Donald Trump has revoked security clearance for Joe Biden which means he can no longer attend daily intelligent briefings. Trump said the former president “can’t be trusted” and the move was in the “national interest”.
All former US presidents, as well as some senior government officials, are invited to the meetings as a courtesy but Trump has now signed off on a memo to remove over a dozen people from the list. As well as Biden and his whole family, former Vice President Kamala Harris and Hillary Clinton have also been cut.
Former Secretary of State Antony Blinken, former National Security Advisor Jacob Sullivan, and former Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco have also had their security clearances revoked. New York Attorney General Letitia James and the Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg – both of whom prosecuted Trump – are also on the list.
They will no longer be able to attend the President’s Daily Brief or have access to classified information. The named people will also lose access to some government buildings and secure facilities.
The memo, which is titled “Rescinding Security Clearances and Access to Classified Information from Specified Individuals” was signed off on Friday (March 21). Trump wrote: “I have determined that it is no longer in the national interest for the following individuals to access classified information.”
The US President claims that Biden did the same to him when he was in office in 2012. This reportedly marked the first time an ex-president had been barred from the briefings.
Last month, Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that Biden “set this precedent”. He claimed Biden “instructed the Intelligence Community (IC) to stop the 45th President of the United States (ME!) from accessing details on National Security, a courtesy provided to former Presidents”.
Biden said at the time: “What value is giving him an intelligence briefing? What impact does he have at all, other than the fact he might slip and say something?”
Trump also said that Biden “could not be trusted with sensitive information”. He claimed the 82-year-old had “poor memory” and cited an inquiry into the storage of classified files.
Trump said in the memo: “I hereby direct every executive department and agency head to take all additional action as necessary and consistent with existing law to revoke any active security clearances held by the aforementioned individuals and to immediately rescind their access to classified information.”
He added: “In the event that any of the named individuals received a security clearance by virtue of their employment with a private entity, the United States Government entity that granted the security clearance should inform the private entity that these individuals’ ability to access classified information has been revoked.”