A federal judge ruled that President Trump's ban on three news outlets—CNN, MS NOW and Politico—was likely unconstitutional and ordered their access to the White House restored for 14 days. The outlets had been barred following accusations of "fake news" and claimed national security threats. However, journalists from these outlets reported being denied entry to cover a state dinner for Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday evening, despite the judge's ruling, raising questions about compliance with the court's order.

Judge Timothy Kelly found that the ban violated the outlets' constitutional due process rights and dismissed White House claims about national security justification, noting that the administration had made no mention of security concerns in its initial announcement. CNN was initially told it could provide only a photojournalist and audio technician to the state dinner, excluding its reporting team. After denials that morning prompted an emergency court filing, the White House restored press passes by 09:45 local time. Other major networks including Fox News, NBC, CBS and ABC had withdrawn in solidarity but have not yet confirmed whether they will resume their White House coverage.