The New York Times has warned that the Trump administration’s delivering subpoenas to several reporters’ homes demanding they appear before a federal grand jury over the newspaper’s reporting on alleged security concerns involving President Donald Trump’s new Air Force One plane is “nothing more than an attempt to prevent the public from knowing what is happening in their country by intimidating journalists from doing their jobs”.
The New York Times had published stories, citing unnamed sources, alleging that the Qatari-gifted plane being used by Trump was not secure enough, and that the Secret Service urged him to switch planes on his way home from a Nato summit in Turkey.
While speaking to media about classified information is a crime, the US Constitution protects the freedom of the press to report information in the public interest.
The newspaper reported that federal agents delivered subpoenas to reporters’ homes demanding they appear before a federal grand jury investigating a potential crime.
The subpoenas – a legal requirement from a court or government agency that compels a person to appear or produce records or evidence – say the reporters’ testimony is required “in regard to an alleged violation of federal criminal law”.
The summonses require the reporters to appear before a grand jury in Manhattan on Wednesday, the newspaper said. A grand jury is composed of members of the public and convened by the US government to examine evidence and decide if there is enough to charge a person or persons with a crime.
David McCraw, the Times‘s top newsroom lawyer, called the summoning of the journalists a “brazen act” and “nothing more than an attempt to prevent the public from knowing what is happening in their country by intimidating journalists from doing their jobs”.
The US Department of Justice said in a statement to the BBC: “We value and appreciate the important role that the press plays in this country, but DOJ also plays an important role to make sure that the people entrusted with our nation’s secrets do what they’re supposed to do with that information, which means not sharing classified information.”
In a statement to Reuters, a Department of Justice spokesperson did not confirm or deny the subpoenas but said the administration was not targeting reporters but was concerned about people leaking classified information. The White House referred all questions to the Justice Department.
McCraw argued: “Our journalists report the facts and advance the American public’s right to know how their government is operating and [how] their taxpayer dollars are being used.”
On Wednesday, the New York Times reported that while Trump flew to the Nato summit in Turkey on the new Air Force One, he left the summit on an older plane on the advice of the Secret Service. The next day, the newspaper reported that security officials were concerned the newer plane did not have advanced security features, including anti-missile capabilities.
Trump said on Wednesday that he would use an older Air Force One “for old time’s sake” to fly from Ankara to the Royal Air Force base at Mildenhall in Britain while the new plane stopped at the same base so US service members stationed there could tour the aircraft.
Sources: BBC, Reuters
[Image: by LightFieldStudios]