Rejection hurts, especially when it comes on live TV. Just ask Jake Tapper.
Jake’s network, CNN, is one of three liberal outlets currently involved in a legal struggle with President Donald Trump’s administration over coverage at the White House and of the president in what’s known as the press pool.
Five networks share what’s known as “pool” coverage — effectively rotating coverage of the president to save on costs.
ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News, and NBC are usually the five allowed. However, CNN was one of the three outlets that got banned from the White House grounds recently. The other two, Politico and MS NOW, don’t have any part of the pool.
All three got their access back to the White House thanks to a judge’s ruling last week, which the White House seems set to challenge.
That said, while all three outlets are back at 1600 Pennsylvania, The New York Times reported that CNN is still excluded. While the other four networks initially protested by providing no coverage, period, the White House responded to this by providing their own coverage through a streaming channel on YouTube.
While the Democrats brayed that this constituted “state-run TV” like something out of Ceaușescu’s Romania, the gambit seems to have worked, and by Friday the four other networks not on the naughty list had begun to formulate a plan that didn’t include CNN.
Should Trump allow CNN back into the press pool?
Yes: 0% (0 Votes)
No: 100% (25 Votes)
Anyhow, for the second week in a row, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz was on CNN’s “State of the Union” Sunday, and the interview ended with Jake Tapper literally begging him to get them back into the pool.
“Before you go, sir, I just want to note, yesterday, the White House barred CNN from fulfilling our pool assignment on behalf of the five major television networks. As you know, we all pool coverage,” Tapper said.
“And I would just ask if you could please convey to President Trump to let CNN back in the pool. It was not okay when President Obama tried to freeze Fox out of the pool back in 2009. And I don’t think we want a world where presidents decide who gets to cover them.”
Now, the New York Giants fan in me likes nothing more than an ardent Philadelphia Eagles backer like Tapper forced into a situation of begging. It’s even better when Waltz effectively told him that CNN got itself into this position, so it can sure as heck get itself out of it.
“Well, I hear you, Jake, but I think we need fair and objective and well-sourced reporting,” Waltz replied.
“And I could tell you, as having been the victim of a lot of this nonsense, my family members, and so many others, we need a free and fair and honest press corps without an agenda that tries to take facts to fit a narrative,” he continued.
“And whether that is Biden’s inability and many issues that he had that was whitewashed, and then people came back around with corrections or other issues, so that’s a much longer conversation. And President Trump’s frustrated,” Waltz said.
“And, by the way, there are over what, 50 seats in the press room? I don’t think all of them, like Washington Post or New York Times, are exactly positive toward this administration. So that’s a false narrative that it’s about negative reporting. We need fair and objective reporting for the country.”
Tapper insisted, “President Trump specifically said that there’s something wrong with a country where people are allowed to report things that are purposely negative. That’s his language, not mine.”
Yes, which is why The Washington Post and The New York Times are still there. This had more to do with the use of anonymous sources on stories that involved national security, which Waltz said was an issue that needed to be fixed.
“Heck, I just saw a story where anonymous sources were referring to a now-dead senator. So, this needs to be fixed, and President Trump is quite frustrated with this media bias across the board,” he continued.
“As has every single president that I’ve ever covered been frustrated with the press,” Tapper said, before ending both the begging and the interview.
You hate to see it:
WALTZ: “President Trump is quite frustrated with this media bias across the board.”
TAPPER: “As has every single President that I’ve ever covered, been frustrated with the press.” pic.twitter.com/ZlhEBvgg0F— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) September 27, 2026
This is utter shamelessness. These people have made a cottage industry out of Russiagate hoaxing and Jack Smith fangirling, among other anti-Trump nonsense, and now they plaintively beg a Trump administration member to make it back into the pool? Sure, Jake — that’s how it works.
Oh, and the Eagles lost, too, 27-7 to the Chicago Bears.
— Jake Tapper 🦅 (@jaketapper) September 29, 2026
Chin up, Jake. Maybe the Eagles will let you into their press pool. Heaven knows you’re a great deal softer on a fan base that cheered Michael Irvin’s temporary paralysis and throwing snowballs at Santa Claus than you are on the Trump White House.
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