Power Grab/Fire anyone who can stop him
The White House pulls CNN’s, MS NOW’s and Politico’s press credentials on September 18–19, 2026; a Trump-appointed judge orders them restored on September 24
The judge found the national-security rationale the Justice Department offered “lacks factual support.”
What happened
On September 18, 2026, Trump announced that CNN, MS NOW and Politico would no longer be allowed to cover the White House because of reporting he called false. Their hard passes were revoked the next day. CNN lost its pool slot for the U.N. trip, and the other networks suspended pool coverage.
The three outlets sued on September 21, and on September 24 Judge Timothy Kelly, a Trump appointee, issued a temporary restraining order. He found the revocations likely violated due process and that the record “lacks factual support” for the national-security justification the Justice Department offered.
Reporters were still turned away that morning, and from the arrivals for the state dinner for China’s Xi Jinping that evening, before the White House let them back in.
Who benefited
The White House kept three major news organizations out of its coverage of the president for a week, during a U.N. trip and a Chinese state visit. Trump announced the exclusion himself, citing reporting he called false. It also established that the White House will try.
Who wanted something
Trump has singled out these outlets by name for years. His press office had already banned the AP over the Gulf of America, reassigned the pool to friendly outlets, and ended the press corps’ control of its own seating.
Who lost out
The outlets’ readers and viewers went without their reporters’ access to the president during consequential days. The press corps learned that credentials can be pulled for coverage. The government’s lawyers saw a Trump-appointed judge call their national-security claim unsupported.
Why it matters
Three of the largest news organizations in the country were expelled for their journalism, and a court order reversed it. The 2025 AP ban was over a word. The judge who ordered the passes restored was appointed by Trump.
Sources NewscastStudioAP (via Irish Examiner)Reuters (via eNCA)