Carlos Bastarache: jared-kushner-security-clearance-downgrade-jpg.jpeg

Tuesday, 27 February 2018

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While his ongoing financial troubles had already caught the attention of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and officials combing through his repeatedly-updated disclosure forms, Jared Kushner’s troubles are far from over. Or, at least that’s what a new report out at Politico is suggesting, for President Trump’s son-in-law turned senior advisor had his security clearance downgraded significantly on Friday. Along with several other White House aides, Kushner’s demotion in access is seen as a response to the growing Rob Porter scandal, which revealed the lack of discretion used to clear the staff secretary and others.

According to Politico, Kushner and his fellow White House staffers working with interim clearance can now no longer gain unfettered access to sensitive compartmentalized information, or SCI:

All White House aides working on the highest-level interim clearances — at the Top Secret/SCI-level — were informed in a memo sent Friday that their clearances would be downgraded to the Secret level, according to three people with knowledge of the situation.

As CNN explains it, this means that Kushner and other “[a]ides who previously operated on ‘top secret’ interim clearances saw their access changed to ‘secret,’ a classification for less sensitive material.” Last Friday, despite his legal ability to grant his son-in-law permanent clearance, the president told reporters he “will let General Kelly make that decision.” That same day, the memo — which was not signed by the chief of staff — declared that Kushner and several other staffers would have their security clearances downgraded.

The White House did not respond to Politico’s request for comment. Press Secretary Sarah Sanders also refused to comment on the nature of Kushner’s clearance, but she did say that “he’s a valued member of the team and he will continue to do the important work that he’s been doing since he’s started in the administration.” As for the 37-year-old adviser’s personal attorney, Abbe Lowell, he insisted that his client “has done more than what is expected of him in this process.”

(Via Politico and CNN)