The Trump administration on Friday issued subpoenas to several reporters for The New York Times after the news outlet this week reported on security concerns involving President Trump’s new Qatar-donated Air Force One.
The subpoenas — which seek to compel the reporters to testify before a federal grand jury in Manhattan on Wednesday — were an extraordinary escalation in President Trump’s efforts to threaten and intimidate independent news organizations.
In some cases, the subpoenas were delivered by federal agents who showed up at the reporters’ homes.
The Times condemned the administration’s actions.
“The appearance of federal law enforcement agents on the doorstep of news reporters should shock the conscience of every American who believes in the Constitution and the freedom of the press it protects,” David McCraw, The Times’ senior news attorney, said in a statement Friday night.
“Our reporters report the facts and advance the American public’s right to know how their government is working and their taxpayer dollars are being spent,” wrote Mr. McCraw. “This brazen act must be seen as nothing more than an attempt to prevent the public from knowing what is happening in their country by scaring journalists from doing their jobs.”
The subpoenas provide few details, asking only that the reporters testify “with respect to an alleged violation of federal criminal law.” They were issued by Jay Clayton, the US attorney in Manhattan. Mr. Clayton, who heads one of the nation’s most prominent law enforcement agencies, was recently nominated by Mr. Trump to serve as Director of National Intelligence.
Representatives for the White House and the U.S. attorney in Manhattan did not immediately respond to inquiries Friday night.
The Times reporters who received subpoenas included Julian E. Barnes, Eric Lipton, Tyler Pager and Eric Schmitt, who reported Wednesday that Mr. Trump had left Turkey on the old Air Force One as a security measure at the behest of the Secret Service. On Thursday, The Times reported that the new Air Force One, a Qatar-donated Boeing 747-8, lacked some of the advanced safety features of the older plane, including anti-missile capabilities. Both articles cited sources who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive security issues.
Before Wednesday’s article was published, a senior official at the Federal Bureau of Investigation contacted The Times to ask that the article be withheld, calling it a matter of national security, according to a person familiar with the conversation. The FBI official spoke to a reporter and a senior editor in The Times’ Washington bureau; the official declined to explain the security issue when asked. (A spokesman for The Times, Charlie Stadtlander, confirmed the story.)
Mr. Trump has long been a harsh critic of the news media. But in his second term, he has moved aggressively to use the federal government’s vast powers in his efforts to attack the press.
Earlier this year, the Justice Department tried to compel testimony from reporters at The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post. The Justice Department withdrew the subpoenas after both news organizations fought back in sealed records.
Both Democratic and Republican administrations have launched leak investigations into the release of classified information. But subpoenas targeting reporters are not common, and First Amendment advocates say they can chill the work of news gathering.
In January, FBI agents took the rare step of searching the home of a Washington Post reporter, Hannah Natanson, who was part of an investigation into a government contractor’s handling of classified material. Agents seized phones, laptops and a smartwatch after executing a search warrant. Mrs. Natanson had spent months talking to government employees while reporting on the Trump administration’s efforts to shrink the federal workforce.
The Times is a party to several lawsuits involving Mr. Trump and his administration.
The president sued The Times last year, accusing it of defaming him, discrediting him and trying to undermine his 2024 candidacy.
In December, The Times sued the Ministry of Defense after imposing restrictions on journalists covering the military. The company sued again after the agency reduced reporters’ physical access to the Pentagon.
In May, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued The Times, accusing it of employment discrimination. On Friday, The Times filed a counterclaim, saying the lawsuit was an act of retaliation for its coverage of the Trump presidency and a violation of its First Amendment rights.
Benjamin Weiser contributed with reporting.
