Trump defended the ban on national security grounds during a meeting at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, saying, “I think we have a right to clean out fake news.” The three outlets filed suit Monday seeking to restore their credentials and access, arguing the ban violated the First Amendment. “Without notice or process, the White House revoked our journalists’ credentials because it objected to our reporting,” they said in a joint statement.
The dispute has also halted shared television pool coverage of presidential events. ABC, CBS, Fox News and NBC declined to replace CNN after the White House barred it from its assigned pool duties Monday. The five networks normally rotate coverage and share footage with other news organizations.