It’s not a surprise when Donald Trump lies; after all, it’s almost expected of him now. When he and his family are all caught in major lies that affect national security, however, we should be paying attention.
When it rains it pours.https://t.co/a2HRy4tuFR
— Rachel Maddow MSNBC (@maddow) April 3, 2019
Although Trump insisted repeatedly that he did not demand that his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, be given a security clearance after career officials denied him one, and daughter Ivanka Trump said in an interview that there was never a problem with his clearance, The Washington Post reports that a whistleblower has presented evidence that Kushner was very much given a clearance after having been denied.
Issues with Kushner’s security clearance have plagued the White House with scandal since the beginning of Trump’s administration. The question was raised again recently when a memo by then-Chief of Staff John Kelly was discovered raising concerns about Trump pushing clearances through for his son-in-law.
Now, a whistleblower has confirmed that Trump did so.
‘Kushner was identified only as “Senior White House Official 1” in committee documents released this week describing the testimony of Tricia Newbold, a whistleblower in the White House’s personnel security office who said she and another career employee determined that Kushner had too many “significant disqualifying factors” to receive a clearance.’
The FBI flagged Jared Kushner’s security clearance
The CIA flagged Jared Kushner’s security clearance
White House specialists flagged Jared Kushner’s security clearance
The Chief of Staff flagged Jared Kushner’s security clearanceJared Kushner got a security clearance anyways. pic.twitter.com/7hq5DvzPAK
— Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) April 2, 2019
Ivanka insisted there were never any issues with her husband’s clearance, and that was a lie, but the lie is even bigger than it appears. Kushner was not denied security clearance for any small issue. Instead, he was denied due to the most serious issues that could be raised.
‘Newbold told the House Oversight Committee that Kushner’s background investigation raised concerns about foreign influence, outside business interests and personal conduct, according to a document released by the committee.’
President Trump refused to answer a question about whether he authorized the security clearance for his son-in-law Jared Kushner pic.twitter.com/br3RubVIUV
— Josh Campbell (@joshscampbell) April 3, 2019
One of the most significant reasons these issues are of concern with Kushner is reports that one foreign government official, Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, bragged that they had Kushner “in my pocket.” It appears that bin Salman is not the only world leader to believe this of the U.S. president’s family member.
‘foreign officials had privately discussed ways to try to manipulate Kushner by taking advantage of his complex business arrangements, financial difficulties and lack of foreign policy experience.
‘Among the nations that discussed ways to influence Kushner were the United Arab Emirates, China, Israel and Mexico, current and former officials said.’
Featured image screenshot via YouTube
