The Biden Administration has banned the New York Post from a press event at the White House, which some believe was retaliation for the newspaper’s coverage of Hunter Biden’s legal challenges.
The New York Post’s White House correspondent Steve Nelson wrote that he did not receive the press credentials he asked for in order to attend President Joe Biden’s remarks on “Investing in Airline Accountability.”
The White House staff on Monday banned New York Post’s reporter Steven Nelson from the president’s only daytime public event — leaving around 20 of the venue’s 50 or so seats empty. Recently a similar punishment was used by White House press Sec Karin Jean Pierre on @simonateba.… pic.twitter.com/UVVeKEBEdy
— Vernon Jones (@VernonForGA) May 9, 2023
The New York Post reported that the White House had sent an email to them, saying, “We are unable to accommodate your credential request to attend the Investing in Airline Accountability Remarks on 5/8. The remarks will be live-streamed and can be viewed at WH.gov.”
“Thank you for understanding,” the email concludes. “We will let you know if a credential becomes available.”
The event occurred as scheduled, with Biden and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg speaking to reporters in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building about airline policies.
The White House’s email did not explain why the New York Post’s credentials were denied, differing from when it would simply cite “space limitations.”
Nelson replied to the email by asking about the White House’s “mysterious pre-screening program” that was created to choose which reporters can attend presidential events, stressing whether access was denied based on the New York Post’s coverage of the Biden Administration. Nelson, however, did not receive a response.
Although the White House did not say there were “space limitations” for the event, Nelson obtained a photo from the Daily Caller showing empty seats. “There were about 20 empty seats,” he said.
Nelson told Fox News Digital there was “relatively light interest” in the event since Biden hasn’t taken questions from reporters in months, “So a lot of people didn’t even RSVP.”
The White House press corps has criticized the Biden administration’s approach toward the press, with over 70 journalists signing a letter in June 2022 demanding the White House to end its secretive pre-screening process for events.
The New York Post is one of the only outlets to cover the Biden family’s foreign business dealings, beginning with its bombshell report in October 2020 about Hunter Biden’s abandoned laptop, detailing several of his foreign transactions while his father was vice president.
Since then, the outlet has revealed other Biden “scandals,” including ones involving U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
In 1881, Founding Father Alexander Hamilton founded the New York Post, making it one of the oldest publications in the U.S. Currently, it is the fifth-largest news website in the U.S. and the second most read.
