DOJ withdraws subpoenas issued to New York Times reporters in Trump Air Force One investigation

The Justice Department announced on Thursday that it is withdrawing subpoenas it had served on New York Times reporters in connection with an article about President Donald Trump's newly acquired Air Force One jet. The decision was made during a hearing before U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian in Manhattan, who warned prosecutor Sean Buck that the subpoenas would be set aside at the newspaper's request if the department did not retract them.

The subpoenas, issued on July 10 by Manhattan U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton—who has been nominated by Trump for the role of director of national intelligence—sought to compel the journalists to testify before a federal grand jury and included requests for phone and text records from third-party service providers. One subpoena reportedly targeted the phone records of a reporter's mother.

The Times had reported that the subpoening action followed its coverage of security concerns surrounding the new Qatari-donated Boeing 747-8, which lacks certain features of the older aircraft. The newspaper said the subpoenas were delivered to reporters' homes by federal agents.

"I am confident that the procedures that we have in place to protect the First Amendment and protect the freedom of the press, and not result in intimidation of journalists," said Jay Clayton during his Senate confirmation hearing.

The Department of Justice has not provided further comment, and the Times also declined to comment on the withdrawal. The episode highlights ongoing tensions between law-enforcement actions and press-freedom protections in high-profile investigations.