The White House has given Politico 48 hours to retract or correct several reports concerning alleged internal tensions within President Donald Trump’s administration, warning the news organisation of unspecified “consequences” if it fails to comply.
White House Counsel Will Scharf sent a letter to Politico on Monday demanding corrections or retractions of three stories involving White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles. The deadline expires on Thursday, according to Axios.
The dispute threatens to intensify tensions between the Trump administration and news organisations covering the White House, amid an ongoing battle over press access and the president’s response to critical reporting.
Scharf’s letter singled out three Politico reports published on October 15 and 16. One article, headlined “Trump’s ice maiden is under fire”, reported that Trump was considering replacing Wiles. The president dismissed the report as “fake news”.
A second Politico Playbook report said the earlier story had triggered a “freakout” and that Trump had “blew up” over the coverage. A White House spokesman described the reporting as “unbelievably stupid and false”.
The third article suggested Wiles had helped arrange a Fox News interview for Katie Zacharia, the former White House press secretary, ahead of her departure.
The White House and Fox News disputed that account. According to Axios, White House officials had supplied Politico with text messages before publication indicating that Zacharia, rather than Wiles, had arranged the interview.
Scharf accused Politico of failing to correct what he described as false reporting. He demanded that the outlet issue a public apology to Trump and Wiles and remove the disputed material from its digital archives.
“Freedom of the press is not a professional exemption from accountability,” Scharf wrote in the letter.
He warned that failure to comply would prompt an “immediate review” of Politico’s relationship with the White House, alongside consideration of other available legal remedies.
A Politico spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment, Axios reported.
The dispute comes as Politico, CNN and MS NOW face restrictions on access to Trump in the Oval Office and aboard Air Force One. A judge recently restored their access to White House grounds after the administration barred the outlets from the premises.
CNN also threatened legal action on Wednesday in an effort to regain access to Air Force One and the television networks’ presidential press pool.
The White House has not specified what consequences Politico could face. However, an administration official said “all options are on the table”.
The confrontation adds to a broader pattern of disputes between Trump and media organisations over reporting, access and alleged inaccuracies. Trump has previously pursued legal action against news outlets and challenged restrictions on his administration’s treatment of journalists.
The latest dispute also comes amid criticism from White House Communications Director Steven Cheung, who accused Politico of being a “foreign-op” intended to interfere in American politics. The publication is owned by German media company Axel Springer.
Whether the White House will take further action against Politico remains unclear.
