Trump appointee overruled recommendation to deny Kushner clearance -report

Kushner faced intense scrutiny in 2017 over whether he would secure the level of clearance necessary to broker peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Updated: JANUARY 25, 2019 06:56
White House Senior adviser Jared Kushner sits behind U.S. President Donald Trump during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, U.S., November 1, 2017 (photo credit: REUTERS/KEVIN LAMARQUE)
White House Senior adviser Jared Kushner sits behind U.S. President Donald Trump during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, U.S., November 1, 2017
(photo credit: REUTERS/KEVIN LAMARQUE)
A presidential appointee at the Pentagon overruled two career White House security specialists who recommended Jared Kushner be denied top secret security clearance, following an FBI background check that "raised concerns about potential foreign influence on him," according to a report published by NBC News on Thursday.
The network said that Kushner, US President Donald Trump's son-in-law who is leading the administration's Middle East peace effort, was among 30 cases in which Carl Kline, the political appointee, overruled security experts and approved clearances for incoming Trump officials.
NBC cited two sources. "They said the number of rejections that were overruled was unprecedented– it had happened only once in the three years preceding Kline's arrival," the report reads.
Kushner faced intense scrutiny in 2017 over whether he would secure the level of clearance necessary to broker peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians. At the time, White House officials dismissed the concerns.
The president has the prerogative to unilaterally grant security clearances to anyone he wishes, but has historically deferred to intelligence and law enforcement experts.