Senators Grill Justice Dept. Officials on New York Times Subpoenas

Democratic senators grilled senior Justice Department officials on Wednesday about why the agency issued subpoenas last week to several New York Times journalists, expressing concern that the Trump administration was threatening the freedom of the press.The subpoenas, which in some cases were delivered by federal agents who showed up at reporters’ homes, sought to compel the journalists to testify before a federal grand jury in Manhattan.The reporters had recently published articles disclosing security concerns about President Trump’s new Qatari-donated Air Force One jet.The coverage enraged Mr.

Trump, and the White House quickly directed Kash Patel, the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, to oversee a leak investigation.Shortly after the subpoenas were issued, The Times called them a “brazen” effort to intimidate its journalists from freely reporting on the actions of the federal government.On Wednesday, Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general, whom Mr.Trump has nominated to lead the Justice Department, said at his Senate confirmation hearing that he had authorized the subpoenas.“We’re not targeting reporters — they’re material witnesses,” he said in response to questions from Senator Peter Welch, Democrat of Vermont.

“Just like a reporter would be a material witness to a car crash.”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe....