WASHINGTON (KVRR) – The attorney who represents three news organizations in a federal lawsuit challenging President Trump’s ability to ban reporters from the White House is from North Dakota.
Ted Boutrous grew up in Bismarck and went to the University of North Dakota before attending law school in California.
Boutrous is representing CNN, MS Now and Politico in a high-stakes legal battle that’s being closely watched across the nation.
“What’s at stake here is the American people’s ability to get information about the president and about his administration, and to get independent facts about what’s happening in the government,” said Boutrous, in an interview with KVRR Local News.
Reporters from the three news organizations have been banned from the White House. President Trump accuses them of reporting what he calls “fake news.” The ban was temporarily blocked by a federal judge and remained on hold Thursday.
Boutrous says if Trump prevails in this case, the nation may be on the verge of a constitutional crisis.
“We’re not at a crisis point yet,” Boutrous said. “But if the president is allowed to pick and choose, based on the viewpoint, the editorial viewpoints of journalists who can get into the White House to cover the presidency, that is, I think, a real crisis point.”
However, Boutrous remains confident that the reporters will ultimately be protected by the First Amendment.
“This Supreme Court has been very protective of First Amendment rights, including in the religious context, in the speech context, so the law, I think is very strong for us, all the way up to the Supreme Court.”
In an unrelated matter, the Justice Department recently filed unusual judicial misconduct complaints against Minnesota’s federal judges for statements they made following an immigration enforcement surge.
“It’s a new, deeply troubling development,” according to Boutrous.
“When you start accusing judges of being unethical or evil, because they apply the law in a certain way, that goes too far and it really is a fundamental attack on our system.”
Boutrous is based in Los Angeles. He is considered one of the top litigators in the nation.
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