DOJ defends Trump ban of 3 news outlets, says White House access is a 'privilege — not a right'

US President Donald Trump speaks during an announcement in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Friday, Sept. 18, 2026. Samuel Corum | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesThe U.S. Department of Justice late Tuesday evening urged a federal judge not to block President Donald Trump's total ban of three news outlets from the White House, saying, "Access to the White House is a privilege — not a right."The DOJ, in a new court filing, also said Trump was motivated by concerns about national security in his decision Friday to summarily ban MS NOW, CNN and Politico from the White House.The filing came ahead of Wednesday's scheduled teleconference hearing in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., where Judge Timothy Kelly will hear arguments by a lawyer for the outlets, which have asked him to enjoin Trump from continuing the ban as part of a lawsuit filed against him Monday."The President has determined that Plaintiffs have reported classified or sensitive information bearing on national security," the DOJ said in the filing to Kelly, who is a Trump appointee."The President therefore has a compelling interest in limiting access to White House grounds to organizations that do...