CNN, Politico and MS NOW to face off with Trump administration in court over White House ban

The trio of media outlets that President Donald Trump abruptly banned from accessing the White House will be in court Wednesday to argue their expulsion was unconstitutional and should be lifted immediately.

“This ban could not be a more direct assault on the First Amendment nor a more blatant violation of our most fundamental constitutional principles,” lawyers for CNN, Politico and MS NOW said in a court filing Monday ahead of the hearing.

“The ban is unconstitutional and should be immediately restrained,” they contended, citing legal precedent in the District of Columbia and U.S. Supreme Court.

The news organizations are scheduled to make their case to U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly at a 3:30 p.m. ET hearing.

Late Tuesday, the Justice Department defended the ban in a court filing, arguing that Trump had decided the outlets “failed to maintain basic minimum ‘standards of professionalism and decorum expected of those given access to the White House Complex, including’ by ‘publishing sensitive or classified information.’”

The outlets’ “access to the White House is a privilege — not a right,” the filing said.

On Tuesday, the White House Press Office sent letters to the three outlets alleging their coverage involved “trafficking in verifiable…

Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/business