Stephen Bannon's Unfitness

Mr. Stephen Bannon has been named as Mr. Trump’s senior counselor and chief White House strategist (nytimes.com, Combative, Populist, 2016). Many have sounded alarm at the president-elect’s pick of such a controversial and right-wing conspiracy theorist.  There are several references to Mr. Bannon’s revolting behaviors and comments, but is Mr. Bannon eligible for a security clearance?

Mr. Bannon, was until recently the CEO of Breitbart News, a controversial website, popular with white supremacists and anti-Semitism. This seems to fall under Guideline A: Allegiance to the United States [4(c)]:

(c) association or sympathy with persons or organizations that advocate, threaten, or use force or violence, or use any other illegal or unconstitutional means, in an effort to:
(1) overthrow or influence the government of the United States or any state or local government;
(2) prevent Federal, state, or local government personnel from performing their official duties;
(3) gain retribution for perceived wrongs caused by the Federal, state, or local government;
(4) prevent others from exercising their rights under the Constitution or laws of the United States or of any state.

A specific example is the contributing columnist, Austin Ruse.  He is the president of C-FAM (Catholic Family and Human Rights Institute).  The Southern Poverty Law Center considers C-FAM a hate group.  Additionally, his ex-wife, Mary Piccard claimed that Mr. Bannon objected to his children attending school with Jewish students (nydailynews.com, White Supremacist Groups, 2016).  By allowing Mr. Bannon to hold such prominent positions, Mr. Trump is emboldening hate groups across the nation.  Since the election, the Southern Poverty Law Center has seen over 700 incidents of hateful harassment (splcenter.org, Incidents, 2016).

Mr. Bannon, also has a poor record when it comes to his behavior in the workplace.  In the 1990s, he was named in a lawsuit when he worked for an Arizona research company brought by a Biosphere 2 worker, Margret Augustine.  She alleged that he and a co-worker repeatedly made lewd remarks.  The lawsuit and a counter lawsuit were settled (nydailynews.com, Accused Sexual Harassment, 2016).  This would fall under Guideline E: Personal Conduct [16(d{2})]:

(2) disruptive, violent, or other inappropriate behavior in the workplace;

Mr. Bannon’s past conduct gives rise to concerns about his ability to safe guard classified information and to use that information in a responsible manner.  Given, that he has only recently come into the national media scene, there is limited information available. The most concerning for me personally, is Mr. Bannon’s association with Breitbart News, and I do not have the stomach to search through that Pandora’s Box.

Regardless, Mr. Bannon’s appointments as senior counselor and chief White House strategist is a slap in the face to those who value the protection of the rights of all citizens, regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, or gender.  His appointments are inappropriate and will lead to nothing but discord in the governing of our country.

Sources:

Brennan, C. (2016, August 29). Trump campaign CEO Steve Bannon was accused of sexual harassment towards Biosphere coworker in 1990s. nydailynews.com. Retrieved November 29, 2016 from http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/trump-campaign-ceo-steve-bannon-accused-sexual-harrassment-article-1.2770657.

Edelman, A. (2016, November 14). Here’s why white supremacist groups love President-elect Donald Trump’s pick, Stephen Bannon. Nydailynews.com. Retrieved November 29, 2016 from http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/white-supremacist-groups-love-stephen-bannon-article-1.2873208.

Hate Watch Staff (2016, November 18). Update: Incidents of Hateful Harassment Since Election Day Now Number 701. SPLC Hatewatch. Retrieved November 29, 2016 from https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2016/11/18/update-incidents-hateful-harassment-election-day-now-number-701.

Shane, S. (2016, November 27). Combative, Populist Steve Bannon Found His Man in Donald Trump. nytimes.com. Retrieved November 29, 2016 from http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/27/us/politics/steve-bannon-white-house.html.

U.S. Department of State (2006, February). Adjudicative Guidelines for Determining Eligibility to Classified Information. Retrieved November 29, 2016 from http://www.state.gov/m/ds/clearances/60321.htm#j.

President-elect is ineligible to access classified information

 I have written several similar letters to various members of congress, senators, the current president, the current vice-president and various organizations pointing out the fact that the President-elect, Donald Trump is a national security risk and ineligible to access classified information.  I base my claims on the current policies listed on the State Department's website at http://www.state.gov/m/ds/clearances/60321.htm.  Since I first drafted this letter, multiple violations to this policy have occurred, and I will work to update the violations which is a difficult and tedious task due to the erratic and never-ending charade that is Mr. Trump and everyone in his inner circle.

