Intelligence Figures Urge Biden To Cut Trump Off From Classified Briefings After He Leaves White House

Topline

 Modern-day U.S. presidents typically continue receiving classified intelligence briefings even after they leave the White House, but some top members of the intelligence community have called on President-elect Joe Biden to ensure President Donald Trump is barred from top-secret information after he leaves office this week.

Key Facts

House intelligence committee chairman Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) said President Donald Trump “can’t be trusted” with classified information as a matter of national security, during an appearance on CBS’ Face The Nation Sunday.

Schiff asserted that allies withheld intelligence from the U.S. because “they didn’t trust the president to safeguard that information and to protect the sources,” Schiff said.

Over the weekend, The Washington Post published an opinion column from Susan M. Gordon, who served as principal deputy director of national intelligence under Trump for two years, arguing Trump should be cut off from intelligence briefings once Biden is inaugurated.

“With this simple act — which is solely the new president’s prerogative — Joe Biden can mitigate one aspect of the potential national security risk posed by Donald Trump, private citizen,” she wrote, adding Trump’s future political aspirations and foreign business dealings could make him “unusually vulnerable to bad actors with ill intent.”

Biden’s incoming chief of staff Rob Klain said on CNN’s State Of The Union on Sunday that the president-elect’s administration will wait to hear recommendations from intelligence advisors before making a decision regarding Trump’s access to intelligence briefings after Trump leaves office.

Key Background

Trump has faced a landslide of criticism since his supporters rioted at the Capitol last week in a failed bid to prevent Congress from certifying Biden’s Electoral College victory. Trump denied any responsibility for the Capitol siege, after he encouraged his supporters to march on the Capitol shortly in a speech at a rally before the attack. On Wednesday, he became the first president in U.S. history to be impeached twice. Trump, with only days left until he leaves the White House, still refuses to acknowledge he lost the election. 

Further Reading

A former president Trump won’t ‘need to know.’ Cut off his intelligence. (Washington Post)

Trump Becomes First President Impeached Twice After Fomenting Capitol Riot (Forbes)

Trump Denies Responsibility For Capitol Mob As He Decries ‘Absolutely Ridiculous’ Impeachment (Forbes)


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