CNN, MS NOW and Politico asked U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly for a preliminary injunction preserving their access to the White House and the president until the case is resolved, arguing the White House has enforced President Donald Trump's ban unpredictably and inconsistently. The filing, made late Monday, cites the White House's decision to keep CNN from its designated TV network pool role on Sept. 26, when the network was barred from traveling with Trump on Air Force One to Tennessee. "The White House's words and actions leave little doubt that it will immediately reinstate a complete ban of CNN, MS NOW, and POLITICO if allowed the opportunity," the outlets wrote.

Kelly, a Trump appointee, restored the outlets' access for 14 days on Sept. 24 with a temporary restraining order that expires Oct. 8, finding they were likely to succeed on their claim that their credentials were revoked without constitutionally adequate due process. The major TV networks resumed pooled coverage of Trump's events on Friday after suspending it in protest of the ban, and the White House has listed CNN as primary pool for Thursday.

Attorney General Todd Blanche defended the ban after ABC's Martha Raddatz challenged him to cite an example of inaccurate CNN reporting, saying "the complete misinformation and the inaccuracy and the one-sided news out of certain organizations does become a national security issue." Justice Department lawyers offered no specific example of misinformation or incorrect reporting to justify the ban in their court filings.