; Whereas President Donald Trump has repeatedly vilified and undermined the free and independent American press during various stages of his campaign and Presidency; Whereas President Donald Trump refers to media reporting as fake news and attempts to undermine reporting on the activities of the White House; Whereas President Trump has repeatedly avoided the protective press pool in a way that departs from presidential history and best practices; Whereas, on May 12, 2017, President Trump categorically barred members of the American press corps from an Oval Office meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Russian Ambassador to the United States Sergey Kislyak, while allowing members of Russia’s state-owned news agency Tass to attend and photograph the meeting; Whereas, on May 12, 2017, in responding to news reports about the controversy surrounding his firing of FBI Director James Comey, President Trump tweeted about cancel[ing] all future press briefings and hand[ing] out written responses … ; and Whereas it is necessary for the House of Representatives to reassert the primacy of the First Amendment and the necessity of a free and independent press to inform the public: Now, therefore be it