• The Associated Press is suing members of President Trump’s administration for blocking its reporters from “pool” access after it refused to use the term “Gulf of America.” The suit claims that blocking AP violates the First Amendment.

• More specifically, the suit argues that the government’s content-based restrictions on press access amount to unconstitutional control and retaliation against speech.
• AP has received support from various news outlets, including Fox News and Newsmax. They advocate for the AP’s right to use its own language in reporting without government interference.

Full Story

The Associated Press (AP) is suing members of President Donald Trump’s administration. The AP’s reporters were blocked from accessing the White House for refusing to use the “Gulf of America” designation ordered by the president.

Lawyers for AP filed the suit in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., a little more than a week after members of the administration didn’t grant its reporters “pool” access to an executive order signing in the Oval Office. AP states in the lawsuit that the restrictions based on its content violate the First Amendment. 

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The case was assigned to Judge Trevor McFadden, who was appointed by Trump in 2017. 

The suit names White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, Deputy Chief of Staff Taylor Budowich and Chief of Staff Susan Wiles.

“The Press and all people in the United States have the right to choose their own words and not be retaliated against by the government,” the suit states. “The Constitution does not allow the government to control speech. Allowing such government control and retaliation to stand is a threat to every American’s freedom.” 

Trump made clear that the newswire service would be blocked from accessing pool areas until its coverage reflected his order renaming the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America.”

“The Associated Press refuses to go with what the law is and what’s taken place. It’s called the Gulf of America now; it’s not called the Gulf of Mexico any longer,” Trump said.

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AP has seen support from dozens of news outlets, including Trump-friendly media organizations like Fox News and Newsmax, in asking the president to reinstate AP’s access. 

“We can understand President Trump’s frustration because the media has often been unfair to him, but Newsmax supports the AP’s right, as a private organization, to use the language it wants to use in its reporting,” Newsmax said in a statement. “We fear a future administration may not like something Newsmax writes and seek to ban us.”