Kushner’s Security Clearance Restored After Second Meeting With Mueller
Jared Kushner Image by Department of Defense
President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner had his White House security clearance restored Wednesday, a person familiar with the matter told CNN.
Kushner was stripped of his interim clearance in February amid a change in procedures following the resignation of Rob Porter, the President’s staff secretary, who had been allowed to remain in his post for months despite allegations of spouse abuse.
Special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation also affected Kushner’s status in the White House, as some aspects of his inquiry related to Kushner’s role during the presidential campaign through the presidency itself, including contacts with Russians and the firing of former FBI Director James Comey.
Kushner met in April with Mueller’s investigators for a second time and answered questions for seven hours, according to his attorney, Abbe Lowell. Kushner previously sat for an interview last November, which was largely focused on former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who soon after pleaded guilty to charges of making false statements to the FBI.
White House officials have blamed the delay in Kushner receiving his security clearance on administrative backlogs normal to a new administration, as well as the complicated nature of his application, CNN reported. His initial security clearance application didn’t list dozens of foreign contacts that he later included in updated submissions to the FBI.
Contact Alyssa Fisher at [email protected] or on Twitter, @alyssalfisher
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we need 500 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Our Goal: 500 gifts during our Passover Pledge Drive!
