The Biden administration is reviewing whether to take away the ability of former President Donald Trump to receive classified security...
The Biden administration is reviewing whether to take away the ability of former President Donald Trump to receive classified security briefings as the former president in the wake of the Capitol riot.
White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki punted on the question when asked about a topic that also came up during the transition – but also confirmed Monday the administration was reviewing the matter.
'This is a good question,' said Psaki. 'It's something that's obviously under review.'
HE'S BEEN BRIEFED: The Biden administration is reviewing the policy where former President Trump has access to classified information and briefings
The review comes as Trump critics demand he be forced to relinquish some of the perks of power that follow a president even after he leaves office.
Former presidents get classified briefings by tradition – although not at the very highest levels reserved for the current officeholder.
In Trump's case, the briefings would go to a former president who failed to attend the inauguration and spent months claiming that he had 'won.' Trump's statement on his impeachment legal team over the weekend referred to him as the '45th president of the United States.'
Trump has a small staff that has been running out of Mar-a-Lago. Former presidents get a substantial office stipend, and Secret Service protection costing up to $1 million per year.
Trump reportedly disclosed classified security information to the Russians during an Oval Office meeting in May 2017
There were questions about whether Trump would keep his briefings even before the Capitol riot
IN THE KNOW: President Joe Biden gets briefed near-daily on the nation's most closely held secrets. But his administration is reviewing whether Donald Trump will get access to secrets
Trump's access to classified briefings was being questioned even before the Jan. 6 Capitol riot
Even Trump's adult children are getting Secret Service protection for the next six months, ABC News reported this month.
If the Senate were to convict Trump of 'incitement of insurrection' following his impeachment trial, it could also vote to strip him of his ability to hold future office. It is unclear what current perks, if any, would go away if he were convicted.
Trump caused an uproar during his 2017 meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and former ambassador to the U.S. Sergei Kislyak after it was reported he revealed highly classified information about ISIS in Syria to the U.S. adversary.
He gave up highly sensitive information from a U.S. ally, reported to be Israel, that resulted in the U.S. having to extract a top-level source inside the Russian government.
Trump also once tweeted out what appeared to be a classified photo of an Iranian nuclear installation. Trump said he had the power to declassify material.
All that preceded the Capitol riots, which followed Trump telling his supporters to 'fight' on the day Congress was counting the Electoral College vote.
Former Justice Department official Jack Goldsmith told NBC in November: 'This is not something that one could have ever imagined with other presidents, but it's easy to imagine with this one. He's shown as president that he doesn't take secret-keeping terribly seriously. He has a known tendency to disrespect rules related to national security. And he has a known tendency to like to sell things that are valuable to him."
Psaki also got asked Monday about whether the administration was benefitting from Trump being kicked off Twitter.
'This may be hard to believe, we don't spend a lot of time talking about or thinking about President Trump here – former President Trump, to be very clear,' she said. 'I can't say we miss him on Twitter.'
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