(AFP) – Acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche on Tuesday defended the issuing of subpoenas to journalists as part of investigations into leaks of classified information. Blanche did not mention any publication by name in a post on X, but his remarks came one day after The Wall Street Journal reported that it had received grand jury subpoenas for records of its reporters involved in coverage of the war against Iran.
“Prosecuting leakers who share our nation’s secrets with reporters, in turn risking our national security and the lives of our soldiers, is a priority for this administration,” Blanche said. “Any witness, whether a reporter or otherwise, who has information about these criminals should not be surprised if they receive a subpoena about the illegal leaking of classified material,” he added.
President Donald Trump — also without mentioning any specific media outlet — lashed out on Tuesday at war coverage in a post on Truth Social. “When the Fake News says that the Iranian enemy is doing well, Militarily, against us, it’s virtual TREASON in that it is such a false, and even preposterous, statement,” Trump said. “They are aiding and abetting the enemy! All it does is give Iran false hope when none should exist,” he said. “These are American cowards that are rooting against our Country.”
The Justice Department last year rescinded a Biden-era policy aimed at protecting journalists from being forced to reveal their sources and strictly limiting the use of subpoenas. For years, Trump has had an acrimonious relationship with large swathes of the US media, regularly deriding certain outlets as “fake news” and filing numerous lawsuits.
According to the Journal, the Justice Department launched an “aggressive push” to pursue media leaks after Trump complained to Blanche, his former personal lawyer, about reporting on the Iran war. The newspaper said Trump gave a stack of news articles to Blanche that he thought threatened national security, with a sticky note attached that read “treason.”
The Journal quoted Ashok Sinha, the chief communications officer of Dow Jones, which publishes the newspaper, as saying the subpoenas “represent an attack on constitutionally protected newsgathering.” “We will vigorously oppose this effort to stifle and intimidate essential reporting,” Sinha said.
In January, FBI agents, as part of a classified leak probe, raided the home of a Washington Post reporter and seized her electronic devices in what the Committee to Protect Journalists called a “highly unusual move.”
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