ISSUE BRIEF: Recommended America First Actions to Counter Meddling in Domestic Politics by U.S. National Security Officers

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Recent reports show current and former U.S. national security officers (Executive Branch employees who perform classified national security work) abused their access to classified information, their security clearances, and their credentials as intelligence officers to meddle in U.S. politics and attempted to influence the outcome of presidential campaigns.

These actions raise serious questions in the eyes of many Americans about the professionalism and trustworthiness of U.S. national security agencies. The resulting erosion of trust in these agencies by the American public, the president and his senior officials, and Congress not only undermines their ability to perform crucial intelligence and law enforcement work but poses a serious risk to U.S. national security.

National security officers who abuse their positions or professions for political purposes violate the special trust placed in them to work on sensitive national security matters that cannot be revealed to the American public. When they abuse that trust to interfere in U.S. politics, they betray the American people.[1]

Therefore, we believe it is urgent to implement corrective steps and reforms to encourage current and former intelligence officers not to abuse their professions to meddle in U.S. politics and to hold accountable those who have committed such abuses.

It is important to note that some former intelligence officers who misused their professional credentials for political purposes did not hold security clearances. We therefore must devise a strategy that does not solely revolve around revoking clearances as a remedy for these abuses.

The abuses by national security officers that we want to address stem from recent revelations about a fraudulent letter signed by 51 former intelligence officers in October 2020 about the Hunter Biden laptop scandal; the report by Special Counsel John Durham on how the FBI investigated false allegations that the Trump campaign colluded with Russia in 2016; and the May 18, 2023, testimony before the House Weaponization of Government subcommittee by three FBI whistleblowers on politicization of the FBI against conservatives and whistleblower retaliation. 

This proposal would not bar the free speech rights or legitimate political activities of current or former national security officers. It also would not bar those who formerly worked in national security positions (including in the intelligence community) from advising presidential campaigns or engaging in partisanship after they retire. Although current national security officers are barred by the Hatch Act from running for office or working on political campaigns, former national security officers are not. This would not change under this proposal.

AGREEMENT TO NOT ABUSE NATIONAL SECURITY CREDENTIALS FOR POLITICAL PURPOSES

The above instances constitute unethical activity regardless of whether they were committed by current or former national security officers. To prevent the recurrence of such unethical activity and to spell out prohibited political activities by national security officers, we propose they be required to sign an “Agreement to not to abuse national security credentials for political purposes” (the Agreement). Congress should require this agreement in legislation.

The Agreement would contain provisions on the following:

• Bar current and former national security officials from abusing their positions or security clearances to promote partisan political agendas, target individuals or groups for investigations for political reasons, withhold or grant security clearances for political reasons, or provide or withhold classified information or notifications of investigations to officials or candidates for political reasons.
• Strictly prohibit retaliation against national security personnel who resist or object to prohibited political activities.
• Prohibit former national security officers from misrepresenting politically motivated criticisms of U.S. officials or political candidates as judgments based on their national security professions. Similarly, bar former national security officers from misrepresenting politically motivated national security assessments as based on their national security experience. Any of the above prohibited actions committed by former intelligence officers to influence the outcome of a U.S. election would be considered an especially serious ethical violation.

Currently employed national security officials would be required to sign the above Agreement. This Agreement would stipulate that current officials are bound by it when they leave government service. National security officers who refuse to sign the agreement would lose their security clearance and be fired.

Although former national security officials cannot be forced to sign the above agreement, they would be required to do so to hold any post-employment security clearances.

HOLDING NATIONAL SECURITY OFFICERS WHO MEDDLE IN U.S. POLITICS ACCOUNTABLE

Concerning the above Agreement, we propose that signers be held accountable through a new bipartisan review board. The board would consist of six Senate-confirmed individuals, each serving a term of five years. They would be charged with hearing and adjudicating alleged prohibited political activities by current and former national security officers across the U.S. government. They would be authorized to recommend censure, withdraw security clearances, and fire employees who violate the Agreement.

The House and Senate Intelligence Committees would investigate alleged violations and recommend remedies for the administration to carry out independent of the processes of the review board. These committees could also recommend that the House and/or Senate pass censure resolutions against violators.

A future administration should take action to address past alleged instances of current and former intelligence officers meddling in U.S. politics, especially efforts to affect the outcome of U.S. presidential elections. If there is a new administration in January 2025, it should name a National Security Council task force to identify current and former national security officers who abused their professional credentials. Officers so identified and who are still employed by the U.S. government should be reprimanded or fired. If fired, they should be permanently banned from holding security clearances. Former national security officers who engaged in such activity should lose their security clearances and receive letters of reprimand. 

Another immediate step that could be taken to hold national security officers who meddled in U.S. politics accountable, especially the signers of the letter by the 51 former intelligence officers, includes a subpoena by the House Intelligence Committee or the House Weaponization of Government subcommittee and a requirement to testify under oath to open televised committee hearings. The former intelligence officers should be asked whether they still hold security clearances and which government agencies or companies are paying them to perform classified work based on these clearances.

BIOGRAPHY

Fred Fleitz is the Vice Chair of the Center for American Security at the America First Policy Institute and former Chief of Staff of the National Security Council.