Federal Judge Says White House Must Reinstate AP Access to Press Pool, Oval Office

A federal judge issued a ruling that the White House must reinstate Associated Press (AP) reporters’ access to the press pool and to certain places like the Oval Office and Air Force One.

District Court Judge Trevor McFadden issued a ruling on Tuesday stating that the court was granting the AP’s “relief” after it filed a lawsuit in February in response to being hit with limited access to presidential events and places such as Air Force One and the Oval Office, according to CNBC. McFadden argued that the AP’s exclusion from the press pool and certain spaces is “contrary to the First Amendment.”

McFadden explained in the ruling that while the court “grants” the Associated Press’s preliminary injunction, it “does not limit the various permissible reasons the Government may have for excluding journalists from limited-access events.”

“Today, the Court grants that relief. But this injunction does not limit the various permissible reasons the Government may have for excluding journalists from limited-access events,” McFadden said. “It does not mandate that all eligible journalists, or indeed any journalists at all, be given access to the President or nonpublic government spaces. It does not prohibit government officials from freely choosing which journalists to sit down with for interviews or which ones’ questions they answer. And it certainly does not prevent senior officials from publicly expressing their own views.”

McFadden continued to point out that “Court simply holds that under the First Amendment, if the Government opens its doors to some journalists,” then it “cannot then shut those doors to other journalists” based on their views:

No, the Court simply holds that under the First Amendment, if the Government opens its doors to some journalists—be it to the Oval Office, the East Room, or elsewhere—it cannot then shut those doors to other journalists because of their viewpoints. The Constitution requires no less.

As Breitbart News reported, the AP filed a lawuit against White House Chief of Staff Susan Wiles, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Taylor Budowich, and White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt after the outlet received limited access to presidential events and certain spaces.

In February, the White House announced that the AP was barred from the Oval Office and Air Force One in response to its decision to not recognize the “Gulf of America.”

“The Associated Press continues to ignore the lawful geographic name change of the Gulf of America. This decision is not just divisive, but it also exposes the Associated Press’ commitment to misinformation,” Budowich said in a post on X at the time. “While their right to irresponsible and dishonest reporting is protected by the First Amendment, it does not ensure their privilege of unfettered access to limited spaces, like the Oval Office and Air Force One.”

In January, President Donald Trump issued an executive order designating the name change from the “Gulf of Mexico” to the “Gulf of America.”

Since then, Apple Maps and Google Maps have updated maps to acknowledge the name change to the Gulf of America.