Congress must take action to address problems within the U.S. government’s security clearance system, according to Mark Moyar, who writes of a “pattern” in which the system has been weaponized against political opponents with agencies like the FBI using it in a punitive manner, and on false pretenses.
Congress “has repeatedly tried to increase the transparency and accountability of the security clearance system in order to prevent its weaponization, but thus far with little success,” writes Mr. Moyar, the author of the recent book, “Masters of Corruption: How the Federal Bureaucracy Sabotaged the Trump Presidency.”
“To stop the abuses, Congress must turn executive orders and regulations into laws that the executive branch cannot ignore. It should also pass new legislation permitting whistleblowers to sue for abuses of the security clearance system,” argues Mr. Moyar.
“The authority to revoke clearances must be removed from agency officials because of their vested interests and personal connections, and given to an independent body,” he writes. “In protecting specific individuals, such legislation will also dissipate the climate of fear that currently discourages government employees from reporting waste, fraud and abuse.”
