Judge Orders Trump to Restore CNN Reporter's Access to White House
U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly based his decision largely on a 1977 decision by the Washington federal appeals court, establishing that the White House must provide due process when revoking a reporter's press credentials.
November 16, 2018 at 10:29 AM
5 minute read
CNN's Jim Acosta speaks to reporters on the North Lawn upon returning back to the White House in Washington, Friday, Nov. 16. Photo: Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP
Updated at 11:48 a.m.
The Trump administration must restore the press credentials of a CNN political reporter who has been denied access to the White House, a Washington federal trial judge ruled Friday, handing a blow to a president who has continually bashed some media organizations as “fake news” and called reporters “enemies of the people.”
U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly, appointed by Trump last year to the federal trial bench, handed down the decision Friday after hearing arguments for two hours earlier this week. Kelly had initially planned to issue his decision at a Thursday afternoon hearing but postponed his announcement until Friday.
Kelly based his decision largely on a 1977 decision by the Washington federal appeals court, which established that the White House must provide due process when revoking a reporter's press credentials. “I simply have no choice but to apply that precedent,” he said.
Kelly said CNN and Jim Acosta, represented by Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, demonstrated a “likelihood of success” on its claim that the White House did not engage in an adequate process. He said whatever process that was provided to Acosta is “still so shrouded in mystery,” noting that the government could not definitely identify the official who made the initial decision to revoke Acosta's credentials.
Outside the courthouse, Gibson Dunn partner Theodore Boutrous said: “This is a great day for the First Amendment and journalism.” Acosta, in a nod to briefs from media organizations backing his position, thanked his press colleagues for their support. “And let's go back to work,” he said.
The White House said in a statement:
“Today, the court made clear that there is no absolute First Amendment right to access the White House. In response to the court, we will temporarily reinstate the reporter's hard pass. We will also further develop rules and processes to ensure fair and orderly press conferences in the future. There must be decorum at the White House.”
At Wednesday's hearing, Kelly explored how he should consider “the unprecedented nature of what's happened here.” Justice Department attorney James Burnham said the president enjoys wide discretion to control press access to the White House.
“He clearly has the authority to do that,” Burnham said of the president's power to revoke a reporter's press credentials. Burnham said an order requiring the White House to restore Acosta's credentials would amount to an “intrusive form of relief,” adding that such a ruling would have the effect of countermanding the president's directive for “who can enter his space.”
“I am not aware of any precedent for that sort of judicial relief,” Burnham said.
Burnham also downplayed the importance of Acosta having access to the White House. He noted that CNN has about 50 other employees with press passes and that, by watching televised broadcasts of Trump's appearances, Acosta could “report on them just as well as he could if he was in the room.”
Boutrous, representing CNN, in court this week described Burnham's view of journalism as “warped.”
“That's not how reporters break stories,” Boutrous said, calling the media's access to the White House “highly valuable.”
Burnham had framed the White House's decision as driven not by Acosta's critical coverage of the administration but rather his behavior at a Nov. 7 press conference, during which he declined to give up a microphone or yield to other reporters waiting to ask questions. The White House initially said Acosta placed his hands on a White House intern who was trying to retrieve Acosta's microphone.
“Grandstanding and disrupting a press conference,” Burnham said, “is just not a viewpoint.”
Kelly, however, on Friday questioned the accuracy of that accounting of the interaction between the intern and Acosta.
Boutrous, joined in court by Gibson Dunn partner Theodore Olson, pointed to Trump's past criticism of Acosta and CNN as “fake news.” “On its face,” Boutrous argued, “the government's action was content-based.” He added: “The content-based evidence is really overwhelming.”
Numerous media organizations, represented by Ballard Spahr, are backing CNN in its fight to restore Acosta's press credentials.
Read more:
Judge Plans Swift Ruling in CNN Suit Against Trump Over Press Access
Gibson Dunn Backs CNN, Acosta in White House Press Pass Lawsuit
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View All
Brownstein Adds Former Interior Secretary, Offering 'Strategic Counsel' During New Trump Term
2 minute read
Weil, Loading Up on More Regulatory Talent, Adds SEC Asset Management Co-Chief
3 minute read
FTC Sues PepsiCo for Alleged Price Break to Big-Box Retailer, Incurs Holyoak's Wrath
5 minute read
Supreme Court Will Hear Religious Parents' Bid to Opt Out of LGBTQ-Themed School Books
Trending Stories
- 1Critical Mass With Law.com’s Amanda Bronstad: LA Judge Orders Edison to Preserve Wildfire Evidence, Is Kline & Specter Fight With Thomas Bosworth Finally Over?
- 2What Businesses Need to Know About Anticipated FTC Leadership Changes
- 3Federal Court Considers Blurry Lines Between Artist's Consultant and Business Manager
- 4US Judge Cannon Blocks DOJ From Releasing Final Report in Trump Documents Probe
- 5White & Case KOs Claims Against Voltage Inc. in Solar Companies' Trade Dispute
Who Got The Work
J. Brugh Lower of Gibbons has entered an appearance for industrial equipment supplier Devco Corporation in a pending trademark infringement lawsuit. The suit, accusing the defendant of selling knock-off Graco products, was filed Dec. 18 in New Jersey District Court by Rivkin Radler on behalf of Graco Inc. and Graco Minnesota. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Zahid N. Quraishi, is 3:24-cv-11294, Graco Inc. et al v. Devco Corporation.
Who Got The Work
Rebecca Maller-Stein and Kent A. Yalowitz of Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer have entered their appearances for Hanaco Venture Capital and its executives, Lior Prosor and David Frankel, in a pending securities lawsuit. The action, filed on Dec. 24 in New York Southern District Court by Zell, Aron & Co. on behalf of Goldeneye Advisors, accuses the defendants of negligently and fraudulently managing the plaintiff's $1 million investment. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick, is 1:24-cv-09918, Goldeneye Advisors, LLC v. Hanaco Venture Capital, Ltd. et al.
Who Got The Work
Attorneys from A&O Shearman has stepped in as defense counsel for Toronto-Dominion Bank and other defendants in a pending securities class action. The suit, filed Dec. 11 in New York Southern District Court by Bleichmar Fonti & Auld, accuses the defendants of concealing the bank's 'pervasive' deficiencies in regards to its compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act and the quality of its anti-money laundering controls. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian, is 1:24-cv-09445, Gonzalez v. The Toronto-Dominion Bank et al.
Who Got The Work
Crown Castle International, a Pennsylvania company providing shared communications infrastructure, has turned to Luke D. Wolf of Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani to fend off a pending breach-of-contract lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 25 in Michigan Eastern District Court by Hooper Hathaway PC on behalf of The Town Residences LLC, accuses Crown Castle of failing to transfer approximately $30,000 in utility payments from T-Mobile in breach of a roof-top lease and assignment agreement. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Susan K. Declercq, is 2:24-cv-13131, The Town Residences LLC v. T-Mobile US, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Wilfred P. Coronato and Daniel M. Schwartz of McCarter & English have stepped in as defense counsel to Electrolux Home Products Inc. in a pending product liability lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 26 in New York Eastern District Court by Poulos Lopiccolo PC and Nagel Rice LLP on behalf of David Stern, alleges that the defendant's refrigerators’ drawers and shelving repeatedly break and fall apart within months after purchase. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Joan M. Azrack, is 2:24-cv-08204, Stern v. Electrolux Home Products, Inc.
