White House Curbs AP Access to Oval Office, Air Force One Amid Gulf of America Naming Dispute

The Associated Press faces new White House access limits over a dispute on using ‘Gulf of Mexico’ in its reporting instead of the ‘Gulf of America.’

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks during a press briefing at the White House in Washington on Feb. 12, 2025. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

The White House has announced new restrictions on Associated Press journalists’ access to the Oval Office and Air Force One, citing an ongoing dispute over the wire service’s refusal to adopt the administration’s official terminology for the body of water formerly known as the Gulf of Mexico but now renamed the Gulf of America.

“The Associated Press continues to ignore the lawful geographic name change of the Gulf of America,” White House Deputy Chief of Staff Taylor Budowich said in a statement on social media on Feb. 14.