Rep. Elijah Cummings, the highest Democrat about the House Oversight Committee, wants the White House to explain why senior adviser Jared Kushner really has a security alarm clearance despite reports he did not disclose meetings with Russian officials and businessmen.
Cummings sent instructions signed by many of the Democrats on his committee to White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus on Wednesday requesting documents by July 5, including Kushner’s security clearance application and records of his contacts with Russians.
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Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and adviser, omitted plenty of contacts with foreign leaders on his security clearance application, The revolutionary York Times reported in April, although the application requests for a directory of all encounters with foreign government officials over the last seven years. The Washington Post also reported recently that Russia’s ambassador into the U.S. had told his superiors Kushner desired to generate a secret communications backchannel regarding the Trump transition team and Moscow.
Cummings’ letter cites government rules that say when you’ll find credible allegations that any government employee is unfit to take care of classified information, the employee’s security clearance is suspended pending an investigation.
“It is unclear why Mr. Kushner is still equipped with usage of classified information while these allegations are investigated,” the Maryland Democrat wrote.
His letter also questions why the White House didn’t suspend the security clearance of former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn after being informed by former acting Attorney General Sally Yates that he or she might be subject to Russian blackmail.
“Although the White House received credible allegations of obvious security concern in relation to General Flynn with the Acting Attorney General, it seems that the White House failed to suspend his security clearance while those allegations were reviewed,” Cummings wrote.
