People call for impeachment, Congress to step in as Trump defies yet another court order in an open war with the media
While Republican-led states like Georgia, Texas, Ohio, and other continuously take legal actions to officially support many of President Trump’s controversial policies and decisions, the Trump administration continues with the stubbornness to defy court orders. Once again, the White House has come under fire for limiting Associated Press (AP) reporters’ access at important Oval Office events in what seems to be yet another defiance of a federal court ruling.
This action follows a court ruling that specifically barred the Trump administration from penalizing the AP for its editorial actions, especially its refusal to call the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America.” The dispute started not long ago when U.S. District Judge Trevor N. McFadden decided that the AP’s preference to keep the conventional name for the Gulf of Mexico in its reporting was protected under freedom of speech. Judge McFadden’s ruling was clear: the administration could not prevent the AP from attending White House events as a punishment.
The government, however, failed to comply. On Monday, AP journalists were absent from an important press briefing in the Oval Office, where President Donald Trump met with El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele. Lauren Easton, the AP spokesperson, expressed the agency’s optimism that the White House would follow the court’s ruling and restore the AP’s ability to completely cover these types of events.
“Our journalists were blocked from the Oval Office today. We expect the White House to restore AP’s participation in the (White House press) pool as of today, as provided in the injunction order,” AP spokeswoman Lauren Easton said Monday.
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Though not the first time, this highlights a mounting concern about the Trump administration’s stubbornness to ignore court orders in relation to the media. The event caused an intense debate among journalists and pundits. James Surowiecki, a contributor for The Atlantic, said that media organizations should collectively ignore Trump’s activities until the administration honors the court’s ruling.
“In all seriousness, every respectable media outlet should refuse to attend (or film) any Trump photo ops or press conferences until the administration follows the court order and lets the AP back in. Trump is desperate for press attention and TV time. Don’t give it to him,” he wrote on X.
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Many social media users and media figures have condemned the government’s actions as an assault on press freedom, hence the court of public opinion appears to agree with the court. This development increases White House pressure given other legal issues, such as the Supreme Court order to enable the return of a Maryland man wrongfully deported to El Salvador.
When is congress gonna hold Trump accountable! Literally lower court rulings can't be ignored unless overturned on appeal which is what we do when don't like a lower court ruling!
— Emre Yurttas (@emrey35) April 15, 2025
Hold Felon Trump in CONTEMPT OF COURT!
Start the IMPEACHMENT PROCESS!
Why are we allowing this to take place and simply COMMENT but not DO A SINGLE FUCKING THING TO FIGHT IT???
— MemberBlasts (they/them)🐀 (@MemberBlasts) April 15, 2025
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Trump’s appeal is scheduled to be heard this Thursday by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. circuit, aiming to postpone compliance with the lower court’s ruling until the appeal process finishes. The AP, on the other hand, is advocating for quick restoration of its access privileges, stressing the continuous conflict between the media and the executive branch on basic questions of freedom of speech and the press.
Under a president that has often questioned conventional standards controlling the relationship between the government and the press, this confrontation not only questions the limits of executive power but also acts as an important litmus test for the endurance of media freedom in the United States.
