WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has announced his plans to revoke the security clearances held by over 50 former intelligence officials, who, in a 2020 letter, suggested that the controversy surrounding Hunter Biden’s laptop had characteristics of a “Russian disinformation operation.”
This initiative signals Trump’s intention to retaliate against those he perceives as adversaries, and it adds to the growing friction between him and the intelligence community, which he has often criticized. The sweeping measure, disclosed through an executive order on Monday, could ignite legal challenges from the former officials aiming to retain their access to sensitive governmental information.
Dan Meyer, a Washington-based attorney specializing in security clearance matters, noted that while the president possesses considerable authority concerning security clearances, any deviation from established protocols might lead to judicial challenges from these officials. Meyer anticipated that such issues could evolve into a class-action lawsuit given the similar circumstances of the affected individuals.
The executive order specifically targets a total of 50 individuals, including the 49 remaining signatories of the controversial letter. The list features notable figures such as James Clapper, the former Director of National Intelligence under President Barack Obama, as well as former CIA Directors John Brennan and Leon Panetta. Additionally, John Bolton, who was ousted as Trump’s national security adviser and later published a contentious book, has also been named in this action. Recently, Trump also ended the Secret Service protection provided to Bolton, who has faced threats from Iran. Bolton expressed his disappointment but stated he was not surprised by the decision.
The order mandates the CIA to collaborate with the Director of National Intelligence’s office to initiate the revocation process. However, it remains uncertain how many of the former officials still possess security clearances. Mark Zaid, representing eight of the signatories, expressed his belief that few, if any, currently hold such clearances and suggested that the revocation serves primarily as a symbolic message to Trump’s right-wing supporters.
Zaid indicated he would pursue legal action on behalf of any clients interested in contesting this order. According to him, nothing in Trump’s action indicates that it exists outside the frameworks of existing laws and policies that demand due process for those deemed ineligible for a security clearance. Zaid referred to a Clinton-era executive order that requires those who are found ineligible to receive a thorough explanation regarding the decision.
The contentious issue originated from an October 2020 letter emphasizing concerns about the source of emails purportedly from a laptop abandoned by Hunter Biden at a computer repair shop in Wilmington, Delaware. The New York Post claimed it obtained a hard drive that was connected to Rudy Giuliani, a long-term ally of Trump, which contained communications related to Hunter Biden’s dealings in Ukraine. The authors of the letter stated they could not verify the authenticity of the emails but believed their unveiling had “all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.” However, Trump’s director of national intelligence, John Ratcliffe, disputed this claim, stating that there was no intelligence supporting any affiliation between Russia and Hunter Biden’s laptop. The FBI, which was conducting its own investigations into Biden, seemed to corroborate Ratcliffe’s assertion during a Congressional briefing.
Subsequently, Hunter Biden faced legal challenges, ultimately being convicted of tax and firearm offenses, but he received a presidential pardon from his father last month. Historically, courts tend to avoid intervening in disputes surrounding security clearances. Trump’s unilateral approach marks a significant deviation from the typical practice wherein individual executive branch agencies would be responsible for assessing a person’s eligibility for their clearance. Throughout his first presidential term, Trump often expressed frustration towards an intelligence community he believed had been politicized to work against him, frequently referring to the investigations regarding alleged ties between his campaign and Russian interference during the 2016 election.
