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International Business Times
International Business Times
Marvie Basilan

Tulsi Gabbard Revokes Security Clearances For Top Biden Officials — Who Are The Targets?

Donald Trump is out for blood, and he made it clear Monday after Tulsi Gabbard revoked the security clearances of top Biden officials, including some who were involved in his impeachment trials and other cases against him. (Credit: Latin Times)

KEY POINTS

  • Antony Blinken and Jake Sullivan are among the Biden officials whose security clearances have been revoked
  • Lisa Monaco, who oversaw the prosecutions of Trump Capitol supporters, also lost her security clearance
  • The names Gabbard mentioned have also been 'barred access to classified information'

National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard has stripped security clearances from a bunch of top officials under the Biden administration, including some key figures who went after U.S. President Donald Trump, further intensifying concerns that Trump is back at the White House with a vengeance.

Gabbard made the announcement on X Monday, saying they she has revoked the security clearances of top officials who served under ex-President Joe Biden. She went on to reveal that the President's Daily Brief is no longer being forwarded to Biden – a move mirroring Biden's when he took the presidency.

The brief had been traditionally shared with former presidents but Biden was first to stop the tradition with Trump.

Which Officials Were Stripped of Security Clearances?

Notably, the intelligence chief said the key Biden admin officials who saw their security clearances revoked have also been "barred access to classified information."

  • Antony Blinken – Former Secretary of State
  • Jake Sullivan – Former National Security Advisor
  • Lisa Monaco – Former Deputy Attorney General, who also oversaw prosecutions against Trump supporters who stormed the Capitol in Jan. 6, 2021 – a chaotic event that resulted in the deaths of five people
  • Mark Zaid – A lawyer specializing in national security who represented the whistleblower at center of the first impeachment inquiry on Trump
  • Letitia James – New York Attorney General who has had a storied history of clashes with Trump over the years
  • Norman Eisen – An attorney who was part of the legal counsel in the first Trump impeachment
  • Alvin Bragg – The Manhattan district attorney who secured a conviction against Trump over the hush money case
  • Andrew Weissman – A prominent attorney and professor who co-hosted the MSNBC podcast "Prosecuting Donald Trump"
  • The 51 signers "of the Hunter Biden 'disinformation' letter," which suggested that Russia may have contributed to the amplification of allegation around the ex-president's son as part of efforts to influence the 2020 election results

Trump Turns on Vendetta Mode, Zaid Calls Out Retaliation

Zaid has since commented on the matter, saying he has had such clearance for nearly 25 years due to the work he does and was entitled due process over the matter.

"Not surprisingly, as I would expect in an authoritarian state, I have received none," he said of his entitlement to due process, as per an emailed statement to NBC News.

"It is patently obvious this action is nothing but petty retaliation because I represent my clients effectively in holding the Trump Administration accountable for its actions," he said.

Gabbard's announcement came following an Inauguration Day executive order by Trump that ordered the revocation of security clearances held by "the former intelligence officials who engaged in misleading political coordination with the 2020 Biden presidential campaign."

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