Trump White House Obliterates Another DC 'Norm' by Stripping Correspondents' Assoc. of Historic Role

A repeated narrative pushed by the legacy media since Donald Trump won reelection revolves around the fear that Trump 2.0 would break too many of the "norms" that have long ruled Washington, D.C. Many of these norms—which are traditions, not laws—were, of course, observed for decades much to the benefit of the left, and some are well over one hundred years old now. It could be argued that norms being adhered to without question is how we got DOGE. 

Well, the norms they are a-breaking.

Take, for instance, the hold the White House Correspondents' Association (WHCA) has had over the White House press corps since early in the 20th century. The WHCA was formed back in 1914 and states its mission as:

We share the belief, held by our country’s Founders and enshrined in the First Amendment, that an independent news media is vital to the health of the republic.

The White House Correspondents’ Association exists to promote excellence in journalism as well as journalism education, and to ensure robust news coverage of the president and the presidency. We support awards for some of the best political reporting of the past year, and scholarships for young reporters who carry our hopes for vibrant journalism in the years to come. Each day, we work to ensure that the men and women who cover the White House have the ability to seek answers from powerful officials, up to and including the President.

Oh, and here's who currently runs it:

• President: Eugene Daniels, White House Reporter at Politico.

• Vice President: Weijia Jiang, Senior White House Correspondent for CBS News.

• Secretary: Sara Cook, White House Producer at CBS News.

• Treasurer: Justin Sink, White House Correspondent for Bloomberg.

You'll notice a certain lack of conservative voices being included, although Fox News's Jacqui Heinrich was recently added to the board. The hard-left slant of the group is a problem because, among other things, the WHCA has for many decades had the privilege of deciding which members get to be included in the press pool, that small group of reporters and cameramen who are invited to cover the president in smaller spaces like the Oval Office and on Air Force One.

The matter of the White House press pool has been making headlines in recent weeks after the Associated Press (AP) was excluded due to its insistence on calling that body of water by Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida "The Gulf of Mexico" instead of its new name of "The Gulf of America." The AP did not have its credentials revoked or its access to the White House Press Briefing Room in any way denied, but they, with the support of the WHCA, sued the administration for press pool access anyway.

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On Monday, District Judge Trevor McFadden ruled in favor of the Trump White House, reaffirming its authority to determine which media outlets will be included in the pool (it's not over, though, as he set the matter for hearing on a preliminary injunction on March 20). The judge cited the fact that AP took so long to file its suit as proof that this wasn't a “dire situation,” nor was their “irreparable harm" being done. 

The White House celebrated the ruling.

“As we have said from the beginning, asking the President of the United States questions in the Oval Office and aboard Air Force One is a privilege granted to journalists, not a legal right,” the White House said in a statement after the court hearing.

And then they took things even further, with White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announcing at her Tuesday briefing that the WHCA would no longer be in charge of deciding which members of the press would be allowed in the pool, thus smashing to smithereens another DC norm.

Unsurprisingly, the WHCA is most displeased, moaning that they weren't given a heads up about the move and that it "tears at the independence of a free press in the United States."

As a reminder, the AP still has full access to the White House and is not having its First Amendment rights trod on in any way. Unlike with what the Biden White House did, stripping away the passes of 442 reporters back in August of 2023, a move about which the WCHA had nothing to say at the time. 

In stripping the WHCA of the power to decide which media outlets get included in the press pool, the Trump White House is sending a clear message: the days of media elites controlling access and influencing are over. Deal with it.

Editor's Note: This article was updated post-publication for clarity.