Politico newshound Ben Schreckinger was removed Thursday evening from a Donald Trump rally in San Jose “for practicing journalism without the campaign’s permission,” according to the reporter.
Despite having extensively covered the presumptive GOP nominee’s presidential run for the D.C.-based newspaper, Mr. Schreckinger said the Trump campaign has refused to issue him credentials for “multiple” events, including Thursday’s rally at the San Jose Convention Center, forcing him to acquire a general admission ticket in order to attend.
Mr. Schreckinger was typing on his laptop outside of the press pen during Thursday night’s rally when he was approached by a Trump campaign staffer and questioned about his credentials, he wrote Friday morning.
“The staffer said he would consult with his superiors and returned minutes later with a private security officer who instructed the reporter to leave the premises, escorting him out a nearby exit,” he said.
Mr. Schreckinger tweeted after the incident that he “was removed from Donald Trump’s rally tonight for practicing journalism without the campaign’s permission.”
Trump spokeswoman Hope Hicks told Politico in an email afterwards that the Trump campaign was “not aware of the incident or any details pertaining to it” and could not comment, but was “looking into” the reporter’s allegations.
Politico editor Susan Glasser said in a statement that such acts violate the basic rights of a free press.
“Once again the trump campaign has refused to allow a Politico journalist to cover a campaign event, this time physically ejecting our reporter from a rally as he typed on his laptop,” Ms. Glasser said. “If this is an effort to squelch independent coverage of their campaign, it will not work. Such actions constitute a violation of the basic right of a free press to report and as such the Trump campaign has a responsibility to let journalists do their job.”
Politico colleague Carla Marinucci claimed she was also hassled by Trump staffers in San Jose, but was not ejected.
“Outrageous,” she tweeted. “Trump staffer ordered me not to talk to people/report from gen section; I ignored that order but was not removed.”
Both journalists’ claims come in the wake of a press conference held by Mr. Trump this week in which he referred to a critical ABC reporter as “sleaze.”
“I’m going to continue to attack the press,” Mr. Trump said at the press conference Tuesday. “I find the press to be dishonest. I find the political press to be extremely dishonest.”
In March, South Florida Sun-Sentinel columnist Mike Mayo said he was similarly ejected from a Trump rally in Palm Beach County for covering the event without press credentials.
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
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