; Whereas courts have routinely rejected viewpoint discrimination and have consistently prioritized the need for a free and robust press when weighing competing constitutional interests; Whereas a free press has long provided a vital national service by, inter alia, reporting on the Watergate scandal that enveloped the Nixon Administration and exposed pervasive corruption that existed within the Executive Branch; Whereas courts historically disfavor government censorship of a free press, including when the United States Supreme Court ruled that the government could not enjoin the press from publishing newsworthy content based on vague pronouncements of national security and Justice Black stated, [o]nly a free and unrestrained press can effectively expose deception in government … paramount among the responsibilities of a free press is the duty to prevent any part of the government from deceiving the people … ; Whereas courts have held that once the White House press facilities have been made publicly available to the press—as they have been for generations—the protection afforded news gathering under the First Amendment requires that this access not be denied arbitrarily or for less than compelling reasons; Whereas a free press is essential to democratic legitimacy and longevity, and past administrations have adhered to traditions and norms by holding regular open press briefings; Whereas today’s press has been called the enemy of the people ; Whereas the revocation of press credentials of certain members of the press without proffering compelling reasons or evidence to justify that revocation threatens the very principles upon which this nation was founded; Whereas the public and the press have sincere interest in key department and agency meetings, briefings, and activities, and briefings have been held that exclude secular media without the proffering of compelling reasons or evidence to justify that exclusion