Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., mocked President Donald Trump’s decision to bar three news organizations from the White House, suggesting the move reflects insecurity rather than confidence in his own record. Clyburn’s post on X responded to a post from the Kobeissi Letter summarizing Trump’s announcement.
Clyburn: “Definitely a Sign of a President Confident That He Has Delivered”
“Poor Donald. Can’t handle journalists’ hard questions and thorough investigations into his actions, so he’s trying to ban them,” Clyburn wrote. “Definitely a sign of a president confident that he has delivered for the American people.”
Ban Took Effect the Following Morning, With Credentials Confiscated
A day after Trump’s Sept. 18 announcement, reporters from CNN, MS NOW and Politico were physically denied entry to White House grounds on the morning of Sept. 19, according to multiple outlets, including NPR. MS NOW reporter Akayla Gardner said on air that an officer told her she could not enter because her badge had been “disabled” and asked her to hand it over; when she asked why, she said the officer told her “it was above him.” Photos published by the Associated Press showed MS NOW’s Gardner, CNN’s Betsy Klein and Politico’s Cheyenne Haslett together outside the White House complex after their credentials were confiscated.
Trump Cited “Cumulative Stories,” Declined to Name a Specific Trigger
Speaking in the Oval Office after his initial post, Trump said the ban was a response to “cumulative stories” by the three outlets rather than any single report, telling reporters, “they purposely write negative news, and they do that because they want to try and diminish the Republicans and a Republican administration.” He added of the White House, “I don’t have to let them into the people’s house.”
White House Staff Reportedly Caught Off Guard by the Announcement
A person familiar with the matter told CNN that even some White House press office staffers were surprised by Trump’s initial post and were “left scrambling” to determine how it would be implemented, and CNN’s reporters and workspace remained in place through Friday evening before Saturday’s access denials.
MS NOW and CNN Vowed to Continue Reporting
MS NOW said in a statement it “intends to take any and all steps necessary to defend our First Amendment rights and the essential role of independent journalism in our democracy,” adding, “the White House belongs to the American people and the decisions made inside are funded by our tax dollars.” CNN said its “mission to report on the U.S. government will continue regardless of any attempts to restrict physical access to the White House,” adding it would “not be deflected from our duty to hold the government and other public bodies to account.”
White House Correspondents’ Association Called the Access Revocation Unconstitutional
WHCA President Jacqui Heinrich, a Fox News reporter, said the credential revocation “violates the First Amendment” and called on the administration to immediately restore access, warning that “a standard used to exclude one news outlet because of its coverage could be applied to any outlet in the future.”
Associated Press, Itself Suing Over a Separate Access Dispute, Offered Support
The Associated Press, which has its own ongoing lawsuit against the administration over restricted access following a dispute about the Gulf of Mexico’s naming, said in a statement, “no news organization — or person — should be retaliated against by the government over the words they use.” A federal appeals court has allowed the administration’s restrictions on the AP to remain in place while that case is appealed, though the court noted in a footnote that the White House could not deny credentials to larger press spaces “arbitrarily or based on the content of a journalist’s speech.”
Hegseth Separately Endorsed the Ban, Tying It to Pentagon Press Restrictions
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth wrote on X that the Department of Defense “fully supports President Trump’s decision,” a reference to a separate, ongoing dispute in which many news organizations pulled reporters from the Pentagon last year rather than accept new credentialing rules.
Politico’s $8 Million Funding Claim in Trump’s Post Traces to a Debunked 2025 Controversy
In his original post, Trump described Politico as having received “an illegal and ridiculous $8 Million Dollar subscription… directly from the United States Government, under Crooked Joe Biden.” That claim revives a February 2025 controversy in which fact-checking organizations, including Snopes and PolitiFact, found the $8 million figure represented total government-wide agency subscriptions to Politico Pro, a paid policy-tracking service, with USAID’s own share amounting to $44,000 over two years. Politico has said it has never received government subsidies or grants.
Clyburn Has Repeatedly Criticized the Administration’s Approach to Press Freedom
Clyburn, a senior member of the House Democratic caucus, has continued a pattern of criticizing the administration’s relationship with news organizations throughout 2026, extending that pattern to Trump’s latest action against the three outlets.
Trump-Appointed Judge Previously Ruled Against a Similar 2018 CNN Suspension
The current dispute is not the first time Trump’s White House has moved against CNN’s access. In 2018, the administration revoked chief White House correspondent Jim Acosta’s press credential following a contentious exchange with Trump, initially citing a claim — later found to be false — that Acosta had placed his hands on a White House intern. CNN sued, and U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly, a Trump appointee, ordered the credential restored, ruling specifically that the White House had violated Acosta’s Fifth Amendment due process rights by revoking it without notice or an opportunity to respond, rather than ruling on CNN’s separate First Amendment claim. Kelly said the administration’s stated justification for the revocation was “shrouded in mystery” and that government lawyers “could not tell me” who made the decision. Following the ruling, the White House said it would develop new written rules governing press conduct.