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AP CEO's letter to Eric Holder
Associated Press ^ | 5/13/13 | Gary B. Pruit

Posted on 05/13/2013 5:24:46 PM PDT by Nachum

Edited on 05/13/2013 5:40:13 PM PDT by Admin Moderator. [history]

May 13, 2013
Attorney General Eric Holder
Department of Justice Washington, D . C .

Dear General Holder :

I am writing to object in the strongest possible terms to a massive and unprecedented intrusion by the Department of Justice into the newsgathering activities of The Associated Press.

Last Friday afternoon, AP General Counsel Laura Malone received a letter from the office of United States Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. advisin g that, at some unidentified time earlier this year, the Department obtained telephone toll records for more than 20 separate telephone lines assigned to the AP and its journalists. The records that were secretly obtained cover a full two month period in early 2012 and, at least as described in Mr. Machen’s letter, include all such records for, among other phone lines, an AP general phone number in New York City as well as AP bureaus in New York City, Washington, D.C., Hartford, Connecticut, and at the House of Representatives. This action was taken without advance notice to AP or to any of the affected journalists, and even after the fact no notice has been sent to individual journalists whose home phones and cell phone records were seized by the Department.

There can be no possible justification for such an overbroad collection of the telephone communications of The Associated Press and its reporters. These records potentially reveal communications with confidential sources across all of the newsgathering activities undertaken by the AP during a two month period, provide a road map to AP’s newsgathering operations, and disclose information about AP’s activities and operations that the government has no conceivable right to know.

That the Department underto ok this unprecedented step without providing any notice to the AP, and without taking any steps to narrow the scope of its subpoenas to matters actually relevant to an ongoing investigation, is particularly troubling.

The sheer volume of records obtained, most of which can have no plausible connection to any ongoing investigation, indicates, at a minimum, that this effort did not comply with 28 C.F.R. §50.10 and should therefore never have been undertaken in the first place. The regulations require that, i n all cases and without exception, a subpoena for a reporter’s telephone toll records must be “as narrowly drawn as possible.’’ This plainly did not happen.

We regard this action by the Department of Justice as a serious interference with AP’s constitutional rights to gather and report the news. While we evaluate our options we urgently request that you immediately return to the AP the telephone toll records that the Department subpoenaed and destroy all copies. At a minimum, we request that you take steps to segregate these records and prohibit any reference to them pending further discussion and, if it proves necessary, guidance from appropriate judicial authorities. We also ask for an immediate explanation as to why this extraordinary action w as taken, and a description of the steps the Department will take to mitigate its impact on AP and its reporters.

Given the gravity of this situation, I look forward to your prompt response.

Sincerely,

Gary Pruitt


TOPICS: Breaking News; Constitution/Conservatism; Crime/Corruption; Government
KEYWORDS: alinskygovernment; ap; ap4obama; apletter; apphonerecords; assininepress; associatedpress; bho44; bhodoj; bhofascism; cep; communism; corruption; criminalgovernment; democratmedia; democrats; doj; dojisajoke; dojphonescandal; eric; govtabuse; holder; liberaljournalists; liberalmedia; media4obama; msm; msm4obama; obama; obamamedia; obamavoters; obamedia; phonerecords; pruitt; rapeofliberty; specialprosecutor; surveillancestate; tyranny; undybomber; usscole; waronliberty
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To: Nachum
why do i doubt they'd be so worked up if it was FOX that got monitored...
21 posted on 05/13/2013 5:35:49 PM PDT by Chode (Stand UP and Be Counted, or line up and be numbered - *DTOM* -ww- NO Pity for the LAZY)
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To: Hot Tabasco

I guess you didn’t look at the original. A .pdf file. Definitely not the easiest to cut and paste. Perhaps you can do better?

Give Nachum a break.


22 posted on 05/13/2013 5:35:51 PM PDT by upchuck (To the faceless, jack-booted government bureaucrat who just scanned this post: SCREW YOU!)
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To: Nachum

Welcome to Obama’s surveillance state. Enjoy.


23 posted on 05/13/2013 5:36:46 PM PDT by Rapscallion (Obama - Is being YELLOW a high crime?)
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To: Nachum

The AP helped make that bed...


24 posted on 05/13/2013 5:37:21 PM PDT by Smokin' Joe (How often God must weep at humans' folly. Stand fast. God knows what He is doing)
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To: Hotlanta Mike

Looks like some “MOMMENTUM” is helping the good guys. Bo & Co. can’t play defense and have already used all their offense.


25 posted on 05/13/2013 5:37:37 PM PDT by DrDude (Governor of the 57th State)
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To: JPG

Who own’s Eric Cartman eating Popcorn from South Park caption this going be huge LOL!


26 posted on 05/13/2013 5:37:59 PM PDT by SevenofNine (We are Freepers, all your media bases belong to us ,resistance is futile)
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To: Hot Tabasco

Clicking the link is a pretty trivial exercise and has the better editing of the A(dministration)P(ress).


27 posted on 05/13/2013 5:38:09 PM PDT by Paladin2
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To: Nachum

Here, here, AP - just put some ice on it. You’ll still love him in the morning and we all know it.


28 posted on 05/13/2013 5:38:37 PM PDT by Lake Living
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To: upchuck

Not joining the fray, but if you save a .pdf file to your desktop, then you can cut and paste. Just trying to be helpful.


29 posted on 05/13/2013 5:38:53 PM PDT by EEGator
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To: upchuck

Took me 32 seconds to cut, paste and format to Notepad.


