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Van Jones is working hard to bring light to prison reform and start a national conversation about our criminal justice system ... but he says a few celebs are outshining him.

We got the CNN host at Chelsea Studios in NYC Tuesday and asked who he thinks is stepping up the most for the cause ... he points to Meek Mill, calling him a "massive hero" for using his own case as a launching pad to help others.

Van then praises Kim Kardashian West for ignoring the skeptics and proving her ambitions and involvement are no joke ... and he believes it's a sign people from all walks of life have realized we have way too many prisoners in the U.S.

T.I. also gets a major shout-out for working with a church in Georgia to raise $120k to bail out 23 nonviolent offenders for Easter. Van says the rapper's "doing good by the hood," and if more people followed his lead ... things would improve very quickly.

Don Lemon IS GOOD at comebacks ... and it's never been clearer than with this video.

We got Don at LAX Friday and asked about the blackface scandals in Virginia ... specifically, whether people should be punished for what they do when they were much younger.

Don says there's a special carve-out for political leaders, which then leads to the hypothetical ... what should happen if the 2020 Democratic nominee for President is killing Trump in the polls, but 2 weeks before the election it comes out he/she wore blackface in his/her 20's? Don handles it deftly, for sure.

Van Jones wants to give President Trump credit for his State of the Union Address, but he can hardly bring himself to do it ... because he says POTUS also talked way too much crap on immigrants.

We got Van on Capitol Hill Tuesday night after the SOTU and the CNN commentator summed up the night like this -- Trump served a "nice bowl of Kool-Aid with some bird poop in it."

Translation: Trump's nice speech about criminal justice reform was ruined by his rhetoric on immigrants.

Van said he was touched by the compassion Trump showed for Americans wronged by the criminal justice system, and particularly how he praised Alice Marie Johnson, who Trump commuted last summer.

But, Van was NOT down with how POTUS dehumanized immigrants and justifying taking babies away from their mothers at the border.

Andy Cohen ain't about to let Johnny Law rain on his New Year's Eve plans, because the host is already gearing up for the next ball drop with a fancy new umbrella ... Times Square Alliance be damned!

We got Andy Monday in NYC and he flaunted his personalized umbrella ... bragging it would be with him for his next NYE broadcast. He also dared the now infamous Times Square Alliance to stop him.

You'll recall ... Andy threw a fit on-air during CNN's NYE broadcast last week after he claimed security ordered him to lose his umbrella in the pouring rain or risk losing the network's credentials for the next NYE show.

The Times Square Alliance fired back in response to Andy's rant, pouring water all over his claims.

It's still raining on Andy Cohen, because he's getting some serious pushback from the Times Square Alliance after he ranted on air about being singled out by officials who forced him to take down his umbrella during his CNN New Year's Eve broadcast.

During his fit, Andy claimed someone in the Times Square Alliance threatened to pull CNN's credentials for its next NYE show if he didn't lose his umbrella.

The Alliance fired back on Wednesday, issuing a statement to Page Six saying umbrellas are not allowed in certain media areas because they can block sightlines for other media.

The Alliance also denied Cohen's claim CNN's credentials were threatened, saying, "some tempers flared, but it was never the case, nor will it be the case, that CNN would be denied credentials or the ability to cover New Year's Eve."

Andy Cohen had a fit on the air during his CNN New Year's Eve broadcast over Times Square security and his umbrella.

Andy came back from a commercial with Anderson Cooper and launched on the Times Square Alliance, which ordered him to lose his umbrella ... or else.

It was pouring rain in Times Square and Andy was outraged, calling the order "Grade A BS."

Cohen says, when he initially refused to get rid of the umbrella, a member of the Times Square Alliance threatened to pull CNN's credentials for the next New Year's Eve show. Andy relented, but was furious.

BTW ... Andy also announced the surrogate who is carrying his baby is about to deliver a boy.

George Lopez was positive Donald Trump would let D.L. Hughley in the White House press room before Jim Acosta would ever be invited back, so imagine his SHOCK when he learned from us Jim's back in action!

Don't get George wrong ... he stands with Acosta. But, the Trump/Acosta fiery relationship makes George's attacks on Trump look like a pillow fight ... hence his surprise.

It sounds like Beto O'Rourke is noodling a run for The White House in 2020, because the Congressman is not shutting down rumors he may challenge Donald Trump for the Presidency.

