Trump threatens ex-officials’ security clearances
WASHINGTON: The White House on Monday threatened to strike back at critics of President Donald Trump’s contacts with Russia by revoking the security clearances of six former US officials, drawing accusations that he was abusing his power and aiming to stifle dissent.
Trump has targeted the former intelligence and law enforcement officials, White House spokesman Sarah Sanders said, because they have “politicised and in some cases monetised their public service and security clearances, making baseless accusations of improper contact with Russia or being influenced by Russia”.
Among them is John Brennan, who headed the CIA under Trump’s predecessor Barack Obama and was one of the most vocal critics of Trump’s performance at his summit last week with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki.
After Trump gave credence to Putin’s denial of meddling in the 2016 US election despite findings by the American intelligence community, Brennan called the president’s remarks “nothing short of treasonous”.
Trump’s threat against Brennan and former US officials James Comey, James Clapper, Michael Hayden, Susan Rice and Andrew McCabe represented an extraordinary politicisation of the US government’s security clearance process. Critics called it petty and unprecedented. “An enemies list is ugly, undemocratic and un-American. Is there no length Trump will not go to stifle opposition?” asked US representative Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee.
“This is what totalitarianism looks like,” Democratic senator Mazie Hirono wrote on Twitter.
Sanders, who said Trump is “exploring the mechanisms” to remove the security clearances, made reference to Brennan’s treason comment in explaining the president’s threat.
Asked if Trump was punishing the former officials because of their criticism, Sanders said: “No, I think you are creating your own story there.”
Many ex-officials retain security clearances after leaving government service because they continue to advise their former agencies or because it is a condition of employment as government contractors or consultants.
Stripping the clearances also would represent a public rebuke of the officials and sever a connection with the intelligence community. – Reuters