I am writing this letter to express my palpable concerns for the national security of this country due to the president-elect’s having been granted a clearance.  I am calling for an immediate revocation of Mr. Donald Trump’s clearance, as well as the clearances of those in his inner circle.  This letter is not meant to smear the president-elect, but to make clear that the receipt of his security clearance is a threat to national security, the citizens of the country, and our allies and allowing him to retain his clearance is against the policies outlined by the State Department as detailed in the Adjudicative Guidelines for Determining Eligibility for Access to Classified Information (2006).  Military members, civil servants, and others are held to these very high standards, and it only follows that the next Commander-and-Chief should be held to at least the same if not more extensive standards. Please act without delay to protect American interests and national security.  I hope that you will take me grievances seriously. 

According to the US Department of State’s Adjudicative Guidelines for Determining Eligibility for Access to Classified Information (2006), I find that President-Elect Mr. Donald Trump is in violation of the following guidelines:

            Guideline A: Allegiance to the United States

            Guideline B: Foreign Influence

            Guideline C: Foreign Preference

            Guideline D: Sexual Behavior

            Guideline E: Personal Conduct

            Guideline F: Financial Considerations

            Guideline I: Psychological Conditions

Below I will outline specific instances and evidence that is publicly available to corroborate these claims.  The evidence presented is not exclusive, but meant to be a sample of behaviors and other issues that should make it clear that Mr. Trump is ineligible to hold a security clearance.  I will first state the violated guidelines and then follow each with an explanation as to why I think the guidelines are not being followed.

Violations:

Guideline A: Allegiance to the United States [4(c(4))]

(c) association or sympathy with persons or organizations that advocate, threaten or use force of violence, or use any other illegal or unconstitutional means, in an effort to: prevent others from exercising their rights under the Constitution of laws of the United States or of any state;

Guideline B: Foreign Influence [7(a,b,e,f,g,h]

(a) contact with a foreign family member, business or professional associate, friend, or other person who is a citizen of or resident in a foreign country if that contact creates a heightened risk of foreign exploitation, inducement, manipulation, pressure, or coercion;
(b) connections to a foreign person, group, government, or country that create a potential conflict of interest between the individual's obligation to protect sensitive information or technology and the individual's desire to help a foreign person, group, or country by providing that information;
(e) a substantial business, financial, or property interest in a foreign country, or in any foreign-owned or foreign-operated business, which could subject the individual to heightened risk of foreign influence or exploitation;
(f) failure to report, when required, association with a foreign national;
(g) unauthorized association with a suspected or known agent, associate, or employee of a foreign intelligence service;
(h) indications that representatives or nationals from a foreign country are acting to increase the vulnerability of the individual to possible future exploitation, inducement, manipulation, pressure, or coercion;

Guideline C: Foreign Preference [10(c,d)]

(c) performing or attempting to perform duties, or otherwise acting, so as to serve the interests of a foreign person, group, organization, or government in conflict with the national security interest;
(d) any statement or action that shows allegiance to a country other than the United States: for example, declaration of intent to renounce United States citizenship; renunciation of United States citizenship.

Throughout his campaign, Mr. Donald Trump repeatedly idolized dictatorships such as that of Russian Vladimir Putin.  In recent days, there have been conflicting statements from the Trump Campaign and Russian officials regarding the extent of their relationships.  According to a CBS News report (2016, November 10), Russian spokesman, Dmitry Peskov told the Associated Press that the Trump campaign had been in contact with Russian experts.  Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told the Interfax News Agency that influential people in Trump’s circle had been in contact with Russian representatives.  Spokeswoman Hope Hicks denied the allegations (CBS/AP, Russia: There were Contacts). 

Donald Trump has singled out Muslims, and proposed a religious test for entry to the country.  This violates religious freedom laws in the United States.  His surrogates appeared on televised interviews where they encouraged the discrimination and dehumanization of Muslims.  One of these surrogates was Katrina Pierson.  An example of one such interview is listed in the cited sources (CNN, S.E.Cupp vs. Trump).

Additionally, Mr. Donald Trump refused to accept military assessments of Russian involvement in hackings and Wikileaks during an internationally televised debate with Secretary Clinton.  An article (New York Times, Trump Calls on Russia) reports that during a news conference in July, Mr. Donald Trump stated, “Russia if you are listening, I hope you are able to find the 30,000 emails.  I think you will be rewarded mightily by our press.”

Mr. Trump has repeatedly tried to prevent others from exercising their rights, specifically the freedom of speech and voting.  On multiple occasions, Mr. Trump has advocated violence and intimidation against protesters, members of the press, minority groups, and voters.  His website went so far as to try to register Voting Observers.  This kind of behavior is in violation of several states’ voter intimidation laws.  At numerous rallies Trump encouraged violence against protesters, including, but not limited to the following statements:

            Knock the crap out of them.

            I’ll beat the crap out of you.

            I’d like to punch him in the face.

Several of these video recordings can be found on Mashable (Mashable, All the times).

