Donald Trump has officially revoked a key privilege from Joe Biden, claiming his predecessor is unfit to handle classified information. The sitting president signed off on a bombshell memo on Friday, March 21, stripping Biden, his family, and several top officials of their security clearances.
Trump’s decision means that Biden—along with former Vice President Kamala Harris, Hillary Clinton, and a slew of other high-profile figures—will no longer have access to classified intelligence briefings. The president justified the move, stating it was ‘in the national interest.’
For decades, ex-presidents and senior officials have traditionally been granted continued access to intelligence briefings, ensuring seamless communication between past and present administrations. However, Trump has now shut that door, declaring in his memo: “I have determined that it is no longer in the national interest for the following individuals to access classified information.”
This drastic measure comes as Trump alleges Biden set the precedent in 2021 when he blocked Trump’s own access to intelligence briefings, marking the first time in history that a former president was cut off from classified information. Trump took to Truth Social in February to blast Biden’s decision, writing, “He instructed the Intelligence Community (IC) to stop the 45th President of the United States (ME!) from accessing details on National Security, a courtesy provided to former Presidents.”
At the time, Biden defended his controversial move, citing Trump’s ‘erratic behavior’ as the reason behind the decision. “What value is giving him an intelligence briefing? What impact does he have at all, other than the fact he might slip and say something?” Biden remarked.
But Trump is now flipping the script, insisting that Biden himself poses a security risk. The memo cites concerns over Biden’s handling of classified documents and references an inquiry that highlighted the 82-year-old’s ‘poor memory.’
Beyond Biden, Trump’s blacklist also includes former Secretary of State Antony Blinken, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, and Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. Also affected are Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and New York Attorney General Letitia James—both of whom have pursued legal action against Trump—as well as vocal anti-Trump Republicans Adam Kinzinger and Liz Cheney.
In a particularly pointed move, Trump has also revoked security clearance for key figures involved in his impeachment trials. The list includes Alexander Vindman, Fiona Hill, and Mark Zaid, along with Andrew Weissmann, a lead prosecutor in Robert Mueller’s investigation, and Norman Eisen, a former special counsel to the House Judiciary Committee.
The memo directs all executive departments and agencies to take immediate action to revoke any active security clearances held by the named individuals. Additionally, it orders their ‘unescorted access’ to government facilities to be revoked, effectively cutting them off from classified information and intelligence briefings.
“In the event that any of the named individuals received a security clearance by virtue of their employment with a private entity, the United States Government entity that granted the security clearance should inform the private entity that these individuals’ ability to access classified information has been revoked,” the memo states.
With this unprecedented decision, Trump has reignited tensions between past and present administrations, setting the stage for yet another explosive political showdown.
