrote that he was skeptical, based on the record before him, that safeguarding national security was the actual motivation behind the bans.
Even after the ruling, the handoff was not entirely smooth. The Secret Service initially refused to admit a Politico reporter to the grounds Thursday morning and confiscated that reporter's pass, while a CNN correspondent and photojournalist were also turned away before eventually being allowed back in by midday. The episode is part of a broader arrangement in Washington in which a small pool of networks takes turns filming the president and shares that footage with the wider press corps, coverage that local television stations and news outlets around the world rely on.
Kelly's order is a temporary restraining order rather than a final ruling, so the underlying legal dispute over the credentials is expected to continue in court.
Why were the credentials revoked in the first place?
The administration said the outlets had published reporting it considered damaging to national security, though the judge found no evidence supporting that claim.
Is this dispute over?
No. The judge's order is a temporary restraining order, so further court proceedings are expected.