CNN threatens to sue the Trump administration again

Washington - Ofoq News - The American CNN network has threatened to resort again to the judiciary against the administration of President Donald Trump, due to the continued prevention of its journalists from accompanying the president on board the presidential plane, Air Force One, despite the issuance of a preliminary court order restoring entry permits to the White House for the network’s correspondents and other media organizations.

The network's lawyer, Ted Piotros, called on the US Department of Justice to provide written confirmation of the end of the restrictions imposed on its journalists' participation in presidential coverage, by 5 p.m., Thursday, October 22, EST, warning that additional legal measures would be taken if the exclusion continued.

Pioutros accused the Trump administration of taking retaliatory measures against the network because of the content of its news coverage, and of discriminating against it by preventing it from participating in presidential trips.

The lawyer considered, in a letter addressed to the Ministry of Justice, that excluding the network on the basis of its journalistic content is an illegal measure, demanding an end to the restrictions that prevent it from carrying out its duties within the joint media coverage of the president’s activities.

The Associated Press, which reviewed the letter, reported that the network was prevented on at least four occasions from accompanying Trump on Air Force One, despite its role in providing joint television coverage.

The lawyer stated that the White House did not provide the network with a direct explanation of the reasons for excluding it from these trips.

CNN participates in a system of joint media coverage that alternates between American television networks, with one organization filming the president's movements and providing the video material to the rest of the media.

This system allows press organizations to obtain photos and recordings of presidential activities that do not accommodate all reporters and photographers, including trips on the presidential plane.

The materials produced by the joint television team are not limited to the network in charge of the mission, but are also made available to other media organizations inside and outside the United States.

CNN believes that excluding it from flights during which it is its turn within this system not only affects its ability to cover, but also disrupts the mechanism of providing images to the rest of the media organizations.

On the other hand, The Wrap website quoted a White House official as saying that journalists do not have a constitutional right to enter the Oval Office, the presidential plane, or other sensitive facilities.

The official accused media organizations of publishing false and fabricated information, while defending the administration's position on regulating journalists' access to presidential activities.

The legality of the restrictions remains a matter of legal dispute between the administration and the media institutions concerned.

The threat of new legal action comes after a preliminary order was issued by Federal Judge Timothy Kelly, in the Federal District Court in Washington, to preserve White House passes for CNN, MS Now and Politico reporters until the case is completed.

The Trump administration had canceled the entry permits of journalists from the three institutions last September, which prompted it to appeal the decision before the judiciary, based on the constitutional protection of freedom of expression and the right to due legal procedures.

Permanent permits allow journalists to enter the media area in the White House complex without the need for an escort, through security procedures designated for their holders.

Judge Kelly found that the plaintiff organizations had shown that their legal claims were likely to succeed, and that continued restrictions could cause them irreparable harm, which justified issuing a preliminary injunction preserving their reporters’ right of entry.