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By Hannah Parry and Sonam Sheth
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President Donald Trump took a victory lap on Friday after an appeals court ruled that he can bar the Associated Press (AP) from attending certain White House events.
The Context
The Trump administration in February barred the AP from covering events in the Oval Office, aboard Air Force One and other restricted areas because the news outlet refused to comply with Trump's directive to call the Gulf of Mexico the "Gulf of America."
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The AP filed a lawsuit in response, saying that the administration violated the First and Fifth amendments by retaliating against the outlet for its editorial decisions.
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What To Know
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia paused a lower court's order that had lifted the White House ban on the news agency's journalists and photographers.
"We grant in part the government's motion for a stay pending appeal," the panel of judges said in their ruling.
"Big WIN over AP today," Trump wrote on his social media website, Truth Social. "They refused to state the facts or the Truth on the GULF OF AMERICA. FAKE NEWS!!!"
U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden initially denied the AP's request for an immediate restraining order but granted a preliminary injunction in April, ordering the White House to restore the AP's access to presidential events. McFadden emphasized in his ruling that the government cannot exclude journalists based on their viewpoints.
The Trump administration appealed McFadden's order and the appeals court ruled in a 2-1 decision Friday that the administration can bar AP journalists from some areas, like the Oval Office and Air Force One, while the lawsuit works its way through the courts.
What People Are Saying
The White House Correspondents Association said in a February letter defending the AP: "The First Amendment prohibits the government from asserting control over how news organizations make editorial decisions. Any attempt to punish journalists for those decisions is a serious breach of this Constitutional protection. The decision to exclude The Associated Press from covering the president aboard Air Force One and in the Oval Office is an escalation of a dispute that does not serve the presidency or the public. News organizations must be free to make their own editorial decisions without fear of government intrusion."
What Happens Next
The Trump administration will continue lashing out at media organizations it deems insufficiently loyal.
Update 6/5/25 9:30 p.m.: This story has been updated with additional information and context.
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