Overview
- Federal prosecutors in Manhattan issued subpoenas on Friday that ask four New York Times reporters to testify before a grand jury about stories on security shortcomings in the Qatari‑donated Air Force One.
- The subpoenas were issued by U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton and in some cases were delivered to reporters at their homes by federal agents, according to the Times.
- The reporting at issue said the newly retrofitted Boeing 747‑8 lacked some advanced defensive systems and that the Secret Service urged the president to use an older plane for part of his trip to Turkey.
- The Times said an FBI official asked the paper to delay publication for national‑security reasons before one story ran, and the White House denied the reports about security shortcomings.
- Press groups and the Times called the action a threat to source protection and press freedom, and the move follows earlier DOJ efforts this year to compel journalists' testimony that were later withdrawn.