Donald Trump Denies Report He Considered Revoking Barack Obama’s Security Clearance

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump denied a report that said he mulled talking away former President Barack Obama‘s security clearance.

Trump called The New Yorker, which published the report, “Fake News” on Twitter.

“Fake News, of which there is soooo much (this time the very tired New Yorker) falsely reported that I was going to take the extraordinary step of denying Intelligence Briefings to President Obama. Never discussed or thought of!” the president wrote.

The original report did not explicitly name any White House officials, although it claimed that some members of Trump’s administration floated the idea of revoking Obama’s security clearance in 2017. The article also said then-national security adviser H.R. McMaster was opposed to this move.

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Trump has removed the security clearances of several of his top critics in recent weeks, including former Obama administration officials like ex-CIA Director John Brennan. Since then, multiple current and former intelligence figures have slammed the president for his actions, calling them an effort to “stifle free speech.”

Brennan said in a televised interview on Sunday that if necessary, he is prepared to take Trump to court over the security clearance removals. Trump claimed he made the decision regarding Brennan’s clearance because of his “lying.”

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Trump also took aim at another Obama administration official on Twitter, former National Intelligence Director James Clapper. The president claimed Clapper had “admonished’ Brennan and that he was afraid of losing his own security clearance.

Ohio Republican Rep. Jim Jordan — who is contending to replace Paul Ryan as House Speaker — said in an interview with Fox Business on Monday that he believes more Obama-era officials should lose their security clearances.