President Donald Trump has taken his feud with CNN to petty new heights.
The White House barred CNN from flying on Air Force One as Trump, 80, headed to Knoxville, Tennessee, for a college football game on Saturday.
CNN is part of the White House TV press pool, the rotating group of networks tasked with covering the president and later sharing information with other outlets when space is limited.
But White House guidance released Friday night indicated that the network would not be able to perform its pool duties. Instead, it was replaced by the right-wing news outlets Real America’s Voice and LindellTV, the latter of which was founded by the Trumpy My Pillow CEO Mike Lindell.
The Washington Post first reported that CNN was blocked from Air Force One, citing two sources familiar with the decision.
“Why should perpetrators of FAKE NEWS, like CNN and MSDNC, be allowed access to a very sacred place, the White House?” Trump wrote on Truth Social early Saturday. “Despite my big Election Win, almost 100% of ‘TRUMP’ coverage is negative, and has been for years!”
Trump flew to Tennessee to watch the football matchup between the University of Tennessee and the University of Texas. Joining him on Air Force One was Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn, and his ever-present aide Natalie Harp, among others.
The president escalated his attacks on the media by announcing last week that he was “proud” to ban CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House “effectively immediately,” citing their “constant ‘reporting’ FAKE NEWS!”
The outlets sued the Trump administration over a “blatant violation” of the First Amendment. Several media organizations—the ones not targeted by Trump—stood in solidarity with their colleagues by briefly pulling back on their coverage of the ratings-obsessed president.
A federal judge ruled in the media’s favor on Thursday, ordering the Trump administration to immediately restore the press credentials of CNN, MS NOW, and Politico in an early-morning ruling. But that hasn’t stopped the White House from trying to force out outlets it dislikes.
“FAKE NEWS SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED IN THE WHITE HOUSE!!! IT HAS GONE ON FAR TOO LONG, AT A TREMENDOUS COST TO OUR COUNTRY,” Trump raged on Truth Social on Saturday.
