The National Press Club condemned the U.S. Treasury Department’s decision to bar journalists from The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg News from covering the Group of 20 finance ministers meeting in Asheville, North Carolina. Club President Mark Schoeff Jr. said Americans need a free and independent press, not one chosen by the government, and called on Treasury to reverse the exclusions, credential the affected journalists and explain publicly how and why they were barred. Treasury has not detailed its rationale, while Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who is hosting the Saturday-through-Tuesday gathering of finance ministers, central bank governors and senior officials, said the decision was unrelated to point of view. The club framed the move as part of a wider pattern of restricted press access at the White House, the Pentagon and now a major international meeting, underscoring stakes for public scrutiny of talks touching the war in Iran, sanctions, bond markets and inflation.