Sessions Won’t Make ‘Blanket Commitment’ On Not Jailing Journalists

Attorney General Jeff Sessions testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2017. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Attorney General Jeff Sessions testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2017. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
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Attorney General Jeff Sessions would not give a straight answer to Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s (D-MN) request to confirm that he will not put reporters in jail “for doing their jobs.”

“I don’t know if I can make a blanket commitment to that effect,” Sessions said during his hearing in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

“But I would say this, we have not taken any aggressive action against the media at this point,” he continued. “We have matters that involve the most serious national security issues that put our country at risk, and we will utilize the authorities that we have legally and constitutionally if we have to.”

“We always try to find an alternative way, as you probably know, Senator Klobuchar, to directly confronting media persons,” he added. “But that is not a total blanket protection.”

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