In the aftermath of the Wall Street Journal publishing what President Donald Trump has called a “fake” birthday card from him to Jeffrey Epstein, a reporter has been booted from a press pool covering Trump’s upcoming trip to Scotland.
The outlet alleged it found a 2003 letter from Trump to Epstein, which Trump denies. He has called the story “false, malicious, and defamatory.”
Tarini Parti, a White House reporter for the Wall Street Journal, was supposed to be part of the media pool covering Trump’s upcoming trip to his golf courses in Scotland.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Parti will not be allowed on the trip, according to Politico.
“As the appeals court confirmed, the Wall Street Journal or any other news outlet are not guaranteed special access to cover President Trump in the Oval Office, aboard Air Force One, and in his private workspaces,” Leavitt said in a statement.
“Due to the Wall Street Journal’s fake and defamatory conduct, they will not be one of the thirteen outlets on board. Every news organization in the entire world wishes to cover President Trump, and the White House has taken significant steps to include as many voices as possible.”
The White House has officially REMOVED The Wall Street Journal from the press pool after they published fake news about President Trump. Good riddance. Bunch of propagandists. pic.twitter.com/rKdSvFKN8Y
— Suburban Black Man 🇺🇸 (@niceblackdude) July 21, 2025
A White House representative declined to speculate on future plans to include or exclude the Wall Street Journal from future media pools.
Should more Epstein information be released?
CBS News correspondent Weijia Jiang, the president of the White House Correspondents’ Association earlier this month, criticized the White House.
“This attempt by the White House to punish a media outlet whose coverage it does not like is deeply troubling, and it defies the First Amendment,” Jiang said.
“Government retaliation against news outlets based on the content of their reporting should concern all who value free speech and an independent media. We strongly urge the White House to restore the Wall Street Journal to its previous position in the pool and aboard Air Force One for the President’s upcoming trip to Scotland.”
On Friday, Trump filed a $10 billion lawsuit against the Journal.
Trump told the Journal, “I never wrote a picture in my life. I don’t draw pictures of women.”
“It’s not my language. It’s not my words,” he added.
“The Wall Street Journal, and Rupert Murdoch, personally, were warned directly by President Donald J. Trump that the supposed letter they printed by President Trump to Epstein was a FAKE and, if they print it, they will be sued,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
Trump noted that the Journal was told the letter was fake.
“Instead, they are going with a false, malicious, and defamatory story anyway,” Trump wrote. “The Press has to learn to be truthful, and not rely on sources that probably don’t even exist.”
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