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In a move that would be surprising coming from any other president in history, Donald Trump announced last week that he had revoked the White House press passes for several major media outlets.
The outlets — including CNN, MS NOW, and Politico — appear to be guilty of nothing other than publishing or airing content that’s occasionally critical of the Trump administration.
And it’s not like Trump is new to being criticized, so — what gives?
Well, you may not be surprised to learn that Trump’s “human printer,” Natalie Harp, is once again at the center of a White House controversy.
The longtime Trump aide reportedly played a key role in the President’s decision to ban CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House — allegedly by showing Trump coverage that he found particularly irritating.
According to a report from CNN, Harp showed Trump clips and other examples of coverage from the three news organizations last week.
One graphic from Politico reportedly angered Trump, while Harp also showed him television segments featuring MS NOW anchors bashing his administration.
That appears to have been the final straw.
Trump announced Friday that CNN, MS NOW, and Politico would no longer have access to the White House, accusing the organizations of being “FAKE NEWS.”
By Saturday, reporters from the three outlets who attempted to enter the White House grounds reportedly had their press credentials confiscated.
CNN reporter Betsy Klein, for example, said her badge had been deactivated when she attempted to enter the White House.
The three organizations have since filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, arguing that the ban violates their First Amendment rights.
On Monday, major television networks including ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and CNN declined to participate in the usual White House television pool coverage in solidarity with the banned outlets. That meant there was no major television network providing pool footage of Trump’s events, including his trip to New York for the United Nations General Assembly.
Trump, meanwhile, has defended the decision.
The President has said the White House is not attacking the free press, but rather targeting what he calls “FAKE NEWS.” He has also described the dispute as a national security issue, while the banned outlets maintain that their access was revoked because of their reporting.
As for Harp, her reported involvement adds another layer to an already bizarre White House-media showdown.
The former conservative television host is considered one of Trump’s closest aides and frequently travels with him.
CNN reports that she also regularly gives Trump printed news stories and is involved in the messages he posts on Truth Social.
Harp has attracted increased attention in recent weeks because of her unusually close relationship with the President.
Now, according to multiple reports, she may have also been the person who put the coverage in front of Trump that helped set this latest media battle in motion.
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