We got Beto Friday strolling around Capitol Hill and asked him straight-up if he's planning to run for Prez in 2020 ... and the rocker-turned-politician left the door wide open.

Beto is fresh off losing to Sen. Ted Cruz in the midterm election, so he says he hasn't given 2020 a whole bunch of thought ... these days he seems to have daddy duties on the brain.

One thing's for sure ... Beto is glad CNN reporter Jim Acosta got his White House press credentials back, and he's taking a stand against Trump labeling the media as an enemy of the people.

10:14 AM PT -- Trump just addressed the situation, and he issues a stern warning to reporters like Acosta ... follow the rules or end up back in court.

9:49 AM PT -- Acosta hit the ground running, and is already back at the White House just hours after his victory.

9:20 AM PT -- Sounds like the White House fully intends to challenge the judge's ruling. Sarah Sanders said, "In response to the court, we will temporarily reinstate the reporter's hard pass."

"Temporarily" being the keyword there.

Sanders added, "We will also further develop rules and processes to ensure fair and orderly press conferences in the future. There must be decorum at the White House."

Translation: They're not done battling Acosta.

President Trump had it out for CNN White House Correspondent Jim Acosta ... so says a federal judge who has just ordered The White House to give Acosta his press credentials back.

The judge didn't buy the White House party line, because it shifted from Acosta making contact with a W.H. intern as the basis for its decision, to Acosta's "general conduct."

The judge did not base his core ruling off the First Amendment but rather the Due Process clause of the 5th Amendment. The judge said the decision to revoke the pass was "so shrouded in mystery that the government could not tell me ... who made the decision."

The judge went on to say Trump has no obligation to call on Acosta during White House news conferences but Acosta has a right to due process before his hard pass can be revoked.

CNN and its chief White House reporter, Jim Acosta, sued Trump Tuesday after Acosta's hard pass was yanked following aggressive questioning last week during a press conference ... Trump and Co. pulled his pass after he made contact with a White House intern, who was trying to take the mic away from him.

CNN argued in court Trump was infringing on Acosta's 1st and 5th Amendment rights by pulling his press pass, adding the real reason behind the move is his extreme hatred for CNN.

For his part, Trump's White House lawyers responded by saying the Prez can pick and choose who gets on White House grounds to cover his administration.

Originally Published -- 7:28 AM PT

President Trump put in years of secret planning to get CNN's White House correspondent kicked off his detail ... at least according to Omarosa.

Trump's former aide was in D.C. Wednesday when a photog asked her about Jim Acosta and CNN suing POTUS for revoking his press pass. Omarosa was pretty nonchalant about it, because she claims the Prez held "private meetings" about Acosta back when she was still in the White House.

Omarosa claims booting Acosta, in particular, has been on Trump's agenda for a long time.

For his part, Acosta walked into a federal courthouse in D.C. on Wednesday, seeking an emergency order that would grant him immediate White House access. The court hasn't ruled yet.

Omarosa's got an opinion on how the battle will play out for CNN and Acosta.

Granted, she has plenty of beef with 45 about how she was 86'd, but IF Omarosa's right about the alleged "private meetings," it confirms the media's biggest fears: That the President is trying to crush Freedom of the Press if he doesn't like your reporting.

President Trump can't take his CNN grudge out on Jim Acosta by yanking his White House press pass ... at least that's what CNN is asserting in a new lawsuit.

CNN and Acosta are taking the extraordinary step to sue POTUS over last week's fiery showdown during a news conference. According to the suit, CNN believes Trump violated its First Amendment right by revoking Acosta's "hard pass" ... thereby hampering his ability to cover the White House.

In the suit, they say Trump and Sarah Sanders are hiding behind the flimsy argument Acosta accosted an intern who was trying to grab his microphone. They point out the video Sanders posted was apparently doctored, and say even Trump later described the incident as not "overly horrible."

CNN says the "sole justification" for the Administration pulling Acosta's pass is "their dislike for [CNN and Acosta]'s coverage" of Trump.

According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Trump also violated CNN's 5th Amendment due process rights because Acosta wasn't informed ahead of time his credential was revoked.

In fact, Jim posted video of the Secret Service agent confiscating his press pass. The lawsuit -- filed against Trump, Sanders and Chief of Staff Gen. -- seeks to get Acosta's pass returned, stat.

