Journalists Remain Barred From White House Access

First Amendment case: A federal judge indicated on Thursday that President Trump’s move to block CNN, MS NOW and Politico from access to the White House is likely unconstitutional and ordered the administration to restore entry for the three outlets,” according to The New York Times. “The decision from Judge Kelly, who was appointed by the previous administration, serves as a temporary respite for the outlets while the case moves forward.”

Strangely, as of that morning, some reporters remained barred from the White House grounds. “CNN correspondent Betsy Klein and a photojournalist were denied access during the 6:00 a.m. hour,” the outlet reported. “No justification was offered for the denial, and CNN will persist in seeking normal access when operations commence. One CNN producer eventually gained entry with their credential after 6:00 a.m. It isn’t clear why that individual managed to reach the building.” For more context on the evolving justifications offered by the president, read Reason‘s Jacob Sullum (“After Barring Journalists for Writing ‘Purposely Negative’ Stories, Trump Cites ‘National Security'”).

Related defeats: “A judge on Wednesday dismissed Donald Trump’s lawsuit accusing The Des Moines Register and its former pollster of misrepresenting the state of the 2024 presidential race, rejecting the president’s claim that the newspaper’s poll coverage violated Iowa’s consumer fraud law,” reports the Associated Press. “Calling the case extraordinary, Iowa District Judge Scott J. Beattie said that allowing the lawsuit and its ‘faulty’ claims to proceed could have a chilling effect that ‘can discourage others from reporting on and debating public affairs.’ He sided with pollster J. Ann Selzer and the newspaper in affirming that the poll and coverage of it were constitutionally protected political speech, not a commercial product.”

Attacking Australia? Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stated yesterday that OpenAI agents had breached several Australian government websites earlier this year. “It’s the first publicly reported case of AI models autonomously hacking into government systems,” notes Politico.

Albanese, addressing the UN General Assembly in Manhattan, said the incident involved an “OpenAI agent gaining unauthorized access” in June to his government’s Medicare statistics reporting portal. Although “no personal information is believed to have been accessed,” the agents accessed nonpublic files. “Drew Pusateri, a spokesperson for OpenAI, said in a statement that the company notified the Australian government of the breach on Sept. 10 after uncovering the incident in August,” reports Politico.

How fortunate that this occurred to a friendly government. What if agents target Iran next? Or Russia? What about China? If AI firms unintentionally spark large-scale espionage operations, that could become a major issue.

Albanese voiced these concerns, and the disclosure came as OpenAI chief Sam Altman testified before the U.N. Security Council on AI safety.

Scenes from New York: Individuals have been emerging from manholes on the Upper East Side, and the United Nations security detail is far from pleased about it.

QUICK HITS

• Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, a Democrat, has signaled that he could be weighing a bid for the presidency in 2028.
• “One of the earliest documented crackdowns on prediction markets was a papal edict,” writes Ryan Chan-Wei for The Washington Post. “In 16th-century Rome, bets on the next pope were common. So much so that in 1591, Pope Gregory XIV warned that gambling on conclaves would result in excommunication. Still, wagering persisted and circulated behind closed doors, resurfacing in later centuries. When white smoke signified the 2025 papal choice, prediction markets saw tens of millions of dollars at stake. New York has since sued Kalshi, a major prediction-market platform, for allegedly operating an unlicensed gambling enterprise. Similar suits are moving through the country. But a prediction market is not merely a casino; it offers a public good: a real-time forecast, accessible to everyone, of how likely a given event is to occur.”
• Reminds me of a certain group who linger here:

Since joining Slate, I have been captivated by our commenting community, which seems to despise almost everything I’ve published. For the magazine’s 30th anniversary, I decided to ask them why. Here’s a quick thread. pic.twitter.com/JjrF3YLq2A

— Luke Winkie (@luke_winkie) September 23, 2026

• “School choice responds to unequal quality; it does not cause it. The problem isn’t that some families can access a strong school, but that too many cannot. Moving a student from a weak school without improving conditions won’t help Najya. Changing peers and school culture can matter, but it won’t tell a principal how to build an effective school,” writes Roland Fryer for The Wall Street Journal. “Advocates of choice err by assuming choice alone solves everything. Competitive markets demand informed consumers and adaptable suppliers. School districts typically provide neither. Report cards filled with As can hide years of missed learning. Honest feedback often arrives only after a student changes schools or takes an external exam. By then, third grade is gone. Successful schools cannot expand without limits, and factors like geography, transportation, admissions rules and politics constrain families’ options.”
• Clavicular charged with rape in Massachusetts.
• So true:

A lot of people will misread the Covid-era, openly gay bar drama as a woke issue. Real insiders know it’s a Massachusetts crank problem. These local whackos are part of a stubborn resistance fabric https://t.co/iNmrV3Zzta

— Katie Notopoulos (@katienotopoulos) September 23, 2026