Justice Department investigators seized NY Times reporter's phone and email records in search for leaks: report

A New York Times reporter who had a relationship with a senior congressional staffer in the Senate Intelligence Committee had her email and phone records secretly seized, the Times reports.

Law enforcement officials took several years of Ali Watkins' records in a hunt for the person who leaked classified information. President Obama had done similar things, but it was the first example of it happening under President Trump.

In February, a prosecutor told Watkins that the Justice Department had years of customer records and subscriber information, including from Google and Verizon, for her email accounts and a phone number. Investigators did not then get the content of the messages themselves.

Watkins had a relationship with James A. Wolfe, the Senate Intelligence Committee’s retired director of security.

She says he was not a source while she was at the Times or other places she has worked: "Mr. Wolfe was not a source of information for Ms. Watkins during their relationship, she said, adding that she told editors at Buzzfeed News and Politico about it and continued to cover national security, including the committee’s work."