法官在聽證會上質疑川普白宮媒體禁令

作者：Jan Wolfe、Jack QueenBy Jan Wolfe and Jack Queen

華盛頓，9月23日（路透社）——美國一名法官週三似乎對唐納・川普禁止CNN、MS NOW與Politico記者進入白宮的決定是否合法抱持懷疑態度，並表示他可能會准許這些媒體提出的請求，解除它們所稱因總統不喜歡其新聞報導而進行非法報復的禁令。WASHINGTON, Sept 23 (Reuters) - A US judge appeared skeptical on Wednesday about the legality of Donald Trump's decision to bar CNN, MS NOW and Politico journalists from the White House, indicating he may grant their request to lift the ban they describe as unlawful retaliation for news coverage the president dislikes.

美國地方法官提摩西・凱利在華盛頓的一場聽證會上表示，川普的禁令似乎未遵循過去的法律先例，因為未給予這些新聞媒體回應的機會。凱利沒有立即就三家媒體請求發布暫時禁制令作出裁定；該禁制令旨在其法律挑戰進行期間解除禁令，但凱利表示會很快裁定。US District Judge Timothy Kelly said at a hearing in Washington that Trump's ban did not appear to comply with past legal precedents by failing to give the news outlets an opportunity to respond. Kelly did not immediately rule on a bid by the three outlets for a temporary restraining order lifting the ban while their legal challenge plays out, but said he would do so soon.

川普週五在其社群媒體平台上宣布這項禁令，稱這些新聞機構「在報導美國總統時，不應該能夠不斷撰寫或報導虛構內容與謊言」。司法部則強調川普的主張，即基於國家安全理由，這項禁令在法律上有正當依據。Trump announced the ban on Friday on his social media platform, saying those news organizations "shouldn't be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES when they're covering the President of the United States." The Justice Department has emphasized Trump's contention that the ban is legally justified on national security grounds.

這些媒體在週一提起的訴訟中表示，這項禁令違反美國憲法第一修正案對言論自由與新聞自由的保障，也侵害它們享有正當法律程序的權利，亦即政府應予公平對待的權利。The outlets said in a lawsuit filed on Monday that the ban violated the US Constitution's First Amendment protections for freedom of speech and a free press, as well as their rights to due process, meaning fair treatment from the government.

法官表示，川普似乎未遵循美國哥倫比亞特區巡迴上訴法院過去兩項裁決，因為他未給予這些新聞媒體有意義的機會，對撤銷其採訪權提出異議。The judge said it does not appear that Trump complied with two past rulings by the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit by failing to give the news outlets a meaningful opportunity to contest the revocation of their access.

由川普於2017年任命的凱利指出，政府主張那些案件的判決有誤。Kelly, who Trump appointed in 2017, noted that the government contends that those cases were wrongly decided.

凱利說：「也許那些判決有誤，也許沒有。但身為地方法院法官，我必須適用它們。我認為可以公平地說，巡迴法院在那兩起案件中提出的程序，在本案並未被遵循。」"Maybe they were wrongly decided, maybe they weren't," Kelly said. "But as a district court judge I have to apply them. I think it is fair to say the process the circuit laid out in those two cases wasn't followed here."

代表這些新聞媒體的律師西奧多・布特魯斯告訴凱利，禁令是基於受法律保障的言論而歧視這些媒體，並侵害它們享有正當法律程序的權利。Theodore Boutrous, a lawyer for the news outlets, told Kelly that the ban discriminated against them based on legally protected speech and violated their rights to due process.

布特魯斯說：「總統說，『我不喜歡你們發布的內容。我要因此拿走你們的記者證。』」"The president said, 'I don't like what you're publishing. I'm taking away your press pass based on that,'" Boutrous said.

「一張紙」'A PIECE OF PAPER'

司法部律師麥可・韋爾奇克指控這些新聞媒體發布機密資訊，並稱它們知道這麼做違法。他也表示，政府週二寄給這些新聞媒體的信函已提供充分說明並給予回應機會，不過凱利對此說法抱持懷疑。Michael Velchik, a Justice Department lawyer, accused the news outlets of publishing classified information, and said they knew that doing so was illegal. He also said the government gave a sufficient explanation and opportunity to respond in letters sent to the news outlets on Tuesday, though Kelly was skeptical of this argument.

