‘It seems pretty petty to me’: Trump’s administration slammed for alleged unfair treatment towards reporters
The White House took action against the Associated Press (AP) and barred its reporters from attending numerous White House events. Several senators had Thoughts about this move from the Trump administration.
AP allegedly drew ire from the White House after deciding to keep using the “Gulf of Mexico” in its publication. The White House, on the other hand, is determined to push the “Gulf of America,” the Trump administration’s new name for the shared waters between the United States, Cuba, and Mexico. The White House Press Secretary, Karoline Leavitt, justified banning the AP’s reporters from two White House events during a recent press conference. “If we feel that there are lies being pushed by outlets in this room, we are going to hold those lies accountable,” she said.
Except there was no lie to begin with. Outside the United States, the body of water remains the “Gulf of Mexico.” Only the United States recognizes the shared waters as the “Gulf of America.” “I guess different administrations have barred different reporters from press conferences for a long period of time, depending on who they like. It seems pretty petty to me,” Senator Lisa Murkowski, a Republican senator from Alaska, commented, as reported by the Huffington Post.
First Amendment rights are certainly a concern. Another senator had a passionate speech in support of the AP. “The freedom of the press is in the Constitution,” Chris Murphy, a Democratic senator from Connecticut, said. He also believes the outlet has been banned because it wasn’t doing the administration’s bidding. Murphy continued, “That press room and the Senate seat are owned by the American people. And it’s not like the freedom of the press was a suggestion by our Founding Fathers. I just think people kind of need to get a sense of urgency about what’s about to happen here.”
Petty is an understatement
The White House banned another AP reporter from attending a recent event on Thursday, February 13. This was a press conference between President Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Additionally, AP was indefinitely barred from accessing other pooled events and Air Force Once. It’s uncertain how long the ban will last against the AP, but the White House is stubbornly standing its ground.
White House Deputy Chief of Staff Taylor Budowich accused the AP of proliferating misinformation simply for calling the Gulf of Mexico by its internationally recognized name. He wrote on X, “This decision is not just divisive, but it also exposes the Associated Press’ commitment to misinformation.” Budowich further argued that their First Amendment right to “irresponsible and dishonest reporting” doesn’t ensure the outlet of privileged access to the Oval Office and Air Force One.
This administration is essentially asking news outlets to bend the knee. Although this seems to set a grim precedent, it’s not surprising. Throughout his campaign, Trump was transparent about his disdain for several news outlets. Even before his second presidential campaign, Trump’s war on the press has been well-recorded during his first term in office. Now, as a returning president, Trump has even decided to replace several news outlets in the Pentagon. Fairly objective sources such as Politico, NPR, NBC News, and The New York Times have reportedly just been replaced by several Trump-leaning news outlets, including Breitbart News and One America News Network, as of February 14.
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