White House security specialists denied Jared Kushner’s security clearance because of “significant disqualifying factors,” including potential foreign influence and Kushner’s private business interests — but the recommendation was overturned by a Trump appointee, The Washington Post reported. The report, published Wednesday, follows the testimony of veteran White House employee Tricia Newbold before the House oversight committee. The whistleblower told the panel last month that senior Trump administration officials had disregarded the recommendations of career staffers to deny the security clearance requests of at least 25 people, including two current senior White House officials. Kushner’s security clearance has been under public scrutiny for months. Previous news reports said Trump directed former chief of staff John Kelly to grant Kushner top-secret security clearance after Kelly downgraded it last year.

Source: Huffington Post April 04, 2019 11:15 UTC