Donald Trump revokes Joe Biden's security clearance

President Donald Trump has announced that he will revoke former President Joe Biden's security clearance and cease providing him with daily intelligence briefings, retaliating for similar actions taken against him by Biden in 2021. Trump posted the announcement on social media shortly after arriving at Mar-a-Lago for a weekend stay. This decision marks a significant escalation in the ongoing political feud between the two leaders.

“Joe Biden has no need to continue to have access to classified information. Therefore, effective immediately, we are revoking Joe Biden’s security clearance and ceasing to provide him with daily intelligence briefings,” Trump wrote in the statement. He added, "He set the precedent in 2021 when he directed the Intelligence Community (IC) to prevent the 45th President of the United States (me!) from accessing detailed information concerning national security, a courtesy afforded to former presidents." The Biden administration has yet to comment on the move, but it is expected to respond soon.

Previously, Biden halted intelligence briefings for Trump after Trump assisted in efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results and incited the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack. At the time, Biden stated that Trump's "erratic" behavior should preclude him from receiving intelligence briefings. This action is the latest manifestation of Trump's campaign promise to conduct a revenge tour on Washington. He had previously revoked the security clearances of over forty former intelligence officials who signed a letter in 2020 stating that the Hunter Biden laptop story had the hallmarks of a "Russian information operation."

Furthermore, Trump also revoked security details assigned to protect former administration officials who had been critical of him, including his own former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (who faces threats from Iran) and former infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci. In the post, Trump cited last year's special counsel report on Biden's handling of classified documents, stating that "the Hur Report showed that Biden suffers from 'poor memory' and cannot be trusted with sensitive information even in his 'prime.'" He concluded the post by writing, "I will always protect our national security—Joe, you're fired. Make America Great Again!"

In an interview with CBS News, when asked what his concerns were if Trump continued to receive briefings, Biden stated that he did not want to "speculate out loud" but made it clear that he did not want Trump to continue to have access to such information. Biden said, "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?" Trump has the right to stop providing briefings to Biden, as the decision of whether or not to continue allowing former presidents access to classified information is at the discretion of the current president.

Concurrently, Trump signed an executive order calling for a sweeping review of all executive actions by President Joe Biden regarding firearms, as well as other federal government rules, programs, reports, and litigation, to "assess any ongoing infringements of Americans' Second Amendment rights." The order requires Attorney General Pam Bondi to conduct the review within 30 days and develop an action plan to protect the right to bear arms as guaranteed by the Second Amendment. This move underscores Trump's commitment to gun rights and his intention to challenge Biden's policies.