CNN reported Tuesday that despite senior White House adviser Ivanka Trump’s denials just weeks ago, President Donald Trump did push for her security clearance, eventually circumventing his own staffers and granting her the pass.
Trump reportedly put the screws to former chief of staff John Kelly and former White House Counsel Don McGahn to ignore the red flags in Ivanka’s profile — and those in her husband, Jared Kushner’s — and grant her the clearance. When they said no, Trump gave Ivanka and Kushner the clearance anyway.
The New York Times broke the story of Trump’s interference in Kushner’s security process last week. A few weeks prior, Ivanka did an interview with ABC News during which she said Trump had “no involvement” in her security approval process.
To the intense vexation of House Oversight Committee chairman Elijah Cummings (D-MD), the White House has staunchly refused his requests for documents related to the security clearance process, especially for Kushner.