30 posted on 05/13/2013 5:39:07 PM PDT by Revolting cat! (Bad things are wrong! Ice cream is delicious!)
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To: Nachum

Maybe the AP can run some guns (and better yet ammo) to my caches.


31 posted on 05/13/2013 5:40:14 PM PDT by Paladin2
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To: Nachum
LMBO!
Holder had to chuckle when he read that letter, fully understanding that it ended with a (wink wink).

AP led the charge to install the Ubama regime. AP did absolutley nothing to vet candidate Ubama and has done nothing in the past 10 years to find out anything about the African communist - - who he is, where he came from.

Meanwhile...

Associated Press Devotes 11 Reporters to "Fact Check" Sarah Palin Book

FU, Pruit and your "Associated Press".

32 posted on 05/13/2013 5:41:32 PM PDT by Lancey Howard
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To: Nachum
Holder will claim "National Security" issues as the reason, and deny Political and other reasons (such as forcing Reporting to toe the White-Hut talking points lines, etc.).

There is a Fascist Dictatorship in charge of this once-great country, and NO ONE is going to do ANYTHING about it....it's done.

33 posted on 05/13/2013 5:42:19 PM PDT by traditional1 (Amerika.....Providing public housing for the Mulatto Messiah)
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To: Nachum

May 13, 2013
Attorney General Eric Holder
Department of Justice
Washington, D.C.

Dear General Holder:
I am writing to object in the strongest possible terms to a massive and unprecedented intrusion by the Department of Justice into the newsgathering activities of The Associated Press.

Last Friday afternoon, AP General Counsel Laura Malone received a letter from the office of United States Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. advising that, at some unidentified time earlier this year, the Department obtained telephone toll records for more than 20 separate
telephone lines assigned to the AP and its journalists. The records that were secretly obtained cover a full two-month period in early 2012 and, at least as described in Mr. Machen’s letter, include all such records for, among other phone lines, an AP general
phone number in New York City as well as AP bureaus in New York City, Washington, D.C., Hartford, Connecticut, and at the House of Representatives. This action was taken without advance notice to AP or to any of the affected journalists, and even after the fact no notice
has been sent to individual journalists whose home phones and cell phone records were seized by the Department.

There can be no possible justification for such an overbroad collection of the telephone communications of The Associated Press and its reporters. These records potentially reveal communications with confidential sources across all of the newsgathering activities
undertaken by the AP during a two-month period, provide a road map to AP’s newsgathering operations, and disclose information about AP’s activities and operations that the government has no conceivable right to know.

That the Department undertook this unprecedented step without providing any notice to the AP, and without taking any steps to narrow the scope of its subpoenas to matters actually relevant to an ongoing investigation, is particularly troubling. The sheer volume of records obtained, most of which can have no plausible connection to any ongoing investigation, indicates, at a minimum, that this effort did not comply with 28 C.F.R. §50.10 and should therefore never have been undertaken in the first place. The regulations require that, in all cases and without exception, a subpoena for a reporter’s telephone toll records must be “as narrowly drawn as possible.’’ This plainly did not happen.

We regard this action by the Department of Justice as a serious interference with AP’s constitutional rights to gather and report the news. While we evaluate our options we urgently request that you immediately return to the AP the telephone toll records that the Department subpoenaed and destroy all copies. At a minimum, we request that you take steps to segregate these records and prohibit any reference to them pending further discussion and, if it proves necessary, guidance from appropriate judicial authorities. We also ask for an immediate explanation as to why this extraordinary action was taken, and a description of the steps the Department will take to mitigate its impact on AP and its reporters.

Given the gravity of this situation, I look forward to your prompt response.

Sincerely,
Gary Pruitt


34 posted on 05/13/2013 5:43:18 PM PDT by Repeal The 17th (We have met the enemy and he is us.)
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To: upchuck
Ben Ghazi WAS a long time ago:


35 posted on 05/13/2013 5:43:33 PM PDT by Paladin2
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To: goodnesswins
say, isnt this JACKWAGON HOLDER ALREADY under a Contempt of Congress citation?? What happened with THAT? What is the enforcement mechanism? Why don't they haul him up under sworn testimony again, and vote another Contempt Charge if he dodges......

36 posted on 05/13/2013 5:44:28 PM PDT by AmericanInTokyo (All statist/dictatorial/commie leaders worldwide should be hunted down, beaten, & hung by the masses)
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To: Nachum
Last Friday afternoon, AP General Counsel Laura Malone received a letter from the office of United States Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. advising that, at some unidentified time earlier this year, the Department obtained telephone toll records for more than 20 separate telephone lines assigned to the AP and its journalists.

Does anyone find it strange that a DOJ Attorney wrote the AP to tell them they were spied on? Why would DOJ do that? Was there a letter from the AP to DOJ requesting this information? Something smells about this story.

37 posted on 05/13/2013 5:45:39 PM PDT by trubolotta
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To: Nachum

This sentence tells you how much they are in bed with each other.
“”This action was taken without advance notice to AP or to any of the affected journalists””


38 posted on 05/13/2013 5:46:33 PM PDT by US_MilitaryRules (Tastes like Heaven, Burns like Hell! Mmmmmm. What is it?)
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To: Hot Tabasco

Are you always a jerk?


39 posted on 05/13/2013 5:47:53 PM PDT by Red in Blue PA (When Injustice becomes Law, Resistance Becomes Duty.-Thomas Jefferson)
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To: Nachum

LOL, the AP got the clown elected and re-elected and this is how he repays them!
There has been an avalanche of bad press for the Muslim in chief today, I wonder if Hillary is behind it?
*snicker*


40 posted on 05/13/2013 5:48:01 PM PDT by cardinal4
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