Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) met with President Donald Trump Monday and asked him to consider revoking former CIA Director John Brennan’s security clearance. The Kentucky Senator took to Twitter and wrote, “Just got out of WH meeting with @RealDonald Trump. I restated to him what I have said in public: John Brennan and others [sic] partisans should have their security clearances revoked.”
Just got out of WH meeting with @realDonaldTrump. I restated to him what I have said in public: John Brennan and others partisans should have their security clearances revoked.
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) July 23, 2018
Prior to his meeting with the President, Rand Paul questioned on Twitter if Brennan was “monetizing” his clearance by divulging secrets to the “mainstream media.” White House spokesperson Sarah Sanders said during today’s press briefing that President Trump is seriously considering revoking Brennan’s privilege, along with other senior top intelligence officials from the Obama and Bush administration.
“Not only is the president looking to take away Brennan’s security clearance, he’s also looking into the clearances of (former FBI Director James) Comey, (former Director of National Intelligence James) Clapper, (former CIA Director Michael) Hayden, (former National Security Advisor Susan) Rice and (former FBI Deputy Director Andrew) McCabe,” Sanders told reporters.
.@PressSec Sarah Sanders: “Not only is the president looking to take away Brennan’s security clearance, he’s also looking into the clearances of Comey, Clapper, Hayden, Rice and McCabe.” pic.twitter.com/9sc7n68Lgr
— CSPAN (@cspan) July 23, 2018
Brennan, along with former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, is now media pundits for national cable news outlets. Brennan works for MSNBC and Clapper, who was accused in the House Intelligence Committee’s Russia report of leaking information to CNN, now works for that news cable outlet. Saraacarter.com was the first to report that Clapper was suspected of leaking information to CNN early last year. The leak was regarding the classified briefings given to then-President-elect Donald Trump and President Barack Obama on the salacious dossier claiming the Russians had compromising information on the president-elect. Government sources at the time noted the evidence of the leak was collected during the House Intelligence Committee’s Russia investigation. Shortly after he retired from government, Clapper was hired by CNN as a pundit.
Former Bush CIA Director Hayden, who has publicly spoken out against Trump and was highly criticized for comparing the Trump administration’s immigration policy to that of Nazi Germany, is also facing the possibility of having his security clearance revoked.
Is John Brennan monetizing his security clearance? Is John Brennan making millions of dollars divulging secrets to the mainstream media with his attacks on @realDonaldTrump ?
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) July 23, 2018
Paul isn’t the only one questioning Brennan’s and Clapper’s current employment and access to classified information. Former Assistant Secretary of Defense Mary Beth Long, who served under President George W. Bush, also chimed in on Twitter writing, “As a former Director, #Brennan has daily access to finished intelligence, a courtesy offered to all previous DNI & Directors. As paid media pundits, both he and #Clapper should forfeit that access immediately.” Long, who also spent her career in the CIA, noted that it is only a courtesy to allow the former senior government officials the access to their security clearances for what is known as “finished intelligence.”
Is John Brennan monetizing his security clearance? Is John Brennan making millions of dollars divulging secrets to the mainstream media with his attacks on @realDonaldTrump ?
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) July 23, 2018
Via SaraCarter
