President Joe Biden said Friday that Former President Donald Trump should stop receiving the top secret intelligence briefings afforded to most presidents once out of office.
Biden reportedly made the comments during an interview with CBS News’ Norah O’Donnell that will air in full before the Super Bowl on Sunday. He said Trump’s “erratic behavior” should disqualify him from receiving the briefings. As president, Biden does have the authority to stop Trump’s briefings, something Trump himself reportedly considered doing to President Barack Obama. (RELATED: Space Force Has ‘Full Support’ Of Biden Administration, White House Clarifies)
“Should former President Trump still receive intelligence briefings?” O’Donnell asked.
“I think not,” Biden responded.
When asked to explain, Biden said it was due to Trump’s “erratic behavior unrelated to the insurrection.”
“What’s your worst fear if he continues to get these intelligence briefings,” O’Donnell pressed.
“I’d rather not speculate out loud,” Biden responded. “I just think that there is no need for him to have the intelligence briefings. 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?”
Biden tells Nora O’Donnell he doesn’t think Trump should continue to receive intelligence briefings “because of his erratic behavior unrelated to the insurrection.” pic.twitter.com/jrQ3wwOzJA
— Meredith Lee (@meredithllee) February 5, 2021
Pres. Biden sits down with @NorahODonnell for his first network interview since taking office.
Hear more from the president about his plans for tackling the coronavirus pandemic ahead of the Super Bowl, only on @CBS. pic.twitter.com/zg2rQhUeQo
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) February 5, 2021
Trump would be the first living president to have his intelligence briefing privileges revoked. While Biden has now confirmed his stance that Trump should not get the briefings, he has not yet ordered an end to them publicly.
Biden has marked the opening weeks of his presidency with numerous actions aimed expunging Trump’s legacy in Washington. In addition to various executive orders, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Tuesday took the step in dismissing all members of the Pentagon’s policy advisory boards.
The Trump administration had made numerous last-minute appointments to the boards before leaving office. Officials in such positions enjoy robust job protections and would have required Biden to prove both that the Trump appointee was unqualified and that the previous administration had intentionally skipped over a more qualified candidate. Austin’s solution gets around those requirements by firing everyone, irrespective of who appointed them.