Should President Biden Deny Donald Trump Access to Classified Material Beginning on January 20, 2021?

A sitting president doesn't have a security clearance per se. It's automatic.

But once leaving office, he/she doesn't really have one.

However, access to classified information can be granted to former presidents and former vice presidents.

[u]U.S. Code[/u]:
https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/31/2.2

This page is a permanent link to the reply below and its nested replies. See all post replies »

redredred · M

Why does anybody not on-the-job need to keep a security clearance? What is do special about these retired government employees that they get to keep a security clearance?

BTW, There will never be a President Biden. You'll see Hulk Hogan in a pinafore first.

HerKing · 61-69, M

@redredred [quote]Why does anybody not on-the-job need to keep a security clearance? What is do special about these retired government employees that they get to keep a security clearance?[/quote]

Let me give an anology:

Imagine you're retired from a firm and before you retired you rose to the level that you knew initmately the workings of a particular process or were professionally intimate with a customer who the firm get a great deal of work/income from.

Now say that when you retired the firm told the people in the firm that if they wanted that information from you, under no circumstances could they tell you anything about customers in the present to gain context and discuss a way forward.

So basically they could ask you questions about what you know, but couldn't tell you why, what had changed, or why it was relevant so you could help them to form policies that would not only retain customers but make the process you helped to develop get better.

redredred · M

Your analogy doesn't work. What possible knowledge could Brennan have that isn't carefully documented in secure document that his replacement could read? He's not supposed to keep secrets from his employers. It would be extremely inappropriate for a foreign national to be discussing security matters with a retired employee.@HerKing

HootyTheNightOwl

@redredred Could it not be that these "former" agents never actually retire???

Given that they deal with a hell of a lot of sensitive information, it would be reasonable to expect that they would be bound by gagging orders that prevent them from revealing information of a sensitive nature, so, when it comes to appointing the next successor, they may have to start all over again with building trust and everything else - so it might make sense to have the guy that you already know and trust do the job than some newbie who hasn't established that relationship with the client yet.

redredred · M

There's a huge difference between an NDA and a security clearance. The first is a gag order about information learned on the job. The second would give the former employee access to new information. I can see no credible reason for the second.@HootyTheNightOwl

beckyromero · 36-40, F

@redredred [quote]BTW, There will never be a President Biden. You'll see Hulk Hogan in a pinafore first.[/quote]

Have you called Hulk Hogan's agent yet?