The Trump administration's Justice Department plans to withdraw subpoenas it had issued to journalists at the New York Times, stepping back from a legal battle that drew sharp criticism from press freedom advocates and a federal judge.
A judge had questioned the government's rationale for seeking records from Times reporters, signaling skepticism about the subpoenas' validity. The Times characterized the legal action as an intimidation tactic aimed at chilling investigative reporting.
The move marks a reversal for an administration that has often tangled with major media outlets over coverage of its policies and personnel. The subpoenas represented one of the more aggressive legal maneuvers the Justice Department had taken against the press in recent months.
Federal prosecutors had sought to compel testimony and documents from Times journalists, but the specifics of what information they were pursuing remain under wraps. The newspaper fought the subpoenas in court, arguing they violated press protections and amounted to an attempt to identify confidential sources and reporting methods.
The withdrawal eliminates a potential constitutional showdown over First Amendment protections for the press. Courts have historically protected journalists from such compulsory disclosure, though the legal landscape has shifted depending on administrations' appetites for such fights.
The decision also avoids further judicial scrutiny of the government's justification for the subpoenas, which a federal judge had already begun examining critically. That judicial skepticism likely accelerated the administration's decision to retreat.
Author Sarah Mitchell: "The Justice Department's retreat is a win for press freedom, but it shouldn't require a judge's public skepticism to stop this kind of intimidation in the first place."
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