A federal judge on Tuesday delivered a victory to The Associated Press’ challenge over the Trump White House’s expulsion of the news outlet from the Oval Office and Air Force One.
The ruling came two months after President Donald Trump's administration barred AP journalists from accessing certain White House spaces and events following its refusal to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.
“Indeed, the Government has been brazen about this,” U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden wrote Tuesday in a statement critical of the White House’s selective treatment of the AP. “Several high-ranking officials have repeatedly said that they are restricting the AP’s access precisely because of the organization’s viewpoint.”
McFadden added that the government’s failure to offer any other “plausible explanation for its treatment of the AP” means the action is likely unconstitutional.
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“The Constitution forbids viewpoint discrimination, even in a nonpublic forum like the Oval Office,” he wrote in his 41-page ruling.
CNN media analyst Brian Stelter said moments after the ruling that the decision doesn’t mean AP reporters will be allowed inside the White House press briefing room on Wednesday.
“He delayed his order for one week,” Stelter said. “Expect an appeal from the White House as this case moves on.”
But, Stelter made clear: “For now, at least today, the AP is winning in court.”