Trump revokes security clearances for Biden family, Kamala Harris, Hillary Clinton and other rivals
WASHINGTON, DC: Donald Trump released a memo on Friday, March 21, canceling the security clearances of many of his political opponents, like former president Joe Biden and his entire family, former vice president Kamala Harris, and Hillary Clinton.
The 47th president mentioned in his memo, sent to the heads of executive departments and agencies, that he has “determined that it is no longer in the national interest for the following individuals to access classified information,” as reported by The New York Post.
Donald Trump revokes security clearances of political foes and Biden-era officials
Donald Trump also named Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and New York Attorney General Letitia James in the list along with former Biden administration officials Antony Blinken, Jake Sullivan, and Lisa Monaco.
Not only them, anti-Trump Republicans Adam Kinzinger and Liz Cheney’s names were also included in the list.
Other prominent names were Alexander Vindman, a retired United States Army lieutenant colonel and a key witness who played a crucial role in impeaching Trump for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress in 2019, and Fiona Hill, a former Trump administration official.
The president said, “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.”
Donald Trump defends his decision
Donald Trump's memo further stated that “classified briefings, such as the President’s Daily Brief, and access to classified information held by any member of the Intelligence Community by virtue of the named individuals’ previous tenure in the Congress” should be revoked.
The POTUS 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clearance should inform the private entity that these individuals’ ability to access classified information has been revoked.”
POTUS has revoked Joe Biden’s security clearances
— Matt Reidy (@matthewjreidy) February 8, 2025
“He set this precedent in 2021, when he 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.” pic.twitter.com/YbnTsqC1C9
On Truth Social, the 78-year-old justified his decision by writing, “He [Biden] set this precedent in 2021, when he 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," as per cnbctv18.
Biden ended Trump’s intelligence briefings after the Jan 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. At the time, Biden said Trump’s “erratic” behavior should prevent him from getting the intel briefings.
Biden said at that time, "I just think that there is no need for him to have that intelligence briefing. 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?”
Former presidents and other former senior officials customarily retain access to classified information.
