Washington DC [US], September 20: What began as a routine entry through the White House security checkpoint turned into a dramatic moment for CNN reporter Betsy Klein on Saturday (local time), when her press credentials failed to grant her access and a Secret Service agent told her that her badge had been deactivated.

Klein described the encounter live on CNN, recounting how she arrived at the White House expecting to go through the same security process she had followed before, only to find herself stopped at the checkpoint.

“I go through a checkpoint with the Secret Service. I show them my hard pass, and I walk past,” she said, as she continued recounting how she placed her belongings through what appeared to be an airport-style security conveyor belt before approaching a badge reader.

“I put my stuff through essentially what looks like an airport security conveyor belt, and I tap my badge onto a card reader. I type in a four-digit PIN. I did all of that today. The only difference was there was a group of cameras waiting outside the gate, watching me walk in," Klein said.

CNN and MS NOW reporters report from outside the White House after journalists from the outlets and Politico are denied access following Trump’s media ban. pic.twitter.com/RlMNk2K3fh

But when Klein reached the access point and attempted to use her credentials, the process changed.

“I walk in, I tap my badge, it beeps a couple of times and turns red, blue, and green, and it didn’t accept my PIN number. The Secret Service agent on the guard [post] asked to see my badge, and he told me that it had been deactivated," she added.

Klein, speaking to CNN’s Kasie Hunt on Saturday, said she then sought an explanation from the agent.

“I asked him if he could provide an explanation as to why it had been deactivated,” Klein recounted.

“He said he had no further information. I asked him once more if he had any more details he could share with me, and he said that I should be referred to the White House Press Office," she added.