Blacklisted: Associated Press Banned From Press Conference

The Trump administration has blacklisted the Associated Press, banning its journalists from a press conference with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele in the Oval Office on Monday. The White House excluded the media outlet even though a court order commanded that their access be restored.

In February, Trump became offended and barred AP from any presidential events he could after the news agency refused to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America” in its reporting. Trump tried to officially rename the Gulf in January and has been massively offended if people continue to call it what they’ve always known it.

For more than four centuries, the body of water stretching from Florida through Texas and into Mexico has been known as the Gulf of Mexico, and most have called it that their entire lives.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has brushed off Trump’s move, saying the U.S. president can use whatever name he prefers for the U.S. portion of the water. The AP didn’t agree with the name change. The AP said:  “As a global news agency that disseminates information worldwide, the AP must ensure that place names and geography are easily recognizable to all audiences,” the outlet said at the time.

But the Trump administration still seems to be punishing the AP for not towing the line in spite of a court order demanding otherwise.

Last week, a federal court in Washington, DC, ruled that the ban violates the First Amendment. “Under the First Amendment, if the government opens its doors to some journalists –be it to the Oval Office, the East Room, or elsewhere –it cannot then shut those doors to other journalists because of their viewpoints,” Judge Trevor N. McFadden wrote. The White House is appealing the ruling.

According to a report by RT, the AP stated that its reporters remain barred from the Oval Office and Air Force One but receive “sporadic access” to other locations, including briefings by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.

Trump has frequently attacked and criticized the media. He has called them “the lying media,” accusing journalists of spreading “fake news” about him and his administration. Last month, Leavitt criticized an AP reporter for asking what she called an “insulting” question about Trump’s tariff policy.

This article has been contributed by SHTF Plan. Visit www.SHTFplan.com for alternative news, commentary and preparedness info.