Washington DC: Dozens of White House and Trump administration officials reportedly are still operating without full security clearances including President Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner.
According to CNN some 30 to 40 officials and political appointees have been working in the administration with interim clearances.
The White House claims that the backlog of interim security clearances is a consequence of the review process carried out by the FBI and White House Office of Security, which can take time to complete.
According to Mark Zaid, an attorney who often represents clients in clearance cases underscored that the fact that many of these officials are affluent and have worked in the areas of finance with links to foreign governments would also contribute to a delay in the clearance process.
Kushner is among several officials who have had clearances delayed because of mistakes in their paperwork, the report said.
The issue of full security clearance takes the centre stage after former White House staff secretary Rob Porter resigned on Wednesday.
It is alleged Porter, 40, gave one ex-wife a black eye while another filed a restraining order. However, he denies it.
Porter’s ex-wives, Colbie Holderness and Jennifer Willoughby, both went public in The Daily Mail with accounts of what they branded as physically and emotionally abusive behaviour.
Porter has denied the allegations against him saying, in a statement that, “These outrageous allegations are simply false.”
Despite the allegations, he received interim security clearance to act as gatekeeper to the US president.
Porter never obtained a full security clearance, despite being in a position that required him to handle classified information. (ANI)