President Trump announced a ban on three major news outlets. MS Now, CNN, and Politico lost their special access to the White House grounds.
Vice President JD Vance spoke to reporters on Monday morning to explain the move. He told the crowd that the ban is not a total shutdown. "So he's not banning media outlets," Vance said, according to the Washington Examiner. He clarified that the administration is simply refusing to give special access to those who engage in what is effectively propaganda.
Vance noted a specific statistic about the coverage these outlets provide. "We have to remember those three outlets account about 92% of the stories that they have on the president of the United States on the administration are negative," he stated. He argued that this negative tone does not match the views of regular citizens. "That's not representative of the American people. It's not representative of public opinion," Vance said.
Vance framed the decision as a matter of basic equity. "It's about basic fairness. They can still report," he said. The outlets can still get public reports and talk to people inside or outside the administration. An office in the White House is no longer available to them.
He drew a sharp parallel to past political battles. He asked a rhetorical question to make his point clear. Why, on God's green earth, would anyone expect Donald Trump to grant Politico special access when neither the Biden administration nor the Obama administration gave Breitbart special access to anyone in the media?
The outlets did not take this lying down. On Monday, they announced a lawsuit against the Trump administration. They claim the ban violates the Constitution. The White House Correspondents Association president also weighed in.
Not everyone in the Trump circle seems to know the full story yet. House Majority Leader Rep. Steve Scalise spoke on Sunday about the sudden ban. He admitted he did not know why it happened. "I don't know why he did it. I don't know what the background is," Scalise said, according to ABC News.
Despite the ban, Scalise defended Trump's general openness to reporters. "I don't think we've had a president that's been more open to the press," Scalise said. He pointed to bill signings as proof of this access. When you attend a bill signing with President Trump, the first action he takes before signing is bringing in the press so everyone can both take pictures and ask questions.
President Trump set the tone for the ban in his initial statement. "Media Outlets shouldn't be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES when they're covering the President of the United States, the Trump Administration, or the United States of America," he said.
The Washington Times reported that Vance emphasized the distinction between reporting and propaganda. The Vice President insisted the White House is not starting an assault on the press. The three outlets remain free to write their stories, but they no longer have the special key to the White House.
