White House again removes CNN from TV pool duties, blocks Air Force One access

Hours after the Trump administration allowed CNN to resume its TV pool coverage duties on Friday, the network said the White House blocked its journalists from flying with President Donald Trump on Air Force One on Saturday as he travels to Tennessee.

The network fulfilled its duties as the designated pooler earlier Friday for Trump’s visit to the National Archives in Washington with Chinese President Xi Jinping, capping a whirlwind week of restrictions being imposed and lifted after the White House banned the network, MS NOW and Politico.

But the White House later removed CNN as the primary TV pooler for Saturday, barring it from Air Force One, the network reported Friday night. The Washington Post first reported CNN’s exclusion from the trip.

The White House did not list a primary TV pool for Saturday in the daily guidance it sent out Friday night. Trump is set to travel to Knoxville, Tennessee, to attend a University of Tennessee vs. University of Texas football game.

A CNN spokesperson declined to comment. The White House did not immediately respond to MS NOW’s request for comment.

CNN and the other four networks that decide the daily rotation of White House pool coverage — ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC — had suspended their TV coverage of Trump after his administration removed CNN from its assigned duties on Monday. CNN had been blocked from flying on Air Force One as Trump flew to New York City for the United Nations General Assembly. But the pool appeared to be reactivated as of Friday morning, with CBS serving as the primary TV pooler for the day and CNN covering Trump and Xi’s visit to the National Archives.

After Trump banned MS NOW, CNN and Politico from the White House grounds last week, citing what he described as unfair coverage, the outlets sued to have their access restored, arguing that the ban violated their due process rights and the First Amendment.

U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly ordered the White House early Thursday to temporarily restore the outlets’ access as litigation continues. Still, several journalists were intermittently blocked throughout the day despite the ruling.

Hours after the order, the White House allowed some MS NOW, CNN and Politico journalists to enter the building but blocked others and confiscated their press passes. After the outlets filed a notice of noncompliance to the court, the White House restored the journalists’ access.

MS NOW, CNN and Politico journalists were allowed to enter the White House on Friday morning, after some MS NOW and CNN reporters were denied access to Trump’s state dinner with Xi the night before. MS NOW had requested credentials for the event but never received a response.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

The post White House again removes CNN from TV pool duties, blocks Air Force One access appeared first on MS NOW.

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