The Associated Press is suing three Trump administration officials over its blocking of AP reporters from access to the Oval Office and Air Force One, citing the First Amendment.

The lawsuit was filed in District Court in Washington Friday. It names as defendants White House deputy chief of staff Taylor Budowich, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles.

The White House has barred the outlet from covering President Trump’s actions in the Oval Office, traveling with the president on Air Force One and other events over its decision to not refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America, as decreed by Mr. Trump.

“The press and all people in the United States have the right to choose their own words and not be retaliated against by the government,” the AP said in the lawsuit.

The complaint seeks a court to order the White House to stop blocking AP’s journalists from events.

The outlet said the “targeted attack on the AP’s editorial independence and ability to gather and report the news strikes at the very core of the First Amendment.”

Mr. Trump said earlier this week that the AP will continue to be banned until it starts using Gulf of America to refer to the body of water between Florida and Mexico.

“We’re going to keep them out until such time as they agree that’s the Gulf of America,” Mr. Trump told reporters at Mar-a-Lago. “We’re very proud of this country and we want it to be the Gulf of America.”

Associated Press Executive Editor Julie Pace called the ban “a deeply troubling escalation of the administration’s continued efforts to punish The Associated Press for its editorial decisions.”

A letter was sent to the White House earlier this week urging the White House to reconsider its barring of the AP. It was signed by roughly 40 news organizations.

• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.