Judge Rebuffs Trump Administration Demand for NYT Reporters' Phone Records
A federal judge rejected the Justice Department's demands for phone records from New York Times reporters who wrote about Air Force One security concerns.
The Department of Justice withdrew demands for phone records and grand jury testimony from New York Times reporters, following criticism from a federal judge. The reporters had written about security concerns related to the Air Force One jet that Qatar donated to former President Donald Trump.
The move represents a setback for the Trump administration's efforts to unmask journalists' confidential sources. U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian "grilled Justice Department lawyers for nearly an hour over their handling of the subpoenas" during a hearing on Thursday, The New York Times reported.
"Either we can quash the subpoenas, or you could withdraw the subpoenas," Subramanian reportedly told Sean Buckley, chief counsel for the U.S. attorney's office in New York's southern district.
The article, published in November 2020, discussed concerns that the presidential aircraft might be vulnerable to espionage or hacking while in operation.