Trump Tells CNN 'You Should Not Be Here' as White House Ban and Media Standoff Continue
Trump told CNN's Kaitlan Collins she should not be covering him at the UN, as a White House ban on CNN, MS NOW and Politico and a joint lawsuit continue.
President Donald Trump opened his United Nations visit by telling a CNN correspondent, "You should not be here," as he arrived at the UN ahead of his address to the General Assembly.
Trump made the remark to Kaitlan Collins, a frequent target of his criticism, as he entered the building. He said it was an honour to be there and added that he was surprised CNN was covering him, claiming the network had said it would not. CNN has said no such thing was said.
The exchange came days after the administration barred CNN from White House grounds, along with MS NOW and Politico, and removed CNN from pool duty. CNN was nonetheless admitted to the UN as regularly credentialed media.
The three outlets filed a joint lawsuit on Monday asking a judge to find the administration's move unconstitutional. The White House had until Tuesday to respond, with a hearing scheduled for Wednesday afternoon.
CNN had been the designated pool network for the president's New York trip under a schedule that divides coverage of certain events among the five major networks. Its removal from pool duties prompted the other pool members to agree, in solidarity, not to replace it with another network and to suspend all pool coverage until further notice.
Other outlets also acted in support. A number of news organisations, including The Washington Post and The New York Times, decided not to publish photographs of presidential events on Monday.
The pool is a rotating group of news outlets, including television networks, that covers the presidency — an arrangement now in question after CNN's ban. In previous administrations, the White House Correspondents' Association selected members of the press pool. The Trump administration changed that practice last year, after restricting access over a decision not to rename the Gulf of Mexico.
It remains unclear how long the ban and the collective media action will last.