法官說：「我不明白，在採訪證被撤銷後他們才收到的一封信，如何能讓他們事先知道自己必須遵循何種標準，因為那只是一張紙，告訴他們：『你們已經違反了這項規定。』」"I don't know how a letter that they got after the pass was revoked could provide them with the notice of the kind of standards that they would have to conform their conduct to, since it's a piece of paper they got saying, 'You've already violated this,'" the judge said.

川普的禁令是他近期與媒體衝突中最具戲劇性的一次。他指控媒體試圖在11月期中選舉前傷害他的共和黨同僚；在這場選舉中，共和黨正力拚維持對國會的控制權。Trump's ban is the most dramatic of his recent clashes with the media, which he has accused of trying to hurt his fellow Republicans ahead of the November midterm elections in which the party is fighting to retain control of Congress.

司法部在週二提交的文件中主張，進入白宮採訪是一項特權，而非權利；總統有權暫停新聞機構的採訪權。司法部並指控這些媒體的報導威脅國家安全，列舉的報導包括美國飛彈庫存、川普白宮宴會廳的施工，以及近期共和黨期中選舉大會的出席人數。In a filing on Tuesday, the Justice Department argued that access to the White House is a privilege, not an entitlement, and that the president has the power to suspend access by news organizations. It accused the outlets of threatening national security with their coverage, citing stories about US missile stockpiles, construction of Trump's White House ballroom and turnout at the recent Republican midterm convention.

「我們的主要證人」'OUR LEAD WITNESS'

布特魯斯表示，川普的社群媒體貼文明確顯示，總統不滿這三家媒體的對抗性報導，之後才抓住國家安全作為撤銷其採訪權的「藉口」。Boutrous said Trump's social media posts made clear that the president took exception to adversarial reporting produced by the three outlets, and then latched onto national security as a "pretext" for revoking their access.

布特魯斯談到川普時說：「他不斷證明我們的論點。他在這裡其實是我們的主要證人。」"He keeps proving our point," Boutrous said of Trump. "He's really our lead witness here."

在2018年一件提出類似法律議題的案件中，凱利曾命令白宮恢復CNN記者吉姆・阿科斯塔的記者證。阿科斯塔的記者證是在與川普一場火藥味濃厚的記者會後遭撤銷。凱利在該案中裁定，白宮撤銷阿科斯塔採訪證時並未採用公平且明確的程序。In a 2018 case that raised similar legal issues, Kelly ordered the White House to restore CNN correspondent Jim Acosta's press pass, which had been revoked after a contentious news conference with Trump. Kelly ruled in that case that the White House had not used fair and clear procedures to revoke Acosta's credential.

川普在週一的一則社群媒體貼文中表示，後悔任命凱利，並稱自己已準備面對敗訴。In a social media post on Monday, Trump indicated regret over appointing Kelly and said he was bracing for a loss.

一個由新聞自由團體和數十家新聞機構組成的聯盟週三提交法律意見書，支持遭川普鎖定的三家新聞媒體。它們主張，「因被認定的編輯觀點而剝奪記者與新聞媒體的權利，違反數十年來的最高法院判例法」。A coalition of press freedom groups and dozens of news organizations filed a legal brief on Wednesday supporting the three news outlets targeted by Trump. They asserted that "stripping journalists and news outlets of their rights because of perceived editorial viewpoint violates decades of Supreme Court jurisprudence."

這份意見書由保護記者委員會、路透社、華盛頓郵報與福斯新聞等單位簽署。The brief was signed by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, Reuters, the Washington Post and Fox News, among others.

（Jan Wolfe、Jack Queen報導；Tom Hals、Noeleen Walder、Edmund Klamann、Will Dunham編輯）(Reporting by Jan Wolfe and Jack Queen; Editing by Tom Hals, Noeleen Walder, Edmund Klamann and Will Dunham)