Donald Trump in the Oval Office with the commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick. Photograph: Francis Chung/EPA
The Trump White House has announced on Friday that The Associated Press (AP) is banned from the Oval Office and Air Force one indefinitely, reports The Guardian.
The AP, one of the world’s biggest news outlets, was singled out by the White House earlier this week over three words: “Gulf of Mexico.”
According to report, AP journalists are banned from accessing the Oval Office and Air Force one amid a growing standoff between Donald Trump’s administration and the news agency.
In a statement on X, formerly known as twitter, the White House deputy chief of staff Taylor Budowich pointed to the gulf dispute and said, “This decision is not just divisive, but it also exposes the AP’s commitment to misinformation.”
Budowich said he recognized that the Associated Press’s reporting was covered by the US constitution’s first amendment, which provides for the freedoms of speech and press. But he maintained that “does not ensure their privilege of unfettered access to limited spaces, like the Oval Office and Air Force One”.
Associated Press journalists and photographers would retain their credentials to the White House complex, he added.
According to a 23 January style memo, the Associated Press said that it would not be changing its style on the Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America after Trump’s decision to change the Gulf’s name.
