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“new reports raise grave questions about what derogatory information career officials obtained about Mr. Kushner to recommend denying him access to our nation’s most sensitive secrets, why President Trump concealed his role in overruling that recommendation, why General Kelly and Mr. McGahn both felt compelled to document these actions, and why your office is continuing to withhold key documents and witnesses from this Committee.” (US Congressman Cummings, House Oversight Chair)

President Donald Trump meets with Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Tuesday, March 14, 2017, in the Oval Office of the White House. Kushner is seated next to VP Pence.

US Congressman “Cummings Demands that White House Immediately Comply with Oversight Committee Request for Documents and Witnesses in Security Clearance Investigation
Mar 1, 2019 Press Release
Cummings Releases Letters with White House
Washington, D.C. (Mar. 1, 2019)— Today, Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, the Chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, sent a letter [1] to White House Counsel Pat Cipollone demanding  full and immediate compliance with the Committee’s previous request for documents and witness interviews in light of a new report [2] yesterday that President Donald Trump pushed for his son-in-law and senior advisor, Jared Kushner, to receive a security clearance despite numerous red flags—directly contradicting the President’s public denials just eight days after the Committee launched its investigation.

In addition, Cummings released his correspondence with the White House over the past several weeks regarding the documents and witnesses he has requested regarding the Committee’s wide-ranging investigation [3] into the security clearance process at the White House.

To date, the White House has refused to provide any of the documents or produce any of the witnesses the Committee has requested for interviews.

Cummings wrote in today’s letter:
“Since I sent my letter on January 23, I have been negotiating in good faith—and in private—to try to obtain the information the Committee needs to conduct its investigation.  However, over the past five weeks, the White House has stalled, equivocated, and failed to produce a single document or witness to the Committee.  The White House has refused to commit to providing any information regarding the security clearance of any specific White House official, and the President has asserted no constitutional privilege to withhold this information from Congress.”

He added:
“Today, I am writing in light of grave new reports [4] that—just eight days after the Committee launched this investigation—President Trump may have falsely claimed that he played no role in the security clearance process.”

Cummings concluded:
“If true, these new reports raise grave questions about what derogatory information career officials obtained about Mr. Kushner to recommend denying him access to our nation’s most sensitive secrets, why President Trump concealed his role in overruling that recommendation, why General Kelly and Mr. McGahn both felt compelled to document these actions, and why your office is continuing to withhold key documents and witnesses from this Committee.  

“For these reasons, I am now writing a final time to request your voluntary cooperation with this investigation.  I ask that you begin producing all responsive documents immediately, and I request that you begin scheduling transcribed interviews with each witness identified by the Committee.  Please provide your response to the Committee by March 4, 2019.”
Click here to read today’s letter. https://oversight.house.gov/sites/democrats.oversight.house.gov/files/documents/2019-03-01.EEC%20to%20Cipollone-WH%20re%20Security%20Clearances.pdf
Click here to read Cummings’ original letter to the White House on January 23, 2019.

Click to access 2019-01-23.EEC%20to%20Cipollone-WH%20re%20Security%20Clearances.pdf

Click here to read the White House’s response to Cummings on January 31, 2019.

Click to access 2019-01-31%20Cipollone%20to%20EEC%20re%20Security%20Clearances.pdf

Click here to read Cummings’ response to the White House on February 11, 2019.

Click to access 2019-02-11.EEC%20to%20Cipollone-WH%20re%20Security%20Clearances_0.pdf

Click here to read the White House’s response to Cummings on February 25, 2019.

Click to access 2019-02-25%20Cipollone%20to%20EEC%20re%20Security%20Clearances.pdf

[1] https://oversight.house.gov/sites/democrats.oversight.house.gov/files/documents/2019-03-01.EEC%20to%20Cipollone-WH%20re%20Security%20Clearances.pdf
[2] https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/28/us/politics/jared-kushner-security-clearance.html
[3] https://oversight.house.gov/news/press-releases/oversight-committee-launches-investigation-of-security-clearance-problems-at
[4] http://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/28/us/politics/jared-kushner-security-clearance.html
Issues:
Administration, Defense & National Security, Security Clearances
116th Congress” https://oversight.house.gov/news/press-releases/cummings-demands-that-white-house-immediately-comply-with-oversight-committee