The Department of Justice has subpoenaed New York Times journalists after they reported on security concerns involving the new Air Force One, a dramatic escalation of President Donald Trump’s campaign against the media.
Press Freedom Concerns
The subpoenas seek to force the reporters to testify before a federal grand jury in Manhattan next week, the Times said, adding that federal agents delivered some subpoenas to the reporters at their homes. The journalists subpoenaed included Julian E. Barnes, Eric Lipton, Tyler Pager, and Eric Schmitt.
The story began when the Times reported that the new Air Force One, a gift from Qatar that the administration spent $400 million to retrofit and upgrade, lacked certain sophisticated security and countermeasure systems. The president flew the new Air Force One to Turkey during a recent visit but departed on one of the older-model Air Force One jets for Mildenhall, a Royal Air Force base in Suffolk, England.
Trump denied any security concerns, posting on social media that the stop in Mildenhall was so that service members there could view the new jet. However, the Times, citing anonymous sources, reported that the switch had come at the urging of the Secret Service and that the newer plane lacked some of the advanced security features of the older aircraft, including antimissile capabilities.
Constitutional Questions
The subpoenas have raised concerns about press freedom and the First Amendment. David McCraw, a lawyer for the Times, said, “The appearance of federal law enforcement agents on the doorstep of news reporters should shock the conscience of any American who believes in the Constitution and the press freedom it protects.”
Bruce D. Brown, president of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, said Trump’s “war on the press is looking for another victim.” He added that the subpoenas “break from longstanding Justice Department practice to protect the public interest and press independence by requiring prosecutors to only seek information from reporters as a last resort when all other avenues have been exhausted.”
Original reporting: NBC10 Boston — read the source article.
