Republican CNN Panelist Vents He ‘Cannot Find a Silver Lining’ in Trump’s Press Ban

Former Rep. Peter Meijer (R-MI) offered a grim assessment of President Donald Trump’s unprecedented press ban, telling CNN’s Kasie Hunt that he “cannot find a silver lining” in the move.

On Friday, Trump announced a ban on CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House, promising “Other Fake News Media Outlets to follow.”

Before Monday’s stunning show of solidarity, in which the five television networks that make up the White House press pool joined forces to effectively suspend pool coverage, the three targeted outlets sued the administration. A Trump-appointed federal judge ordered the White House early Thursday to restore their access, though CNN and MS NOW reporters continued to be turned away for several hours.

All three outlets — CNN, MS NOW, and Politico — were ultimately allowed back into the White House by Thursday afternoon.

Hunt asked Meijer on Thursday’s edition of CNN’s The Arena, “If you’re a Republican who is trying to run for reelection right now, how does this fit in?… The president has picked these fights with the media all along. It has worked to get his base engaged, but right now, there seems to be a sense — in places like Iowa, for example — that the president is just not focused on the things people actually care about.”

The former congressman responded:

Yeah. I mean, there are elements where you just look at something and say, “Hey, there can be a fun stunt element. This can be flooding the zone and distracting from something else.”

But what this is doing is not only cutting off one of the president’s greatest strengths, which is being able to communicate and talk to the media. You know, he had the ribbon-cutting at the White House helicopter landing pad that was just established. Nobody could hear him because the pool wasn’t there!

This is [Chinese President] Xi Jinping’s first state visit in 11 years. We’re talking about Iowa. Trade is going to come up. Agricultural exports are going to come up, and cutting off the knees of your own press coverage of things that could be great successes — not only for the president but for Republicans in battleground states or in tough districts — I just, I cannot find a silver lining here.

Watch above on CNN.

Jason Cohen contributed to this report.

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