White House backs off in feud with Acosta, CNN

CNN's Jim Acosta speaks to journalists on the North Lawn upon returning back to the White House in Washington, on Saturday. Photo / AP

CNN dropped its lawsuit against the White House today after officials told the network that they would restore reporter Jim Acosta's press credentials as long as he abides by a series of new rules at presidential news conferences, including asking just one question at a time.

"Today the White House fully restored Jim Acosta's press pass," CNN said in a statement. "As a result, our lawsuit is no longer necessary. We look forward to continuing to cover the White House."

The White House's move to restore Acosta's pass, contained in a letter to the news network, appeared to be a concession to CNN in its lawsuit against the Administration. White House officials had suspended Acosta's White House press pass following a contentious news conference on November 7.

It was apparently an about-face from the position that press secretary Sarah Sanders and deputy chief of staff Bill Shine staked out just three days ago when they told Acosta and CNN that they will suspend his press pass again once a temporary restraining order against such an action expires. The 14-day order was issued on Saturday NZT, and unless the judge extends it, it would expire at the end of the month.

Sanders said then that the White House would only "temporarily reinstate" Acosta's credentials in response to a preliminary court decision in his favour.

In a letter made public today, Sanders and Shine acknowledged that there are no formal rules for how journalists are supposed to conduct themselves at presidential news conferences, but that Acosta had violated "basic, widely understood practices" by asking multiple questions and refusing to yield a microphone during the president's news conference.

As a result, the officials said they would once again take away Acosta's ability to enter the White House grounds after the restraining order lapsed.

But today, Sanders and Shine said they had made a "final determination" that Acosta's pass is restored. "Should you refuse to follow [new rules] in the future, we will take action" to remove the pass.

So, out of their Acosta nonsense, the White House has made it a punishable violation for anyone to say “could you please address the specific question I asked,” “could you please provide an example,” or “that’s actually not true” without their permission? https://t.co/mub4FYH9tx

— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) November 19, 2018

Among the rules: Reporters must ask one question of the president at news conferences but can follow up with another if the president chooses. A reporter must then "yield the floor," including giving up a microphone. Failure to abide by these rules, the White House letter said, will result in revocation of a journalist's White House pass.

The letter prompted CNN to end its litigation against the White House.

The Administration's letter to CNN came after its lawyer, Theodore Boutrous, objected to the White House's threat to remove Acosta's pass after a restraining order expires. He wrote that such an action amounted to "retroactive due process".

In a separate letter to Shine and Sanders that was filed with the court, Boutrous said that the White House was attempting to impose "vague, unarticulated standards" retroactively in violation of the court's finding that Acosta wasn't given due process by the White House when it revoked his pass.

What the battle between Donald Trump and Jim Acosta means for press freedom https://t.co/6czInc96OZ

— The Independent (@Independent) November 19, 2018

CNN had been seeking a preliminary injunction that would prevent the White House from suspending Acosta's pass until its lawsuit is resolved. Boutrous asked US District Judge Timothy Kelly to order the White House to file a formal response by tomorrow to CNN's request for the injunction.

Instead, the White House seems to have surrendered on the issue.

In a ruling seen as a victory for press freedom, Kelly, appointed by President Donald Trump, ordered the White House to temporarily restore Acosta's press pass while he considers the merits of the case and the possibility of a permanent order.

He said the White House has an obligation to afford due process to Acosta before it can revoke or suspend his access, and found that the White House's decision-making process in this case was "so shrouded in mystery that the government could not tell me . . . who made the decision."