Now confirmed as DNI, Jay Clayton is threat to press freedom
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
New York, July 28, 2026 — U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton, President Donald Trump’s nominee for director of national intelligence, was confirmed in the role today.
Not even three weeks ago, in his former position as the Department of Justice’s U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, Clayton signed the now-withdrawn subpoenas seeking to force several New York Times reporters to reveal confidential sources, after they reported that the new Air Force One gifted to Trump by Qatar was deemed unsafe to fly the president.
Clayton then appears to have lied to or misled Congress about the subpoenas, raising serious questions about his fitness for office.
The following statement can be attributed to FPF Executive Director Trevor Timm:
“It’s crystal clear that Clayton abused his subpoena power to violate the press freedom rights of several reporters, in direct contradiction of the DOJ’s own rules and established law. If he’s willing to sign off on a violation of DOJ’s policies at Donald Trump’s request, what will he do now that he’s in charge of the intelligence community’s incredibly powerful surveillance apparatus?“With Clayton now officially in office, it’s more important than ever for Congress to pass a federal shield law like the PRESS Act to protect journalists from these kinds of legal abuses and prevent episodes like this from ever happening again.”
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