An effort to pass a sweeping measure aimed at protecting press freedoms was struck down in the U.S. Senate on Tuesday night. The journalism shield law — which would limit the federal government’s ability to force disclosure of journalists’ sources — drew strong objections from President-elect Donald Trump,

Republican Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas blocked a bipartisan bill, that would have given journalists more protections under federal law, after Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon asked for unanimous consent Tuesday.

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) blocked a federal shield law that would protect journalists from revealing their sources and material to the government. In the Senate on Tuesday, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.)

With the clock ticking on the current Congress, Senate Democrats were stymied in their effort to pass a bill that would shield journalists from being compelled by the federal government to reveal their sources and materials.

A shield law known as the PRESS Act that would give journalists greater federal protections failed to pass the Senate on Tuesday evening after it was blocked by Senator Tom Cotton. Shield laws protect journalists from being forced by the government to disclose information such as the identities of sources.

With the clock ticking on the current Congress, there are new doubts over the prospects for a bill that would shield journalists from being compelled by the federal government to reveal their sources and materials.

An effort to pass a sweeping measure aimed at protecting press freedoms was struck down in the U.S. Senate on Tuesday night.

Sen. Tom Cotton stymied the Senate from passing the first-ever federal press shield law on Tuesday, contending that if enacted, the legislation could put national security in jeopardy. The Protect Reporters from Exploitative State Spying Act (PRESS Act),