Tag: US Constitution

Trump Threatens Freedom Of The Press In Leaks Crackdown

The following article by Tom Porter with Newsweek was posted on the National Memo website August 6, 2017:

Satirists have repeatedly drawn on the similarities between President Donald Trump and Middle Eastern and African dictators, for installing his family in senior advisory positions in the White House as much as his excessive self-regard and his respect for military tough men. Now critics can tick off another point on the autocrat checklist following Attorney General Jeff Sessions’s announcement Friday of a new crackdown on leakers that will include a Justice Department (DOJ) review of policies governing how the department deals with media outlets that publish leaked information.

Sessions and National Intelligence Director Dan Coats announced at a press conference that more DOJ and FBI resources would be directed towards pursuing leakers, particularly those who pass information on to the press and foreign officials. Continue reading “Trump Threatens Freedom Of The Press In Leaks Crackdown”

Sessions says Justice Department will boost investigations of leaks, may pursue reporters

The following article by Joseph Tanfani was posted on the Los Angeles Times website August 4, 2017:

Credit:  John Locher/AP

Under pressure by President Trump to stanch unauthorized disclosures of classified information to the media, Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions on Friday announced new efforts to find and prosecute those responsible for what he called an “unprecedented rise in leaks” and threatened a more aggressive stance toward journalists.

Sessions revealed no new cases, but said the Department of Justice has tripled the number of leak investigations this year. The pace is so heavy, he said, that the FBI has increased resources for leak cases and has created a new counterintelligence squad to manage them.

He also said he was reconsidering policies put in place during the Obama administration that limited the information prosecutors could demand from reporters. Continue reading “Sessions says Justice Department will boost investigations of leaks, may pursue reporters”