someoneyouknow
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After boldly announcing he was revoking John Brennan's security clearance because he kept saying mean things, the con artist appears to have done what he is best known for: bloviating but not acting. In the two weeks since the con artist said he had pulled Brennan's clearance, Brennan has received no formal or official notice from the White House, CIA, or anyone else that he no longer has clearance.
In the case of Brennan’s security clearance, POLITICO has repeatedly asked White House officials in recent days whether the clearance has been officially revoked, and none have given a straight answer. A White House spokesman declined to comment on the record. A CIA spokesperson said the agency does not comment on individual clearances.
“In any other administration, the words of the president are presumed to have intrinsic actionable meaning — that is, they are themselves policy and agencies will respond to them as such,” said Benjamin Wittes, a Brookings Institution senior fellow and editor in chief of the blog Lawfare. “With this president, there is an almost total disconnect between what the president says in public and the actions of the executive branch.”
He continued, “Therefore, when the president says he is doing something, you have to ask a question that you would never ask with any other president, which is: Is he doing that thing, or is he just saying that he’s doing that thing?”
Brennan has said he is considering filing a lawsuit against the administration over the decision, a move that could test the president’s power to revoke clearances.
“I’m sure Don McGahn is a great lawyer, but he’s not a security clearance, Fifth Amendment, constitutional rights lawyer,” said national security lawyer Kel McClanahan, who argued that Brennan might have a strong case, referring to the White House counsel. “Before he did this, he really needed to talk to a lawyer who knows how security clearances work. This is such an insane, perfect storm of just not talking to your lawyers.”
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/08/28/trump-security-clearances-john-brennan-799052
In the case of Brennan’s security clearance, POLITICO has repeatedly asked White House officials in recent days whether the clearance has been officially revoked, and none have given a straight answer. A White House spokesman declined to comment on the record. A CIA spokesperson said the agency does not comment on individual clearances.
“In any other administration, the words of the president are presumed to have intrinsic actionable meaning — that is, they are themselves policy and agencies will respond to them as such,” said Benjamin Wittes, a Brookings Institution senior fellow and editor in chief of the blog Lawfare. “With this president, there is an almost total disconnect between what the president says in public and the actions of the executive branch.”
He continued, “Therefore, when the president says he is doing something, you have to ask a question that you would never ask with any other president, which is: Is he doing that thing, or is he just saying that he’s doing that thing?”
Brennan has said he is considering filing a lawsuit against the administration over the decision, a move that could test the president’s power to revoke clearances.
“I’m sure Don McGahn is a great lawyer, but he’s not a security clearance, Fifth Amendment, constitutional rights lawyer,” said national security lawyer Kel McClanahan, who argued that Brennan might have a strong case, referring to the White House counsel. “Before he did this, he really needed to talk to a lawyer who knows how security clearances work. This is such an insane, perfect storm of just not talking to your lawyers.”
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/08/28/trump-security-clearances-john-brennan-799052
