Justice Department Urges Judge to Allow Trump Media Ban

October 3, 2026 at 07:43 AM1 min

This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.

The US Justice Department urged a federal judge to reject a request by CNN, MS NOW and Politico for a longer court order preventing President Donald Trump from banning their journalists from the White House. In a Friday night filing, administration lawyers argued Trump has a right and duty to enforce minimum standards for journalists to safeguard national security information. The department said the president's actions are lawful under the First Amendment.

Key Facts

The Justice Department filed its opposition on Friday night, October 2, 2026.
The plaintiffs are CNN, MS NOW and Politico.
The administration argues Trump has a right and duty to enforce minimum standards for journalists to safeguard national security information.
The Justice Department stated that the president's actions are lawful under the First Amendment.

Justice Department Filing

The US Justice Department urged a federal judge to reject a request by CNN, MS NOW and Politico for a longer court order preventing President Donald Trump from banning their journalists from the White House. In a court filing on Friday night, lawyers for the administration argued that Trump had a right as well as a duty to enforce minimum standards for journalists for the purpose of safeguarding national security information. The Justice Department said in court papers that the president's actions are lawful under the First Amendment.

Legal Arguments

The administration cited previous cases to support its position. The Justice Department added that the plaintiffs had not made the required showing for relief.