The New York Times on Monday notified the Justice Department that it is asking the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to unseal secret documents on the wiretapping of Carter Page, the former Trump campaign adviser at the center of the recently released memo from House Intelligence Committee Republicans.
In an article announcing the action, the Times noted that the motion is unusual and that no wiretapping application materials have been made public since 1978, when Congress first enacted the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.
But, the Times argues, Trump lowered the shield of secrecy for such materials when he declassified the Republican memo about Page last week. There is no longer a justification “for the Page warrant orders and application materials to be withheld in their entirety,” and “disclosure would serve the public interest,” the Times wrote.
Because of the “overwhelming public interest” in ensuring the accuracy of the released memo and knowing the basis for the Page surveillance orders, the Times said, the court should allow the publication of its orders and the proper materials with only limited redactions that are essential to ensuring the necessary information remains classified.
Last week, the Times also submitted a Freedom of Information Act request at the Justice Department asking the executive branch to disclose the same materials.