President Donald Trump has once again won a huge victory over the mainstream media as a U.S. federal appeals court has ruled that a lower court decision mandating that Associated Press journalists be given access to White House media events be paused.

The 2-1 ruling, which was handed down by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, throws a temporary block on an order that was originally instituted by U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden. McFadden ruled on April 8 that the administration had to allow AP reporters access to the Oval Office, Air Force One, and the White House while the news outlet’s lawsuit was pushed forward.

Trump’s administration was sued by the AP after the White House booted them over their decision to continue calling the Gulf of Mexico by its original name and not the Gulf of America. Lawyers representing the AP attempted to make the case that the policy forbidding the AP from having access to these events violated the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, claiming it is a violation of free speech.

Legal professionals representing the Trump administration said the president has total discretion over which media outlets and personalities have access to the White House. They pointed out that McFadden’s ruling infringed on President Trump’s right to decide who can be admitted to sensitive spaces.

“The Constitution does not prohibit the President from considering a journalist’s prior coverage in evaluating how much access he will grant that journalist,” lawyers for the administration went on to say in a court filing.

“On April 16, the AP accused the Trump administration of defying the court order by continuing to exclude its journalists from some events and then limiting access to Trump for all news wires, including Reuters and Bloomberg. Reuters and the AP both issued statements denouncing the new policy, which puts wire services in a larger rotation with about 30 other newspaper and print outlets,” Reuters reported.

One of the attempted justifications for allowing the AP to be part of the media events is that smaller, local news organizations that have no presence in Washington are dependent on wire services to receive real-time reports concerning statements made by the president, along with global financial markets.

One part of the ruling answers all of the AP’s protests: “We grant in part the government’s motion for a stay pending appeal. The White House is likely to succeed on the merits because these restricted presidential spaces are not First Amendment fora opened for private speech and discussion. The White House therefore retains discretion to determine, including on the basis of viewpoint, which journalists will be admitted. Moreover, without a stay, the government will suffer irreparable harm because the injunction impinges on the President’s independence and control over his private workspaces.”