Justice Department subpoenas of New York Times reporters face Senate scrutiny

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DOJ subpoenas face Senate scrutiny

Highlights

The Justice Department subpoenas five New York Times reporters to testify before a Manhattan grand jury about security concerns with the new Air Force One.
Senators question Jay Clayton and Todd Blanche about the subpoenas, with both officials framing them as part of a national security investigation into leaked information.
The New York Times plans to ask Judge Ronnie Abrams to quash the subpoenas, citing press freedom concerns amid a more aggressive Trump administration stance toward journalists.

Senate hearings focus on subpoena decision

As first reported by Business Insider, five of its reporters are subpoenaed to testify before a grand jury in Manhattan after publishing an investigation into security concerns surrounding the new Air Force One, a modified Boeing 747-8 donated by Qatar.

At separate Capitol Hill hearings on Wednesday, senators question Jay Clayton, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York and President Donald Trump's nominee for director of national intelligence, as well as Todd Blanche, Trump's pick for attorney general, about the move. Sen. Ron Wyden calls the subpoenas a "flagrant attack" on journalists, while Sen. Peter Welch raises concerns about "targeting reporters."

Clayton tells senators the subpoenas are part of "an ongoing national security investigation" and says he followed the required process after consulting prosecutors in his office. Blanche says the journalists are viewed as "material witnesses," comparing them to witnesses to a car crash, and says investigators want to know who provided classified national security information.

Press freedom concerns and legal fallout

The subpoenas, signed by Clayton, initially require the reporters to appear on Wednesday. The New York Times is expected to ask U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams, who oversees grand jury issues and leads the courthouse's media access committee, to quash them.

The White House directs FBI Director Kash Patel to oversee the leak investigation into the Air Force One report, according to the newspaper. A spokesperson for The New York Times declines to comment on the Senate testimony by Clayton and Blanche.

In an email to the newsroom on Saturday, Times Executive Editor Joe Kahn describes the subpoenas as a "retaliatory abuse of prosecutorial power" and says the paper will mount a full defense of its staff. He says the effort is intended to intimidate reporters and suppress coverage protected by the First Amendment.

The dispute unfolds as the Trump administration takes a more aggressive stance toward journalists. Last year, then-Attorney General Pam Bondi scraps Biden-era policies that had required Justice Department officials to consider alternative ways to obtain information before seeking search warrants or subpoenas against members of the media.

Our earlier article on Jay Clayton’s Senate intelligence committee hearing covered lawmakers’ scrutiny of his nomination to lead U.S. national intelligence, including questions about his election-related remarks and his record as a federal prosecutor. We also noted that senators pressed him on the decision to subpoena New York Times journalists over reporting on a Qatari jet linked to Air Force One, a controversy that has continued to shadow his confirmation process.

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