Trump objects to American Sign Language interpretation of White House briefings for one ridiculous reason

The White House has appealed a court order requiring it to provide American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation of press briefings by US president Donald Trump or his press secretary Karoline Leavitt, with its legal representatives previously making the argument that “requiring the president to share his platform” is a “major incursion on his central prerogatives”.

Yes, really – the president seemingly does not like the idea of sharing the spotlight with others.

This unusual argument came about after the National Association of the Deaf (NAD), along with a deaf individual named Derrick Ford, sued the Trump administration over ASL access back in May.

While sign language interpretation was provided during Joe Biden’s time in office, Trump did away with the access provision following his inauguration.

Indeed, on the same day he entered the White House, he signed an executive order attacking “diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility”.

And it’s not the first time that the NAD sued Trump’s White House over ASL access, as they secured a “historic win” in 2020 after taking the administration to court over a failure to make coronavirus briefings accessible.

On Tuesday, US district judge Amir Ali, of the district court for Washington, D.C., issued his judgment on the latest lawsuit and said the plaintiff’s claim under the Rehabilitation Act – which outlaws discrimination against disabled people by a federal agency – is “likely to succeed”.

The memorandum opinion also stated that while the defendants in the case – which includes Trump, Leavitt and White House executive offices - “do not make clear what ‘fundamental alteration’ or ‘major incursion’ they are referring to”, they presented “coded language about wanting to present ‘their message and image in a particular way’”.

Except the same opinion also notes that ASL interpretation “does not require a speaker to ‘share his platform’ with anyone”, because this can be provided remotely.

Judge Ali ordered the Executive Office of the President, the White House Office, White House Chief of Staff Susan Wiles and White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt to “immediately begin providing a simultaneous and publicly accessible feed with visible American Sign Language interpretation” for all press briefings carried out by Trump or Leavitt.

They were also given until Friday to file a “status report” with the court detailing their compliance with the order.

However, on that day, the Trump administration filed an appeal with the US Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C. against the preliminary injunction, alongside the status report.

The report states that the White House believes the court “legally erred” with its issuing of the injunction and adds: “The White House continues to retain American Sign Language (ASL) interpretive services under an existing blanket purchase agreement that remains in effect through March 22, 2028.

“This agreement requires the White House to give 24 hours’ notice to the vendor for any requested services. In the unlikely event the vendor cannot produce an interpreter to provide simultaneous briefing despite 24 hours’ notice, the White House intends to publish the ASL interpretation as soon as practicable.

“The White House is also working to establish a publicly accessible channel showing ASL interpretation that would be provided simultaneously with every press briefing subject to the injunction.”

The White House also says that it does not consider “events with other purposes, such as a ceremony or a speech, at which the President may choose to take questions from the press” to apply here, nor does it believe the order concerns ASL provision for “events scheduled with less than 24 hours’ notice, such as briefings held in response to emergency developments”.

The report concludes with the White House requesting notification from the court if it has “misunderstood the intended scope” of the court order, adding that if it has, and the scope is broader, this would present “additional practical and logistical difficulties” which might prompt the government to request a stay pending appeal.

The NAD now has until Monday to file its response.

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