The Pentagon has barred reporters from its press office, now classified, as part of new restrictions on press access. This move has sparked backlash, including a lawsuit from The New York Times over the designation of journalists as 'security risks.'
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In another apparent affront to press freedom from the Trump administration, journalists may no longer enter the Pentagon’s press office, which has been designated as a classified space.
The defense department began rolling out new restrictions to press access in September, when the military demanded journalists pledge not to gather any information – including unclassified documents – that had not been authorized for release, or else risk revocation of their press passes.
Joel Valdez, the acting defense department press secretary, said in a social media post: “This is the most transparent war department in history. No amount of spin from the Fake News media will change that.” He claimed the redesignation was because “speechwriters from the Office of the Secretary of War” shared the facility.
Allies of Donald Trump have been pressing for him to appear on a $250 bill. Illustration: Kent Nishimura/AFP/Getty Images
Donald Trump is reconsidering whether to keep pressing for a $1.8bn fund to compensate his allies, a person familiar with his thinking said on Monday, as the justice department paused the program.
Trump’s “anti-weaponization” fund has faced legal setbacks since it was announced, and even some Republicans are pressing the White House to commit to giving up on the fund, concerned by a lack of oversight and the possibility of payouts to participants in the 6 January 2021 riot at the US Capitol.
The Pentagon restricted access citing the need for security after designating the press office as a classified space.
Many journalists refused to comply with the new restrictions, leading some to return their press passes, while others, including The New York Times, filed lawsuits against the Pentagon.
Acting press secretary Joel Valdez claimed that the Pentagon is the 'most transparent war department in history' despite the new restrictions.
The New York Times sued the Pentagon over its policies that labeled journalists as 'security risks,' and a federal judge ruled in favor of the Times in March.
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People inspect the damage in the aftermath of an Israeli strike that hit near a hospital in Tyre, Lebanon, on Monday. Photograph: Aziz Taher/Reuters
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