Donald Trump’s escalating war with three major American news organizations is officially headed to federal court — and the judge assigned to the fight has a history that could make this showdown particularly interesting.
CNN, Politico and MS NOW filed a joint federal lawsuit Monday challenging Trump’s decision to ban their reporters from the White House.
The three organizations argue that the administration violated their First Amendment free-press rights as well as their Fifth Amendment due-process rights when their journalists’ White House credentials were revoked.
They are not simply asking the court to weigh in sometime down the road.
The outlets are seeking a temporary restraining order that would block the administration from enforcing the ban and restore their access.
A hearing is scheduled for Wednesday.
And then comes the twist.
The case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly.
Kelly was appointed to the federal bench by Donald Trump during his first term.
But that isn’t the most interesting part.
Kelly also presided over CNN’s famous 2018 legal battle with the first Trump administration after the White House revoked correspondent Jim Acosta’s press credential.
In that case, Kelly granted CNN’s request for a temporary restraining order, requiring the White House to restore Acosta’s credential while the legal dispute continued.
The White House ultimately reinstated Acosta, and CNN later dropped the lawsuit.
Eight years later, CNN is back in federal court fighting another Trump White House over press access — and the case has landed before the same judge.
This time, CNN isn’t alone.
MS NOW and Politico have joined the network in challenging Trump’s sweeping decision to bar the three organizations from White House grounds.
“This morning, we notified the government that we are filing a lawsuit today to protect our First Amendment rights and defend the principle that the government does not decide what the press reports or publishes,” the three organizations said in a joint statement.
The lawsuit argues that the outlets were punished because Trump objected to their reporting.
Trump has made little secret of his reasoning.
When announcing the ban Friday, he accused CNN, Politico and MS NOW of producing what he considers “fake news” and attacked their coverage of his administration.
Reporters from all three organizations subsequently attempted to enter the White House on Saturday and discovered that their credentials had been disabled.
CNN senior White House reporter Betsy Klein, MS NOW correspondent Akayla Gardner and Politico White House reporter Cheyenne Haslett were denied entry. The journalists are also plaintiffs in the federal lawsuit.
The Trump administration rejects the outlets’ constitutional argument.
“The First Amendment protects their right to publish; it does not entitle them to a hard pass, briefing room seat, or place in the press pool,” the White House said.
Trump also defended his action Monday, insisting that he “cherished” a free press while arguing that his administration was targeting what he calls “FAKE NEWS.”
Vice President JD Vance similarly defended the restrictions, describing White House access as a privilege rather than a right.
But the dispute has already expanded far beyond the three banned organizations.
CNN was scheduled to handle television pool duties Monday as part of the rotating system involving CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox News.
After the White House prevented CNN from fulfilling that assignment, the other networks declined to provide a replacement.
The five-network television pool announced that it was suspending coverage of presidential events, leaving Trump without the normal pooled television coverage presidents routinely receive.
The consequences became apparent at Trump’s White House helipad ribbon-cutting Monday, where the administration’s own livestream carried video but the president’s remarks were largely inaudible.
Now the legal battle is moving quickly.
CNN, Politico and MS NOW want the federal court to stop the ban while their constitutional challenge proceeds.
And the first major confrontation comes Wednesday before a judge Trump himself put on the federal bench — a judge who has already once ordered a Trump White House to restore a CNN reporter’s press credential.
For Trump and CNN, it is an extraordinary case of history circling back.
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