They're likely facing an uphill battle, though.

President Trump's relentless attacks on CNN have forced the network to take extreme measures -- offering armed security to on-air talent who have reason to fear for their safety.

Network sources tell TMZ ... CNN brass offered reporters and anchors who have been targets of President Trump around-the-clock protection. We're told the logic is simple ... there are Trump fanatics who believe the President when he calls the media and certain reporters "the enemy of the people," and the fear is that they will take violent action.

There's actual proof here ... the person who sent mail bombs targeted CNN at least twice.

We're told CNN has told the targeted employees they can choose the level of protection they want, ranging from round-the-clock armed guards to more limited security, such as following the personality to and from work.

Trump has repeatedly attacked Don Lemon ... and it doesn't seem like a coincidence a self-proclaimed white nationalist Trump supporter threatened to kill him.

More recently ... a 39-year-old Arkansas man was busted Tuesday for making more than 40 calls to CNN that included death threats aimed at Lemon.

TMZ broke the story ... April Ryan -- a White House correspondent with Urban Radio Networks and well-known CNN contributor -- now has protection after receiving threats over the last few months ... threats which sure seem related to Trump's venom toward her.

Conan O'Brien's laughing his ass off a lot these days, courtesy President Trump and co. -- but the problem is they're also stomping all over the late night host's turf ... according to Conan.

We got COB out in the Big Apple Thursday and asked him to weigh in on the White House yanking Jim Acosta's press credentials after his head-to-head with the Prez. Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders uploaded a vid she said supported the decision -- but the clip is clearly sped up to make it appear Acosta shoved an intern.

Conan's take? Great production skills on the part of Trump's team!

Conan joked with us about how Trump's news conference antics are inspiring his own creativity.

Congressman Gerry Connolly says CNN White House Correspondent Jim Acosta was set up by Donald Trump ... set up to humiliate him during Wednesday's news conference.

We got Connolly in D.C. Thursday and he seemed certain, there was a script behind the move by an intern to grab the mic Acosta was holding after the fiery exchange with the Prez.

Trump went full bore on Acosta, telling him he was a terrible person and unfit to cover The White House. By the way, Acosta's been covering 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. for the last 5 years.

While ripping into Acosta, Trump accused him of being extremely rude to Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders. There's no denying Sarah and Jim have gone to battle several times during press briefings -- with the fireworks frequently going off live on the web and TV.

The man who made death threats against Don Lemon last year will not have to answer for his harassment, 'cause prosecutors say he's too small of a fish ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... prosecutors in NY have declined to file charges against the self-proclaimed white nationalist and Trump supporter who tweeted multiple ominous messages at him last October -- stuff like, "F*** you n***** can't wait to stab your neck."

The reason? We're told the resources authorities would have to use to prosecute the guy far outweigh the potential punishment. Our sources say the man's behavior amounted to misdemeanor harassment ... which would've gotten him a maximum sentence of a year in jail. Translation ... it's just not worth it.

We broke the story ... Don went to the cops last year to report messages the man sent him on Twitter, such as ... "U r a pile of rotting Dogshit,racist,communist, socialist, Liberal moron asshole,i will find u U will pay.ill see u real soon..."

We're told prosecutors reached out to Don a couple of weeks ago to tell him their decision, and our sources say the CNN host couldn't have been more cordial or appreciative.

President Trump bears some responsibility for the pipe bombs sent to Democrats, and anyone with ears should know that, says former GOP strategist Steve Schmidt.

Steve told us Wednesday the person who actually assembled and sent the bombs is ultimately to blame -- but added, POTUS would have had metaphorical blood on his hands had the devices detonated ... because he's been condoning violence for years now.

Schmidt, who's renounced the GOP and is now an MSNBC fixture, says Trump has encouraged his base to resort to violence against his enemies -- specifically Democrats and the media.

Considering those were the groups targeted, Schmidt says it's clear Trump's rhetoric is spawning a pseudo Civil War.

As we told you, multiple suspicious packages were discovered en route to the residences and offices of the Obamas, the Clintons, Eric Holder, Maxine Waters, CNN and more. Cops say all the devices were pipe bombs intended to cause harm.

FWIW ... Trump condemned the would-be attacks, and vowed law enforcement would track down the attempted murders.