Trump senior advisor Jared Kushner’s inability to obtain a security clearance hamstrung his ability to carry out his duties in the West Wing. And now, a key member of Trump’s legal team might be facing a similar problem.
As Bloomberg reports, Jay Sekulow, the leader of Trump’s legal team, lacks the security clearances necessary to discuss sensitive issues related to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s probe.
Former Trump lead attorney John Dowd had been the only member of the president’s team with a clearance, but since his departure in March, Sekulow, has been waiting for his clearance to – well – clear.
And while Ty Cobb, the White House lawyer who is working with Trump’s personal attorneys, does have a security clearance – his duty is technically to represent the White House, not Trump personally, per Bloomberg.
Of course, it’s unclear how not having a clearance has impacted Sekulow’s ability to do his job so far…
Sekulow has continued talking with Mueller’s team since Dowd’s departure. Trump’s newest lawyer, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, joined in a session last week. The lawyers have been trying to negotiate ways to narrow the scope of a possible interview, which Mueller requested at the end of last year.
Ty Cobb, the White House lawyer handling requests from Mueller, has a security clearance. But Cobb’s role is to represent the office of the presidency, not Trump personally, and he hasn’t been directly involved in discussions with Mueller about an interview.
Mueller is investigating Russian interference in the 2016 presidential campaign, whether anyone close to Trump colluded in it and whether Trump obstructed justice by firing Comey.
Trump’s legal team is well-aware Mueller could issue a subpoena, a possibility they have calculated in their strategy on negotiating an interview, according to people familiar with the team’s thinking. They have discussed a possible defense against a subpoena, including citing a 1990s ruling involving President Bill Clinton that set a standard for when a president can invoke executive privilege.
…But it could become an issue if Trump agrees to an interview.
If Trump agrees to an interview, the topics that could require security clearance for the president’s lawyers include a meeting he had with Russian officials the day after the president fired FBI Director James Comey. That was on a list of more than 40 potential questions that Trump’s legal team compiled based on their discussions with Mueller.
If Sekulow’s clearance is refused, it would unleash another round of turmoil for the Trump legal team, which has struggled to recruit big-name litigators because of conflicts of interest or worries about negative publicity.
Without a security clearance, Sekulow would most likely be forced to give up his position as lead attorney.
Today’s report about Sekulow’s clearance followed another legal team scoop published last night reporting that Mueller had threatened to subpoena the president, a decision that could provoke a constitutional crisis.
But at least this time around, Trump already has Rudy Giuliani, who insists his role on the team is “very limited” despite appearing to take the lead on negotiations with Mueller, waiting in the wings. And while the story says nothing about Giuliani or the process of his clearance application, we imagine that, as a former US attorney and Mayor of New York City, Giuliani wouldn’t have much of a problem obtaining one.
Meanwhile, President Trump continued his campaign to discredit Mueller on Wednesday, tweeting a quote from attorney Joe Digenova, who turned down an offer to join Trump’s legal team because of a conflict, saying that the questions purportedly put forth by Mueller would be an intrusion into the president’s Article 2 powers.
“The questions are an intrusion into the President’s Article 2 powers under the Constitution to fire any Executive Branch Employee…what the President was thinking is an outrageous…..as to the President’s unfettered power to fire anyone…” Joe Digenova, former US Attorney
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 2, 2018
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