President Donald Trump made his first reference on Monday to his White House war with the Associated Press—only to vow to maintain its indefinite ban of the news outlet.
Trump called the wire service “obsolete” and said he would keep it barred from press engagements until it calls the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America.” The White House banned the AP from the Oval Office and Air Force One press pools last week over the wire’s decision not to call the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America” in line with Trump’s executive order. The AP has called the move a First Amendment violation.
An Axios report on Monday said Trump White House advisers' ire stemmed from phrases in the AP Stylebook, one adopted by most mainstream news outlets, including “gender-affirming care”; capitalizing “Black” but not “white” when describing racial identities; and how it describes immigrants.
When asked whether he agrees with his advisers that the outlet has suggested language in line with liberal perspectives, Trump said the AP has become “ridiculous.” Trump also said the Associated Press “refuses to go with what the law is and what is taking place.”
“I have the right to do it, just like we have the right to do Mount McKinley, and nobody’s even challenging that,” he said. “It’s primarily the Associated Press, and I don’t know what they’re doing, but I just say that we’re going to keep them out until such time as they agree that it’s the Gulf of America.”
AP spokesperson Lauren Easton told the Daily Beast in a statement: “This is about the government telling the public and press what words to use and retaliating if they do not follow government orders. The White House has restricted AP’s coverage of presidential events because of how we refer to a location.
“The Associated Press has provided critical and independent coverage of the White House for over 100 years.”
The AP said it would switch its usage of Mount Denali to Mount McKinley, in line with the Trump administration’s edict, as the peak was within a U.S. property. However, it would maintain its usage of the Gulf of Mexico due to its 400-year history and its usage by other countries.
Trump also used the question to attack the outlet’s credibility, saying it was “very, very wrong on the election.” The AP called the election for Trump early Nov. 6.
“They’re doing us no favors, and I guess I’m not doing them any favors,” he said. “That’s the way life works.”
