Citizens sue Donald Trump over White House press ban
Plaintiffs ask a federal court to block retaliation and preserve journalists’ access after media were barred from the White House.
Six U.S. citizens have filed a lawsuit against President Donald Trump, arguing that he deprived the public of information by banning reporters from three news outlets from entering the White House. The suit was submitted to the federal district court in New York and invokes the First Amendment, saying the Constitution protects the public’s right to know what its government is doing.
Plaintiffs seek court order to block retaliation
“When the White House expels journalists for their reporting, the public loses access to independent information and moves closer to government propaganda,” the complaint says.
Alongside Donald Trump, the lawsuit names aides Suzy Wiles and Steven Cheung, and Secret Service director Sean M. Curran. The plaintiffs request a judicial injunction that would protect all journalists reporting from the White House from retaliatory measures.
“Any journalist reporting from the White House must now consider that a critical or improperly uttered word about the president could result in the immediate restriction or revocation of access,” the complaint adds.
Those who brought the case include human-rights activist Kenneth Roth; reporters Daniel Frumkin and Benjamin Wittes; history professor Beverly Gage; high-school civics teacher Peter Schmit-Novara; and University of Pennsylvania journalism student Ethan Young.
In late September, federal judge Timothy Kelly ordered the administration to immediately restore accreditations and access to the White House for journalists from CNN, MSNBC and Politico, after the president barred those outlets from the complex. Trump had accused them of “fake news”; the outlets sued, arguing the ban was unlawful.
Photo: press material from the event
