The U.S. official in charge of the federal agency which processes most of the U.S. government’s security clearances indicated Wednesday that he would find it hard to approve a security clearance for President Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner.
"I would have a hard time overcoming that,” said Charlie Phalen, director of the National Background Investigation Bureau (NBIB), at a hearing of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on Wednesday, when asked by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, if “someone who fails to disclose financial entanglements with foreign adversaries” would be eligible for a security clearance.
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Sen. Kamala Harris, D-California, then followed, “What are individuals most commonly blackmailed for?”
Phalen, a 30-year veteran of the CIA and FBI where he held security office positions, said, rather than blackmail, it was more “common” that individuals who entangle themselves financially “make bad life decisions...They simply make the decision, ‘My personal life is worth more than my country.’”
In late February, The Washington Post reported that the former billionaire businessman’s complex overseas investments and loans had made him a target for manipulation, so much so that officials from more than four countries reportedly spoke about ways to exploit Kushner’s perceived vulnerability.
