Lawyers for CNN, MS NOW and Politico are reviewing their next steps after the White House began enforcing President Donald Trump's ban on the three outlets. CNN reporter Betsy Klein and MS NOW reporter Akayla Gardner were denied entry on Sept. 19 and had their press passes seized. CNN's Brian Stelter reported that legal action was likely in the coming days.

Trump announced the ban on Sept. 18, saying it was effective immediately and accusing the outlets of reporting “fake news.” He threatened to bar additional news organizations. “I don't want them in my office. I don't want them here,” he told reporters. White House Correspondents’ Association President Jacqui Heinrich urged him to scrap the ban, arguing that it violates the First Amendment and harms the public's access to independent reporting.

UN Ambassador Mike Waltz defended the restriction in a CNN interview, saying, “The president is absolutely within his rights to limit journalists to government facilities.” Press freedom advocates disputed that position. Bruce D. Brown, president of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, said: “The First Amendment is clear that once the White House invites in some journalists, it can't ban others because it doesn't like their reporting.” In Sherrill v. Knight in 1977, a federal appeals court ruled that the First Amendment limits the White House's ability to arbitrarily deny a journalist a press pass.