THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION IS COMING FOR THE TRUTH TELLERS
By Thom Hartmann
In the dark corners of America’ s halls of power, something sinister is unfolding. Attorney General Pam Bondi has launched an assault on one of the most sacred pillars of our democracy: the freedom of the press. And make no mistake, this isn’ t just another policy change. It’ s a deliberate strategy straight from the dictator’ s playbook.
The last week of April Bondi quietly issued a memo rescinding vital protections for journalists that had prevented the government from forcing reporters to reveal their sources or surrender their notes during leak investigations. This wasn’ t just any memo; it was a declaration of war against the very foundation of press freedom in America.
Bondi’ s memo, released late on a Friday afternoon( a classic timing choice to minimize media attention), rescinded policies that had limited when and how Justice Department attorneys could pursue records or testimony from journalists, including in cases involving the unauthorized disclosure of government secrets to the press. The implications are chilling and immediate.
The Justice Department will now allow federal investigators to pursue communications from media outlets in government leak investigations, marking a complete reversal of Biden-era( and previous administrations’) policies that protected journalists from becoming targets of government intimidation.