Among the many bigly important matters of national importance that Trump got cracking on right away was an executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. I stand by my belief that this idea was entirely the suntan-poisoned brainchild of Trump himself; it matches his level of intellectual thought. So in that sense, it wasn’t too surprising that he would punish anyone who didn’t kowtow to his great idea, which is what he did on February 11 when he banned the Associated Press (AP) from White House access “until such time as they agree that it’s the Gulf of America.” The AP responded a week later by suing the Trump administration — specifically naming press secretary Karoline Leavitt, chief of staff Susie Wiles, and deputy chief of staff Taylor Budowich — calling the ban an unconstitutional breach of the First Amendment. Now the verdict is in, and US District Judge Trevor McFadden (a Trump appointee) agreed with the AP!

“Under the First Amendment, if the Government opens its doors to some journalist—be it to the Oval Office, the East Room, or elsewhere—it cannot then shut those doors to other journalists because of their viewpoints,” McFadden wrote. “The Constitution requires no less.”

It was unclear whether the White House would move immediately to put McFadden’s ruling into effect. McFadden held off on implementing his order for a week, giving the government time to respond or appeal. Shortly after the ruling, an AP reporter and photographer were turned away from joining a motorcade with the White House press pool to cover Trump’s appearance before the National Republican Congressional Committee.

The AP has been blocked since Feb. 11 from being among the small group of journalists to cover Trump in the Oval Office or aboard Air Force One, with sporadic ability to cover him at events in the East Room.

“We are gratified by the court’s decision,” said AP spokeswoman Lauren Easton. “Today’s ruling affirms the fundamental right of the press and public to speak freely without government retaliation. This is a freedom guaranteed for all Americans in the U.S. Constitution.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, one of the administration officials named in the lawsuit, did not immediately return a message seeking comment. In its action filed on Feb. 21, the AP sued Leavitt, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and deputy chief of staff Taylor Budowich.

Trump has moved aggressively against the media on several fronts since taking office again. The Federal Communications Commission has open lawsuits against ABC, CBS and NBC News. The administration has sought to cut off funding for government-run news services like Voice of America and is threatening public funding for public broadcasters PBS and NPR for allegedly being too liberal in news coverage.

…Because of its wide reach, the AP has traditionally always been included in “pools” for coverage of presidential events in places like the Oval Office and Air Force One. McFadden cautioned that his ruling does not necessarily herald a return to those days.

“The Court does not order the government to grant the AP permanent access to the Oval Office, the East Room or any other media event,” he wrote. “It does not bestow special treatment upon the AP. Indeed, the AP is not necessarily entitled to the ‘first in line every time’ permanent press pool access it enjoyed under the (White House Correspondents Association). But it cannot be treated worse than its peer wire service either.”

The judge said that his decision does not prohibit a government official from choosing which outlets to give interviews to, or choosing which journalists’ questions they choose to answer at a news conference.

[From AP News]

“It was unclear whether the White House would move immediately to put McFadden’s ruling into effect.” Hahahaha! Good on you, AP, for keeping up your sense of humor amid the turmoil. I also love that they get to report on their own trouncing of Trump. Since the bar is in hell (get it, “bar?” Law pun!) we have to be thankful that a Trump-appointed judge saw fit to side with the constitution. But the win sets a valuable precedent that I hope encourages other major outlets that the government is targeting to hold their ground. Because this is an important victory for free speech that the AP, other journalists, and citizens at large should cherish… especially before the inevitable appeal that eventually drops the case at the spineless Supreme Court. But hey, prove me wrong, world! If one Trump-appointed district judge can do his job, maybe there’s a slight chance three of them at SCOTUS can do the same. (I know, now you’re the ones saying “Hahahaha!” to me.)

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