Saturday, March 21, 2026

Judge Rules Pentagon Restrictions on Press Are Unconstitutional

A federal judge tossed parts of the Pentagon's restrictions on news outlets, saying they violated the First Amendment, in a lawsuit brought by The New York Times.

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Judge sides with New York Times over policy that limited reporters' access to Pentagon

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-- Ryan J. Reilly "paints a vivid and urgent portrait of ... disarray" (@ryanjreilly.com) Mar 20, 2026 at 7:22 PM

Comments


The opening paragraph of the Judge's Opinion...
storage.courtlistener.com (PDF)

...
A primary purpose of the First Amendment is to enable the press to publish what it will and the public to read what it chooses, free of any official proscription. Those who drafted the First Amendment believed that the nation's security requires a free press and an informed people and that such security is endangered by governmental suppression of political speech. That principle has preserved the nation's security for almost 250 years. It must not be abandoned now.
...


#1 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-03-21 12:45 PM

A primary purpose of the First Amendment is to enable the press to publish what it will and the public to read what it chooses, free of any official proscription. Those who drafted the First Amendment believed that the nation's security requires a free press and an informed people and that such security is endangered by governmental suppression of political speech. That principle has preserved the nation's security for almost 250 years. It must not be abandoned now.
...

Ownership of the press by people that aren't First Amendment friendly and have fat cash to lose in government contracts pretty well takes care of this little "problem".

#2 | Posted by morris at 2026-03-21 03:34 PM

@#2 ... Ownership of the press by people that aren't First Amendment friendly and have fat cash to lose in government contracts pretty well takes care of this little "problem". ....

Agreed.

#3 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-03-21 08:51 PM

These weird times are so against the rule of law in so many places one is surprised when a judge stands up and says...No more. We are a Constitutional Republic and that is that.

#4 | Posted by Hughmass at 2026-03-22 07:01 AM

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