Former White House Staff Secretary Rob Porter left the White House last week, but questions remain about his operating with interim security clearance after the FBI investigated allegations of domestic abuse and communicated them to the Trump administration.
National security expert Juliette Kayyem joined Boston Public Radio today to talk about Porter’s security clearance status and what it means for the rest of the White House.
“It’d be hard, on day seven of this story ... to say they could have done it worse,” said Kayyem of the administration’s handling of Porter’s security clearance.
According to FBI testimony yesterday, the FBI alerted the White House multiple times last year about Porter’s background check, which ostensibly would have included details about his alleged domestic abuse.
Two of his ex-wives and an ex-girlfriend say they spoke to the FBI about their allegations before the FBI closed its investigation in January.
“When [FBI Director Chris Wray] said they closed it, that’s with the determination, and the determination was clearly, ‘You can’t go from interim security clearance to permanent,’” Kayyem said. “Someone in the White House got that recommendation.”
Kayyem explained that the FBI’s advice about security clearances after their investigations is non-binding.
“The FBI does not do the granting,” said Kayyem.
Porter had been operating with an interim security clearance, and until this week, the White House had claimed Porter’s background check was still ongoing.
Kayyem said Jared Kushner’s interim clearance may have influenced Rob Porter’s. She said once the White House made an exception for Kushner, it was hard to hold Porter’s clearance to a different standard. Kushner has also been operating as a White House adviser without permanent security clearance.
“Why are there anti-nepotism rules? It’s because the standards that a person sets for their son or daughter or son-in-law then become the standards, which are not necessarily the standards that you want for a liberal democracy,” said Kayyem.
She called the Trump administration’s alleged nepotism “really, really damaging.”
“There’s no reason why all these people have interim security clearances and are still working in the top levels of our government,” said Kayyem.
National Security expert Juliette Kayyem is a CNN and WGBH contributor and the CEO of ZEMCAR. To hear her interview in its entirety, click on the audio player above.
