On Friday, President Donald Trump says he wants Attorney General Jeff Sessions to investigate the identity of the author of an anonymous op-ed that was published in the New York Times on Wednesday.

“I think it is national security. I would say Jeff should be investigating who the author of that piece is because I really believe it is national security,” Trump told reporters traveling with him Friday on Air Force One. “We’re going to take a look at what he had, what he gave, what he’s talking about, also where he is right now,” Trump added.

The president said the anonymous essay presents a national security concern because this person still is in the government and shouldn’t be attending high-level meetings.

“Suppose I have a high level national security and he has got a clearance — we talk about clearances a lot recently — and he goes into a high-level meeting concerning China or Russia or North Korea or something and this guy goes in,” Trump said. “I don’t want him in those meetings.”

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Asked if the government also would take legal action against the New York Times for publishing the article, he responded that his administration is “looking at that right now.”

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In the two days after publication, Trump has lashed out at the anonymous author, as well as the newspaper for publishing the piece.

The author, who was only described as a “senior official in the Trump administration,” issued scathing criticism of the president. They claimed to be part of a larger group of people who are leading a “quiet resistance” within the administration.

More than two dozen cabinet, cabinet-level and other top officials in the Trump Administration rushed to deny they were behind the editorial on Thursday.

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