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White House Counsel Said to Have Permanent Security Status

White House Counsel Said to Have Permanent Security Status

(Bloomberg) -- White House Counsel Don McGahn has been granted permanent security clearance, a government official said Thursday evening.

The question of security clearances among White House officials has arisen since the departure earlier this month of Staff Secretary Rob Porter, a top aide to President Donald Trump.  

White House Counsel Said to Have Permanent Security Status

Although Porter, who resigned after his two former wives accused him of domestic abuse, was allowed to see sensitive documents, he was working with an interim security clearance.

According to reports published Wednesday by NBC News and CNN, at least 130 appointees working in the executive office of the president lacked permanent security clearances as recently as November. McGahn was reported to be on that list.

But the official, who requested anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter, confirmed that McGahn had permanent security clearance, as did Dan Scavino, the White House social media director; White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders; and Raj Shah, the principal deputy press secretary.

The official did not provide the timing or other details of the clearance approvals.

The House Oversight Committee sent a letter to White House Chief of Staff John Kelly on Thursday asking for a list of employees who had requested security clearances, whether they had received one, whether it was interim or permanent, and the classification level.

To contact the reporter on this story: Margaret Talev in Washington at mtalev@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Michael Shepard at mshepard7@bloomberg.net, John Harney, Andy Sharp

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