Trump's canceling of scores of security clearances is unprecedented

[BumRushDaShow]

This discussion thread was locked as off-topic by Omaha Steve (a host of the Latest Breaking News forum).

Source: NBC News

Jan. 25, 2025, 5:00 AM EST


President Donald Trump’s decision this week to revoke the security clearances of more than four dozen former intelligence officials is an unprecedented move, underscoring his willingness to break decades-old norms to please his supporters and punish his perceived opponents, legal experts say.

“This is the most politically saturated security action since the Oppenheimer case in the 1950s,” said Dan Meyer, a Washington-based lawyer who specializes in security clearance cases. Meyer was referring to Robert Oppenheimer, the physicist who oversaw the secret program to build the atomic bomb during World War II, who had his security clearance removed at the height of the McCarthy era over his prewar associations with the Communist Party.

Previous administrations have been accused of rescinding security clearances based on prejudice or political bias. Until 1995, for example, gay people often had their security clearances removed as officials claimed they could be subject to blackmail. During the Vietnam War, officials or contractors perceived to be opponents of the war had their clearances canceled, said Meyer, a partner at the law firm Tully Rinckey.

But no president has ever waded directly into the clearance process so publicly and on such a large scale as Trump did when he rescinded security clearances for 50 people in one step, Meyer and other legal experts said. Nor has a commander in chief chosen to publicly rescind security clearances for former CIA directors, deputy directors and other former top-ranking intelligence officials, many of whom worked for administrations from both parties.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/trumps-canceling-scores-security-clearances-unprecedented-rcna189245

[Southern_gent]

1. Forgive My Ignorance

Why would an former employee of the government need a security clearance?

[Phoenix61]

2. Their current job requires one like a lot of jobs in

the military support fields. Think Halliburton or SpaceX

[BumRushDaShow]

3. Many former and particularly retired feds

will often become contractors for the federal government as SMEs (Subject Matter Experts), sometimes as an individual but other times under a Prime or Subcontractor organization. The pay is usually higher than when they were civil servants but then if there is a government shutdown, most times they will not get back pay (unless their contract firm eats the loss).

[DBoon]

6. If your prior career is in the military or intelligence fields

and your clearance is revoked, you are effectively unemployable.

Getting a clearance is difficult and expensive, which is why federal contractors lap up newly retired folks with high level clearance.

The clearance is the important part, it is often a requirement of the contract. What you know is almost secondary.

[MotownPgh]

7. The old double dip!

And the clearance was paid for by us. Another scam perpetuated by our very lax government. Of course it doesn't matter now. Jared couldn't get clearance and trump does what he wants. Trump literally stole classified docs and no consequences

[BumRushDaShow]

10. Exactly

But that is how 45 rolls.

(I am a retired fed as FYI and although I didn't have any "Top Secret" clearance, my position had a Level 6 (high risk) "Sensitive" designation)

[ancianita]

14. Revoking those already cleared for intel while installing those who can't pass background checks is a double whammy.

It's one of the features of dictatorship that calls 'freedom' the removing of the "obstacles of government" in order to inject a dictator loyalist bureaucracy. His "dictator on day one" really meant "dictator for as long as I want."

[BumRushDaShow]

15. Well in the latter case that you mention

they skip over all the background checks, will override the civil servants, and go ahead and give clearance anyway. They did that the first term and have started doing it this 2nd term.

People were warned.

Many pummeled (and even today STILL pummel) Harris/Walz and their team for the amount of money it took to TRY to warn and now the doubters and nasty insulters, are apparently slinking away.

[ancianita]

19. I remember.

It's even more systematic this time than the first. Let the lazy doubters and insulters go off and think about what they still have to learn -- that the money it'll take to dig out of this 4 years will be much more than Harriz/Walz and their billionaire donors ever spent.

No one seems to recognize or respect the frugality of upfront investment. Except Biden and those who worked closely with him.

[BumRushDaShow]

20. ...

We are watching this play out in real-time.

[ancianita]

22. Then we need to take our cues from youth, who have everything to lose. We have to not treat what's playing out in real

time as a trainwreck spectacle, but instead use our energy to spread the map of reality beyond what I call the pre-totalitarian spectacle. Another future is possible, and the ungodly Heritage oligarchic network is still vastly outnumbered. If we don't win the war (only battles) we'll be held accountable by youth who will then only trust each other. Hopefully we'll be the reality winner such that the future won't come to that.

[BumRushDaShow]

23. As a practical matter

we have a serious need to rebuild and reform our state/county/municipal party infrastructure. There is a need for the younger generation to become involved in the party decisions AND for some of the "old heads" to STEP ASIDE (and that goes for right here in Philly with one Bob Brady, whose ass should have been LONG GONE years ago).

