(cache) Democrats want to know why Jared Kushner still has security clearance

Democrats want to know why Jared Kushner still has security clearance

Wednesday Jun 21, 2017 · 1:06 PM PDT

2017/06/21 · 13:06

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 7: (AFP OUT) Jared Kushner, senior White House adviser, listens during a county sheriff listening session with U.S. President Donald Trump, not pictured, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on February 7, 2017 in Washington, DC. The Trump administration will return to court Tuesday to argue it has broad authority over national security and to demand reinstatement of a travel ban on seven Muslim-majority countries that stranded refugees and triggered protests. (Photo by Andrew Harrer - Pool/Getty Images) — Jared Kushner

Jared Kushner is at this moment trying to use his years of experience as a litigious slumlord to bring peace to the Middle East. But Democratic members of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform are interested in more than just why Trump’s son-in-law is so fond of suing his tenants when they complain. In a letter addressed to Reince Priebus, they want to know why Kushner still has security credentials.

We have serious concerns about whether the White House is properly safeguarding classified information, and we are writing to request information about the security clearances of former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, Senior Advisor to the President Jared Kushner, and other White House officials.

The majority of the letter is a catalog of things Kushner conveniently forgot to mention. Including …

Contacts with dozens of foreign officials ...

Phone Calls with Russian Ambassador …

Meeting at Trump Tower with General Flynn and Russian Ambassador …

Meeting with Russian Bank Under Sanctions …

Failure to Disclose Russian Contacts or Correct Public Record …

In addition to documenting each of these incidents, the letter also points out that Michael Flynn—who was along with Kushner on several of these escapades—also never had his clearance pulled, even when it was known that he’d definitely lied to Congress and supposedly lied to the White House.

It also points out that several of Trump’s surrogates have denied knowing the truth about Kushner. Which could be a bad thing.

We do not know who at the White House—other than General Flynn—knew about Mr. Kushner's multiple contacts with Russian officials before they became public. It would be gravely concerning if Mr. Spicer, Ms. Hicks, Ms. Sanders, or President Trump were aware of Mr. Kushner's Russian contacts when they made their misleading statements. It would also be concerning if Mr. Kushner concealed his Russian contacts from them and allowed them to continue making misleading and inaccurate public statements while also omitting these contacts from his security clearance application.

So, either Kushner lied to the whole Trump team and kept his buddy time with Flynn a secret, or everyone else knew, and they lied to the public. There doesn’t seem to be an option C.

The letter ends with a request for documents that includes:

all documents and communications referring or relating to General Flynn's clearance and suspension;

all documents and communications referring or relating to Mr. Kushner's clearance and potential suspension, including his SF-86 application for a security clearance and any amendments or updates to it, as well as any documents related to his interview by security clearance investigators;

all documents and communications referring or relating to any White House official who resigned or was terminated due to a criminal investigation, failure or inability to obtain a security clearance application, or any other reason;

However, since Trump has already ordered executive branch agencies to ignore requests from Democrats, it’s not likely that his chief of staff will feel compelled to make any reply.

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