Washington, D.C., July 13, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Senate Judiciary Committee members to hold acting Attorney General Todd Blanche accountable by asking about anti-press actions at the Department of Justice during his confirmation hearings this week.
On July 10, the Department of Justice (DOJ)
issued
federal grand jury subpoenas for New York Times reporters who wrote about security concerns in connection with President Trump’s new Qatari-donated Air Force One. The subpoenas seek to compel the journalists to testify on July 15, the same day as Blanche’s first confirmation hearing. United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York Jay Clayton issued the subpoenas and faces a Senate confirmation hearing on Wednesday for his nomination to serve as director of national intelligence.
“The Justice Department has weaponized its authorities to silence journalists for reporting on the administration,” said José Zamora, CPJ’s regional director for the Americas. “Acting AG Blanche must answer for his role in these press freedom violations and reaffirm the Department’s commitment to uphold the rule of law and First Amendment protections.”
Blanche has served as acting attorney general since April and was confirmed as deputy attorney general in March 2025. Under Blanche’s tenure in the second Trump administration, CPJ has documented a broad pattern of unprecedented retaliation and intimidation of journalists from the DOJ. Such actions included rescinding policies for
source protection
, issuing previous
grand jury subpoenas
to reporters for their reporting on the Iran war,
searching
a journalist’s home and seizing devices,
arresting
and charging journalists with federal felonies, and
restricting press access
to immigration courts.
Despite repeated calls from CPJ and more press freedom advocates, the DOJ has failed to launch criminal investigations to pursue justice and accountability in incidents involving the targeting of
… [more]