[ancianita]

24. Totally. Kick the old asses out, bring in the youth.

The old can advise from experience, but youth can take that under advisement while they drive the future.

I give monthly to Hogg's Leaders We Deserve, and these days, donate to all youth who run for state office.

Everyone here can do this:

https://leaderswedeserve.com

[aggiesal]

18. I had a TS with lots of caveats, including NATO, spending 2.5 years in Berlin ...

just after the walls came down.

[usaf-vet]

4. For continuity so information can be passed between generatons of experience. The average military careers 20 - 30 yrs.

.........Generations are 10s of years, not 100s.

Some who maintain top-secret clearance will eventually work for military technology companies like Raytheon.

Trump should expect some pushback from those hoping to move to those companies when their military service is over.
No clearance, no big-paying job.

[Irish_Dem]

27. Retired top security experts have a vast wealth of information

that may be critical in an emergency situation.

[bluestarone]

5. I'm just hoping that our friends that DO have security clearance KNOW

Who they can share it with. ( emergency type news)

[DENVERPOPS]

11. On the subject of Intelligence and clearances

to view the intelligence:

I would have to think that much of our intelligence is derived from other nations sharing their intelligence with our intelligence Agencies.

After the last Trump presidency, where Trump and his spawn were obviously gathering all of the world's intel and sharing/selling it to our enemies, and THEIR enemies, I can only guess that all the other countries providing us with their intelligence will CEASE in sharing any and all of their Intel with us.........Most notably, all the NATO countries.............The NATO countries will certainly be devastated by us not sharing our satellite intel and Military Arms with them, esp if Putin decides to start gobbling up those neighboring countries as Hitler did........

I think it is safe to assume that any and all the information gathered by us or our allies during their first Trump administration was mainlined directly, thru back channels, by Trump in his first administration for Russia/Putin's assistance in the first election. Any new information will result in this Trump Administration to once again Reward Putin for his help in sabotaging this recent election.

I would also guess that the reason the RepubliCONs are firing many of the heads of different intelligence gathering groups here in the U.S. is that Trump/Putin realized that the heads of U.S. Intelligence groups were filtering/censoring what intel Trump would receive, and therefore Trump not being able to divulge much intel to Putin or the Saudi's, or anyone else, who were/are buying it from Trump and Jared..........

[bluestarone]

13. Oh for sure that's true.

I just gotta hope the GOOD NATO people know they are safe with some of this intelligence with certain trust worthy Americans? kinda like the GREAT French underground.

[pfitz59]

8. As others have stated

Former fed employees retain knowledge that is valuable to current operatives. Whether technical, historical, regional all this info and expertise is available so long as the former employee keeps their clearance. Once the clearance is revoked, they can no longer be lawfully consulted for their invaluable expertise. What Trump has done is poison the roots of the tree of knowledge.

[Kid Berwyn]

9. Thanks, Putin.

[orangecrush]

12. Putin loves this

[aggiesal]

16. Instead of being transparent, Meirda47 is trying to make his administration as opaque as possible ...

That way he can hide all his grifting and he'll have his opaque loyalists covering up his crimes.
And since Congress is kissing every part of his fat @$$ inside & out, we can even consider an impeachment in the House much less conviction in the Senate.

We8in for a rough 4 years.
Just think everyday is on less day closer to getting this pendejo out of the White House.

[travelingthrulife]

17. So our Congress and judicial are just gonna let this King rule by fiat

[riversedge]

21. ...In an executive order issued hours after his inauguration on Monday, Trump stripped 49 former senior officials of the

Indeed--Trump is all about retaliation.



...........In an executive order issued hours after his inauguration on Monday, Trump stripped 49 former senior officials of their security clearances for signing a letter more than four years ago that Trump said showed “misleading and inappropriate political coordination” with Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign.

The former senior officials have repeatedly denied Trump's claim. The 2020 open letter, endorsed by former senior intelligence and national security officials, suggested Russia might have played a role in spreading allegations about Biden’s son Hunter as part of a wider effort to influence the outcome of the election................

[ancianita]

25. Can they file suit in federal courts that can rule that their job status has given them the right to retain

their clearance? Especially if the felon meets no real standard of evidence to prove their "political coordination"?

[underpants]

26. Read yesterday Fauci's was paid out of the CDC budget

It’s not like it was Secret Service or Marshalls. He stopped the department from doing it and it’s IN THEIR BUDGET.

[Evolve Dammit]

28. "Revenge Tour."

[Omaha Steve]

29. AFTER a review by forum hosts LOCKING

Analysis of an earlier LBN post from Monday https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143376521 Can be posted in GD.

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