White House Bars AP Journalist Over “Gulf Of America” Naming Dispute, Media Freedom Concerns Rise

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The White House denied an Associated Press reporter access to a key event after AP refused to adopt Trump's executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the "Gulf of America." The barring comes amid broader tensions between the Trump administration and media organizations, with federal funding for press subscriptions now under scrutiny. AP condemned the move as a violation of press freedom, while the White House defended its stance.     #Trump #WhiteHouse #GulfOfAmerica #AP #PressFreedom #MediaBan #FreeSpeech #FirstAmendment #USPolitics #Journalism #ElonMusk #DOGE #Politico #CNN #USAID #MediaBias #NewsCensorship #TaylorBudowich #Modi #PressAccess #BreakingNews  Also Read  Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's Washington Visit Aims to Establish Trust with President Trump :: https://www.oneindia.com/international/japan-ishiaba-washington-trip-trump-connection-011-4065309.html?ref=DMDesc  White House Responds To Selena Gomez On Deportation Of Immigrants: 'You Didn’t Cry For Our Daughters' | WATCH :: https://www.oneindia.com/international/white-house-responds-to-selena-gomez-on-deportation-of-immigrants-you-didn-t-cry-for-our-daughters-4060229.html?ref=DMDesc  Elon Musk Reportedly Living At DOGE Headquarters, Just Few Steps Away From White House :: https://www.oneindia.com/international/elon-musk-reportedly-living-at-doge-headquarters-just-few-steps-away-from-white-house-4058409.html?ref=DMDesc    ~ED.103~HT.336~GR.124~

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00:00Not that I'm aware of, that doesn't mean they don't exist, but I was just talking with the

00:04president and our national security team.

00:06I wasn't made aware of any conditions, but if they exist, I'm happy to provide those.

00:10Which White House official made the decision to bar the AP reporter from the Oval Office

00:15and the diplomatic reception room last night?

00:17Well, first of all, let me just set the record straight.

00:19It is a privilege to cover this White House.

00:22It's a privilege to be the White House press secretary.

00:30Okay, that solves that problem.

00:35On the commitment by President Trump, he said that he and President Putin agreed to visit

00:39each other's respective nations.

00:41Are there any preconditions that President Trump has that President Putin must do before

00:46he goes and meets with him, withdrawing some forces, withdrawing all forces, anything like

00:50that?

00:51Not that I'm aware of, that doesn't mean they don't exist, but I was just talking with the

00:54president and our national security team.

00:56I wasn't made aware of any conditions, but if they exist, I'm happy to provide those.

01:00And on the president himself, he styles himself as this master negotiator.

01:04He is now deploying these negotiations, saying that they start immediately.

01:08We did hear from the defense secretary, Pete Hex, today saying that NATO membership is

01:13not realistic for Ukraine and neither is returning to pre-2014 borders.

01:17Aren't they giving away bargaining chips before these negotiations even started?

01:21Again, I haven't talked to the president about Ukraine's NATO membership, and he appointed

01:26several individuals to negotiate.

01:28On his behalf, he's directly involved in these negotiations as well.

01:32And I'm sure if you ask him that question in the near future, when you're able to, he'll

01:35give you an answer.

01:36I just don't want to get ahead of him on it.

01:37And finally for you, which White House official made the decision to bar the AP reporter from

01:42the Oval Office and the diplomatic reception room last night?

01:45Well, first of all, let me just set the record straight.

01:48It is a privilege to cover this White House.

01:50It's a privilege to be the White House press secretary.

01:53And nobody has the right to go into the Oval Office and ask the president of the United

01:57States questions.

01:58That's an invitation that is given.

02:00And there are hundreds of outlets on this campus.

02:03Many of you in this room who don't have the privilege of being part of that pool every

02:07single day and getting to ask the president questions.

02:10We reserve the right to decide who gets to go into the Oval Office.

02:14And you all have credentials to be here, including the Associated Press, who is in this briefing

02:18room today.

02:19But isn't it retaliatory in nature, is the argument, because the reason that the AP was

02:24barred, which they said was because they're not using the phrase Gulf of America, they're

02:27using Gulf of Mexico in line with their standards.

02:30And so the question here is, is this setting a precedent that this White House will retaliate

02:34against reporters who don't use the language that you guys believe reporters should use?

02:38And how does that align with the First Amendment commitment that you were just talking about?

02:41I was very upfront in my briefing on day one that if we feel that there are lies being

02:47pushed by outlets in this room, we are going to hold those lies accountable.

02:51And it is a fact that the body of water off the coast of Louisiana is called the Gulf

02:56of America.

02:57And I'm not sure why news outlets don't want to call it that, but that is what it is.

03:02The Secretary of Interior has made that the official designation in the Geographical Identification

03:08Name Server.

03:09And Apple has recognized that.

03:11Google has recognized that.

03:12Pretty much every other outlet in this room has recognized that body of water as the Gulf

03:16of America.

03:17And it's very important to this administration that we get that right, not just for people

03:20here at home, but also for the rest of the world.

03:26Okay, that solves that problem.

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