FBI probes leak on Qatar jet security after Times report

Federal investigators asked several people who flew with President Trump on the Qatari-donated jet to turn over their phones after security concerns about the aircraft surfaced, widening a leak probe that now reaches into the White House and the president’s travel operation.

The aircraft, a $400 million jet the Trump administration retrofitted and upgraded after Qatar donated it to the United States, entered service last week as Air Force One. Trump’s choice on July 8 to return from the NATO summit in Turkey on an older Air Force One instead of the aircraft added to the sensitivity around the plane, especially after he said he wanted it shown to military personnel in Europe and referred to threats from Iran.

Before the first story ran, a senior FBI official contacted a reporter and editor to ask that the story be delayed and requested the paper’s sources. After the story was published, the Justice Department subpoenaed four New York Times journalists to testify before a federal grand jury in Manhattan. David McCraw, a lawyer for the Times, said the appearance of federal agents at reporters’ homes should shock the conscience of any American who believes in the Constitution and press freedom.

The leak inquiry quickly moved beyond the newsroom. White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and FBI Director Kash Patel personally helped orchestrate the investigation last week at the White House, and some officials were asked to hand over their phones on White House grounds. Patel spent about seven hours on Friday in a West Wing office next to Wiles as investigators sought information from officials who traveled with Trump or had a role in the trip.

Bruce D. Brown, president of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, said the subpoenas broke from longstanding Justice Department practice. The White House said leaks that jeopardize the safety of the president, his staff and the traveling press pool are dangerous and a national security threat, and said it would use all legal means to identify the leakers.