In a development that will surprise absolutely no one who has been paying attention, Donald Trump is bracing for a loss in the lawsuit filed by three media organizations he banned from the White House. The reason? The judge presiding over the case - Tim Kelly, appointed by Trump himself - once ruled in favor of restoring credentials for CNN's Jim Acosta. Apparently, appointing judges who follow the law rather than the president's whims is now a betrayal.
"They have drawn a great Judge, for them, a man who ruled in favor of Jim Acosta, who now seems to have disappeared from the Planet," Trump wrote on Truth Social, referring to the 2018 CNN lawsuit. "The Judge's name is Tim Kelly, and he was, sadly, appointed by 'TRUMP.' In other words, almost without question and, as usual, we'll go for appeal because Fake News people and publications that only write negatively, and who violate our National Security by writing false and defamatory stories with unknown 'sources,' shouldn't be allowed access to the most important Office anywhere in the World." Because nothing says "national security" like banning journalists for mean tweets.
Meanwhile, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani met with Trump at Gracie Mansion on Monday and shared that he had "very strong opinions" on keeping immigrant New Yorkers safe - particularly those with Temporary Protected Status (TPS). Mamdani said he told the president "how important immigrant New Yorkers, especially Haitian New Yorkers, are not only to the fabric of our city, but also to our city's economy, to so many of the industries that build our city, and the stability that is in the president's hands." In June, the US Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Trump administration's effort to strip TPS from hundreds of thousands of Haitians and Syrians, so that's going well.
Asked if he challenged Trump on banning CNN, MS Now, and Politico from White House grounds, Mamdani said, "I told the president that we're going to have all of the members of the press here on the lawn, and that is something that I believe in." Trump, for his part, seemed unfazed: "It's interesting because they said they were going to boycott me, but they never boycott me, so I wasn't very worried about that." When asked if the ban was a distraction from the war in Iran and high gas prices, Trump said, "I'm not. I'm only doing it because I think the press also has an obligation. I think that these outlets have an obligation to be fair. And if they're fake news, I really think I have an obligation not to allow them into another very special house. This is a special house, Gracie Mansion. Well, the White House is the most special of all houses." So there you have it: the First Amendment now comes with a hospitality clause.
The two leaders also discussed building more housing in New York City, specifically Sunnyside Yard, the 180-acre railyard in Queens. "It's a real pleasure that just today we've agreed to set up a new level of that conversation between our housing and operations team at City Hall and the White House team," Mamdani said. Trump added, "I can tell you that Sunnyside's a big job. I've been watching that for 35 years. Everybody's wanted to do something with Sunnyside Yards. You're going to need a lot of federal approvals and probably some federal money to do it. But it's always been a great location." Translation: nothing will happen, but it was a nice photo op.
The media boycott over Trump's ban expanded to still photography. The New York Times announced it would not publish or distribute any images taken as part of the White House pool coverage on Monday until midnight. "The New York Times will not publish or distribute any images taken as part of the White House still photography pool today, in conjunction with the other members of that pool and in a show of support for the news organizations being unfairly targeted by the president's barring of journalists from the White House," said spokesperson Charlie Stadtlander. "We remain committed to covering the president's travel to New York City today. Americans deserve a free and independent media covering their government without intimidation, as well as comprehensive coverage of newsworthy events." The Washington Post followed suit, announcing it would not publish any photographs of Trump's events until midnight Eastern Time. It's like a silent protest, but with fewer signs and more deadlines.
In other news, Wilber Rafael Garcés Pérez, the 28-year-old Venezuelan man shot by an ICE officer in Austin, spoke over the phone at a news conference from his hospital bed. He said doctors didn't remove the bullet because it's near his spine. He said ICE pressed for him to be released quickly so officers could move him to a detention center, where he received no pain medication or treatment, slept on the floor, and eventually was given a "pill" by a nurse on Monday. "I am not doing well due to the gunshot wound, and I have not received the medical attention that I require," he said in Spanish, as his wife translated. Because nothing says "law and order" like denying medical care to a shooting victim.
The three news outlets - Politico, CNN, and MS Now - filed a lawsuit on Monday to restore their access after Trump banned them on Friday, citing unfavorable coverage. The other White House TV pool members (ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox News, and the recently axed CNN) paused coverage in solidarity, leaving Trump without his usual tag-along camera crew. It's a bit like a reality show where the cast walks off set.
Meanwhile, some key Republicans are pressing Trump on war-inflated diesel prices. As the war in Iran continues to jack up the price of diesel - the fuel that runs America's semi trucks, tractors, and heavy machinery - Republican senator Chuck Grassley called for an embargo on diesel exports. Republican congresswoman and Iowa Senate candidate Ashley Hinson called for measures to tamp prices and bring an "immediate" end to the war in Iran. Average diesel prices in the United States hit a record $6.50 per gallon on Monday, up from $3.19 per gallon this time last year. So that's fun.
Trump is heading to New York for the United Nations General Assembly, where he's expected to meet with the US-backed interim president of Venezuela, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and possibly the leaders of Iran. But first, he met with Mamdani, a political opposite with whom he's maintained a strange rapport. During a face-to-face meeting this week, Trump is expected to press Zelenskyy on an energy ceasefire. Ukraine stepped up its attacks on Russia's energy sector over the weekend, launching its largest reported strike yet on the Moscow region, hitting a major Moscow oil refinery and killing three people. Trump said on Monday that the whole world was suffering due to an energy shortage exacerbated by the war in Ukraine. "Russia has unfortunately lost control of its Diesel Oil Industry due to its War with Ukraine," he posted on Truth Social. "A large number of their Diesel refineries have been blown up and are, at least temporarily, out of commission. This ridiculous and never ending War with Ukraine must be ended. The whole World suffers as 25,000 people, mostly soldiers, are being killed each month. What a shame!"
Zelenskyy said negotiations were continuing and that there are "ideas on the table for bringing peace closer, starting with strong de-escalation steps." He added, "Ukraine's energy sector, critical infrastructure, and our food exports must stop being targets for Russia, and this will lead to matching de-escalation steps on our part. Solutions are possible." The two leaders are expected to meet on Tuesday on the sidelines of the UN general assembly. Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov will also be in Washington this week to meet with secretary of state Marco Rubio. During a trip to Ireland last week, Trump directly addressed Zelenskyy, saying he has to do "one thing: he has to stop knocking out diesel fuel in Russia. Let him go after targets but not diesel fuel, because he's causing a shortage." Trump spoke with Zelenskyy on Sunday in a phone call that one senior Ukrainian official told the Financial Times was about "diesel, diesel, diesel." Because when the world is on fire, at least we have fuel prices to argue about.