CNN, Politico and MS NOW filed an emergency lawsuit against the Trump administration on Monday, escalating a fight over press access after the president stripped the three outlets of their White House credentials and barred their reporters from the grounds.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, argues the ban violates the outlets' First Amendment protections for newsgathering and speech, as well as their due-process rights. "This ban could not be a more direct assault on the First Amendment nor a more blatant violation of our most fundamental constitutional principles," the companies said in their filing.

Reporters blocked since Friday

Reporters from all three outlets have been unable to enter the White House grounds since the ban took effect Friday, according to NPR. In a joint statement, the outlets said: "We notified the government that we are filing a lawsuit today to protect our First Amendment rights and defend the principle that the government does not decide what the press reports or publishes."

"THE GOVERNMENT DOES NOT DECIDE WHAT THE PRESS REPORTS"

The emergency request is expected to go before a federal judge as soon as this week, with hearings likely to include arguments from Justice Department lawyers defending the administration's decision.

Trump's response

President Trump responded on Truth Social, insisting the White House "is not instituting an assault on the free press" and arguing instead that he is targeting what he calls "fake news" coverage that is "totally out of control" and, in his telling, "a threat to our national security." The administration has not detailed specific coverage decisions that prompted the ban.

The dispute is the latest and most formal escalation in a running conflict between the White House and major news organizations over access, following months of tension over press pool arrangements and public criticism from the president of individual reporters and outlets by name. Press freedom advocates have called the ban among the most aggressive actions taken against credentialed news organizations by a modern White House. A ruling on the outlets' emergency request could come within days, though final resolution of the underlying constitutional claims is likely to take considerably longer.