▲ The New York Times headquarters building
The U.S. Department of Justice has issued subpoenas requiring New York Times (NYT) reporters to appear before a federal grand jury following their report on security concerns regarding President Donald Trump's new presidential aircraft, Air Force One.
The NYT stated on July 11 (local time) that its reporters received the subpoenas from the Justice Department the previous day, demanding their appearance before a federal grand jury on July 15.
The NYT reported that the subpoenas did not provide specific details, citing only "violations of federal criminal law" as the reason.
On July 8, after attending the NATO summit, President Trump announced via social media while leaving Turkey that he would be using the old Air Force One instead of the new one (Boeing 747-8) received from Qatar.
In response, the NYT reported, citing anonymous sources, that the decision was made because the new Air Force One lacked properly equipped defensive countermeasure systems, such as advanced missile defense capabilities.
Prior to the publication of the report, a senior FBI official asked the NYT to reconsider publishing the article and demanded the disclosure of the information source, citing national security, but the NYT refused.
Jay Clayton, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York who issued the subpoenas, is the individual recently nominated by President Trump to serve as the Director of National Intelligence (DNI).
Some of the reporters were served the subpoenas by federal agents who visited their homes in person.
An attorney for the NYT protested, stating, "This is an infringement on the freedom of the press guaranteed by the Constitution and a classic act of intimidating journalists," adding that it is "a brazen attempt to chill the role of the press in monitoring the government's opaque operations."
Media organizations have called for the withdrawal of the subpoenas, labeling the move an infringement on press freedom.
The National Press Club (NPC) in the U.S. issued a statement criticizing the action, saying, "It is not standard law enforcement practice for federal agents to visit journalists' homes to deliver subpoenas," and described it as "an extraordinary attack on press freedom that strikes at the heart of the First Amendment."
In a statement, the U.S. Justice Department claimed that this was a normal law enforcement action targeting the leaker of classified information, not the journalists, and that while it respects the role of the press, the measure was taken to ensure compliance with the law.
Earlier this year, the Justice Department also attempted to issue subpoenas to reporters from The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and The Washington Post (WP), but withdrew them following strong legal responses from the news organizations.
(Photo: Getty Images)
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