A federal judge dealt a blow to President Donald J. Trump when he temporarily blocked his ban on three “fake news” outlets from the White House.
In an early Thursday ruling, U.S. District Court Judge Timothy J. Kelly issued a 14-day temporary restraining order on the ban, ruling that access for CNN, MS NOW and Politico be reinstated while the legal fight plays out after the three organizations filed a lawsuit against the administration on Monday.
The Trump appointee ordered the White House to “immediately return, reinstate, and restore” the credentials for the three outlets’ reporters, finding that the revocation of their badges lacked “constitutionally adequate due process.”
ALERT: Federal judge Tim Kelly orders Trump White House to RESTORE the press passes of CNN, MSNOW and Politico
Judge: “Plaintiffs are also likely to succeed in showing that their hard passes were revoked without constitutionally adequate due process”https://t.co/l2skJChlMN
— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) September 24, 2026
“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,” Kelly said, expressing skepticism over the president’s invoking of national security to justify the ban, which drew widespread condemnation from the media, including some with Trump-friendly Fox News.
“For one thing, nothing in the record that predates this suit suggests that the revocation of Plaintiffs’ hard passes was motivated by national security concerns,” the judge wrote. “Certainly, that is not what President Trump said when he announced that he was ‘banning’ Plaintiffs from the White House —instead, he focused on the alleged lack of truthfulness and negativity of Plaintiffs’ reporting.”
Back in 2018, Judge Kelly also ruled against the first Trump administration when he ordered the restoration of former CNN nuisance Jim Acosta’s press pass after it was revoked.
“I am proud to announce that, effective immediately, I am banning Fake News CNN, MSNOW (who recently changed their name from MSNBC due to lack of viewership and credibility!), and Politico (The recipients of an illegal and ridiculous $8 Million Dollar subscription, an All Time Record, directly from the United States Government, under Crooked Joe Biden, in order to keep them ‘alive.’ Seems like corruption to me!), from the White House as a result of their constant “reporting” FAKE NEWS!” Trump wrote in a Friday afternoon post to Truth Social that announced the ban.
Trump also pledged that other media outlets would face similar bans.
“Media Outlets shouldn’t be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES when they’re covering the President of the United States, the Trump Administration, or the United States of America. Other Fake News Media Outlets to follow,” he said in last week’s Truth Social post.
Prior to Wednesday’s hearing, the president branded Kelly as “totally disloyal” in the latest expression of his dismay over judges whom he put on the bench.
The backlash to the ban included Fox News’ Senior White House Correspondent Jacqui Heinrich, who also serves as White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) president.
“The American people, through a free and independent press, must be able to scrutinize those elected to power, regardless of whether government officials view it favorably,” she said in a statement. “That’s why courts have repeatedly held that once the White House provides access to journalists, it cannot deny that access arbitrarily or based on the content of their reporting.”
“This is a strong ruling vindicating freedom of the press, due process and the rule of law. We greatly appreciate the court’s swift action,” attorney Ted Boutrous, who is representing the outlets, told CNN.
At this time, it is unclear if the administration will appeal the ruling.
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