Lisa Rubin Says Judge Elicited Admission That Todd Blanche Approved New York Times Subpoenas
Key Takeaways
- •The Justice Department withdrew subpoenas issued to New York Times reporters after a federal judge questioned their validity.
- •Judge Arun Subramanian cited regulations requiring prosecutors to pursue alternative sources before seeking information involving the news media.
- •Prosecutor Sean Buckley acknowledged in court that the required preliminary steps had not been completed, according to Lisa Rubin.
- •Rubin said Buckley disclosed that acting Attorney General Todd Blanche personally approved the subpoenas.
- •Blanche’s role drew attention because his confirmation remains under debate, with two votes described as still unresolved.
President Donald Trump's Justice Department was forced on Thursday to withdraw subpoenas issued to New York Times reporters after a confrontation with a federal judge in Washington, D.C.
Legal analyst Lisa Rubin told MS NOW's Katy Tur that an exchange during the hearing carried significant implications for acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, whose nomination has remained the subject of debate.
Rubin said U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian reminded prosecutors that federal regulations apply when the Department of Justice seeks subpoenas involving the news media, or third parties for information related to members of the news media. Under those rules, she said, the department must first take “all reasonable steps to obtain that information from another source.” Those media-subpoena rules are meant to place additional internal checks on efforts that could affect reporters’ newsgathering, including requiring high-level Justice Department authorization before prosecutors seek such records.
According to Rubin, prosecutor Sean Buckley acknowledged in court that those steps had not been taken.
Rubin said the judge then presented Buckley with a clear choice: “You either withdraw these subpoenas or I will quash them. At that point, Sean Buckley asked for an adjournment of the hearing.” Buckley then stepped away to make a call before the subpoenas were withdrawn, Rubin said. In that context, quashing the subpoenas would have meant the court invalidating them rather than allowing the demands for information to proceed.
Rubin added that the hearing produced another notable disclosure involving Blanche.
“The other thing that I think is important for our viewers to know is that subpoenas like this, by regulation, have to be authorized by the Attorney General of the United States. And indeed, Judge Subramanian [got] an admission from Mr. Buckley” that Todd Blanche personally approved the subpoenas, she said.
Rubin described that as “a stunning admission, given the ongoing debate about whether Todd Blanche is going to get confirmed. And as you and I have discussed on air, there are still two votes very much hanging in the balance with respect to Mr. Blanche's nomination.”
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZ85dgAc0zo&feature=youtu.be
