Trump Unveils White House Helipad as Networks Boycott Over CNN Ban

President Donald Trump inaugurated a new helicopter landing pad at the White House on Monday, cutting a red, white and blue ribbon with oversized gold scissors and shaking hands with workers in green smocks and hardhats. The ceremony, however, was not carried by major television networks, which stayed away after CNN was excluded from the event.

CNN normally takes part in a five-network rotation that provides pooled coverage of daily White House events. When it was denied its customary place on Monday, ABC, CBS, CNN and Fox News jointly agreed to skip the helipad ceremony — an unusual step reflecting the widening dispute over media access.

MS Now, Politico and CNN have sued after Trump announced on Friday that they would be barred from covering the White House, a move that intensifies his long-running efforts through courts and administrative action to restrict coverage he considers objectionable.

The noise of his waiting helicopter prevented Trump from answering shouted questions before he boarded Marine One for a flight to New York, where he is due to attend the United Nations General Assembly from Tuesday.

The new helipad features extensive granite that the president says will have a "million-year life," along with a large insignia reading the "Seal of the President of the United States." Trump has promoted the project as a way to impress Chinese President Xi Jinping, who arrives on Wednesday for a state visit. He has argued that visiting dignitaries will be dazzled by the facility, though Marine One is the only aircraft that lands so close to the White House.

Trump has said the improvement was necessary because Vietnam War-era helicopters used as Marine One are being replaced by modern aircraft too powerful to land on the White House lawn without damaging the grass. He said in July that the project would be privately funded and estimated its cost at up to $6 million, while also discussing additional changes, including extensive ground-leveling work that has made the exact expenditure difficult to calculate.

Work on the helipad began in June. Trump also removed the original Tennessee flagstone along the West Wing colonnade, replacing it with black granite, and refurbished with white granite the traditional walkway from the White House diplomatic entrance along with a portion of the asphalt driveway around the South Lawn.

The media access dispute has overshadowed both the building projects and Xi's visit. Trump has ignited constitutional questions over press access, and his claims about the granite's longevity may also face scrutiny: he had suggested his refurbishment of the Lincoln Memorial's Reflecting Pool would last a century, only for the paint to fade and its liner to peel away in chunks days after it was laid.