In December, Spicer said barring media access is what a ‘dictatorship’ does. Today, he barred media access.

The following article by Philip Bump was posted on the Washington Post website February 24, 2017:

This post has been updated.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer barred reporters from several large media outlets from participating in a scheduled press briefing Friday. Two months ago, in a panel discussion, he insisted that open access for the media is “what makes a democracy a democracy versus a dictatorship.” Continue reading “In December, Spicer said barring media access is what a ‘dictatorship’ does. Today, he barred media access.”

No, Mr. President, we’re not the enemy

The following commentary by the Editorial Board of the Star Tribune was posted on their website February 21, 2017:

The nation’s founders recognized the importance of a free press.

Amendment 1: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press …

It’s all right there in the first 26 words of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: the foundation upon which this democracy is built. When President Trump declared the media the “enemy of the American people,” he took on an institution that has been part of the fabric of this country since before its birth. Continue reading “No, Mr. President, we’re not the enemy”

Constitutional crisis? What happens if Trump decides to ignore a judge’s ruling.

The following article by Aaron Blake was posted on the Washington Post website February 5, 2017:

President Trump has spent the better part of the past 24 hours bashing a U.S. district judge’s decision to temporarily halt his travel ban executive order.

First came a White House statement calling the ruling “outrageous” (the word was later taken out). Then came Trump’s many tweets, which were scattered throughout the day Saturday and actually seemed to question the judge’s authority. And then, in its appeal, the Trump administration said the lower-court judge shouldn’t be “second-guessing” the president. Continue reading “Constitutional crisis? What happens if Trump decides to ignore a judge’s ruling.”