Judge considers restoring journalists' access to White House after Trump's ban

Members of the press are seen outside the White House in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 21. Alex Wroblewski/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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A federal judge appeared inclined to order the White House to restore — at least temporarily — the press passes of journalists for CNN, Politico and MS NOW (formerly MSNBC).

On Wednesday afternoon, U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly, who was nominated by Trump in 2017, held an emergency hearing after the news outlets filed a lawsuit seeking to undo the ban.

In his introductory remarks, Kelly said it appeared the White House had violated the news outlets' constitutional right of due process — which was set out in previous court decisions — when it abruptly blocked the access of journalists who held permanent credentials to work in the building.

Theodore J. Boutrous, a lawyer representing the three news outlets, said the White House ban took place " without a semblance of due process."

He also argued that the move was in violation of CNN, MS NOW and Politico's First Amendment rights and called it a form of retaliation for their coverage of the president, adding that it was "probably the clearest case in history" of viewpoint discrimination.

In threatening to ban the news outlets on Friday, Trump had told reporters at the White House, "They purposely write negative news, and they do that because they want to try and diminish the Republicans and a Republican administration."