Can Sessions Turn Off the Faucet?

On the heels of the Washington Post’s release of leaked transcripts of the president’s calls with foreign leaders, Attorney General Jeff Sessions held a press conference last week announcing the Justice Department’s intent to aggressively pursue criminal charges against leakers plaguing the Donald Trump administration. The press conference appeared designed to please the president, who had previously called his attorney general “very weak” on the issue.

On this week’s first episode of The E.R., FP’s executive editor for news Sharon Weinberger is joined by Brad Moss, Trevor Timm, and FP’s Jenna McLaughlin to debate the flood of recent leaks and the administration’s response. The president says leaks “pose a grave threat to our national security,” a claim often made in high-profile leak investigations dating back to the release of the Pentagon Papers. But how often do such leaks pose a legitimate threat to American security? And when, if ever, is the leaking of classified information defensible?

Bradley P. Moss is an attorney specializing in litigation on matters relating to national security, federal employment and security clearance law, and the Freedom of Information Act/Privacy Act. He is also deputy executive director of the James Madison Project. Follow him on Twitter: @BradMossEsq.

Trevor Timm is a co-founder and the executive director of the Freedom of the Press Foundation. He is a journalist, activist, and lawyer who writes a weekly column for The Guardian on privacy, free speech, and national security. Follow him on Twitter: @trevortimm.

Jenna McLaughlin is FP’s intelligence reporter, focusing on the culture, dynamics, and events happening in the National Security Agency, the Central Intelligence Agency, and the other 15 members of the intelligence community. Follow her on Twitter: @JennaMC_Laugh.

Sharon Weinberger is FP’s executive editor for news. She is the author of The Imagineers of War: The Untold Story of DARPA, the Pentagon Agency That Changed the World. Follow her on Twitter: @weinbergersa.

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