
Hillary Clinton's name was noticeably absent from a list the White House released this week detailing the former high-level government officials who President Donald Trump is considering stripping security clearances from. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
The White House said this week President Donald Trump is considering stripping security clearances from six former high-level government employees, five of whom worked during the Obama years and one who primarily worked under former President George W. Bush.
However, one name was noticeably absent from Trump's list: Hillary Clinton's.
Despite mishandling classified information during her tenure as secretary of state — including "top secret" documents — Clinton's name was absent from a list released by the White House this week detailing who Trump wants to revoke clearances from.
Retired Col. James Williamson, who has held a top-secret clearance since 1982 and is president of OSPEC, a nonprofit that represents retired members of the intelligence community, told the Daily Caller News Foundation he was "shocked" to learn that Clinton's name was not on Trump's list.
"Frankly, I was shocked that Hillary, the chief culprit, was omitted," he said. "There is more than ample evidence that Hillary Clinton committed, whether its gross negligence, or, as Comey would like to say, extreme carelessness. Just from the documented evidence, there was enough to prosecute. If there’s evidence to prosecute, then there’s certainly grounds to pull somebody’s clearance."
Col. James Waurishuk, who served on the national security counsel and Joint Chiefs of Staff, agreed. He told the Daily Caller News Foundation that Clinton has proved she's a national security liability.
"Her clearance should have been immediately revoked and proper action taken to have her removed. She still carries that crime," he said. "She was a risk. That is one of the things you look at. Is this person a risk? And yes, she was a risk. From that standpoint, she should have her clearance revoked."
Understanding the security risk she posted, OSPEC twice wrote to then-Secretary of State John Kerry in 2015 asking the government to consider revoking the security clearances of Clinton and her closest aides.
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders announced on Monday that Trump wants to revoke security clearances from:
"They’ve politicized and in some cases monetized their public service," Sanders said. "When you have the highest level of security clearance…when you have the nation’s secrets at hand, and you go out and make false [statements], the president feels that’s something to be very concerned with."
The White House was prompted to release the list after Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) suggested over the weekend that Brennan is "monetizing" his security access.