During the final presidential debate between Secretary Clinton and Mr. Trump, he refused to say he would accept the outcome of the election.  He continued to suggest that our elections are “rigged” with no substantive evidence to back that claim up.

A recent example is his latest tweet condemning free speech and the right of peaceful protest.  Just had a very open and successful election.  Now professional protesters, incited by the media, are protesting.  Very unfair! (Trump Tweet)

At rallies, Mr. Donald Trump called out individual protesters by name morphing his rallies into angry mobs.  Members of the press had to enlist security to ensure their protection in the performance of their jobs.  In one example, Mr. Trump, calls out Katy Tur and instantly the persons at the rally turn on her as reported by Politico.com on November 3rd.

These are just a few examples where Mr. Trump has tried to undermine our democracy and the rights of the people in it.

 Mr. Donald Trump’s finances are currently unknown to the United States people, due to his continued refusal to release them.   It is unknown how many foreign business interests and debts he may have that may compromise American security.  At the end of October, news organizations reported that prospective sanctions against Russia were in conflict with his business interests.  Trump had previously stated he was handing over the running of his businesses to his children in what he falsely called a blind trust.  That would not remove the conflict, and since then he has put his children on his transition team again conflicting with American interests (USA TODAY, Trump Business Ties).

Violation:

Guideline D: Sexual Behavior [13]

(a) sexual behavior of a criminal nature, whether or not the individual has been prosecuted;
(b) a pattern of compulsive, self-destructive, or high-risk sexual behavior that the person is unable to stop or that may be symptomatic of a personality disorder;
(c) sexual behavior that causes an individual to be vulnerable to coercion, exploitation, or duress;
(d) sexual behavior of a public nature and/or that which reflects lack of discretion or judgment.

Mr. Donald Trump has been accused by several women of inappropriate sexual behaviors and/or sexual assaults.  He was famously recorded on the Hollywood Access bus tape bragging about sexual assault.  He has been publicly open about his sexual exploits, including various recordings of Howard Stern’s radio programs.  He was filmed making sexual comments to a minor in a 1992 Entertainment Tonight video, in which he is overheard telling a ten-year-old child that he would be dating her in ten years.  Additionally, there are several reports (including by Mr. Trump himself) of him going backstage at beauty pageants, including Miss Teen USA when underage minors were changing. 

Violation:

Guideline E: Personal Conduct [16]

(a) deliberate omission, concealment, or falsification of relevant facts from any personnel security questionnaire, personal history statement, or similar form used to conduct investigations, determine employment qualifications, award benefits or status, determine security clearance eligibility or trustworthiness, or award fiduciary responsibilities;

(b) deliberately providing false or misleading information concerning relevant facts to an employer, investigator, security official, competent medical authority, or other official government representative;

(c) credible adverse information in several adjudicative issue areas that is not sufficient for an adverse determination under any other single guideline, but which, when considered as a whole, supports a whole-person assessment of questionable judgment, untrustworthiness, unreliability, lack of candor, unwillingness to comply with rules and regulations, or other characteristics indicating that the person may not properly safeguard protected information;

(d) credible adverse information that is not explicitly covered under any other guideline and may not be sufficient by itself for an adverse determination, but which, when combined with all available information supports a whole-person assessment of questionable judgment, untrustworthiness, unreliability, lack of candor, unwillingness to comply with rules and regulations, or other characteristics indicating that the person may not properly safeguard protected information. This includes but is not limited to consideration of:

(1) untrustworthy or unreliable behavior to include breach of client confidentiality, release of proprietary information, unauthorized release of sensitive corporate or other government protected information;

(2) disruptive, violent, or other inappropriate behavior in the workplace;

(3) a pattern of dishonesty or rule violations;

(4) evidence of significant misuse of Government or other employer's time or resources;

(e) personal conduct or concealment of information about one's conduct, that creates a vulnerability to exploitation, manipulation, or duress, such as (1) engaging in activities which, if known, may affect the person's personal, professional, or community standing, or (2) while in another country, engaging in any activity that is illegal in that country or that is legal in that country but illegal in the United States and may serve as a basis for exploitation or pressure by the foreign security or intelligence service or other group;

(f) violation of a written or recorded commitment made by the individual to the employer as a condition of employment;

(g) association with persons involved in criminal activity.

Mr. Donald Trump has continued to state that he cannot release his taxes because he is under an audit.  He instead posted financial disclosure statements.  The American people cannot verify these statements without the full disclosure of his tax returns.

As an elected official, Mr. Trump is essentially employed by the American people.  Over the course of his campaign, he was caught in lies time and again.  Various news organizations rate the amount of time that Mr. Trump is lying between 70 and 80 percent.

Throughout his life, Mr. Trump has conducted himself as someone who is above the law, due to his celebrity status and wealth.  In 1973, Mr. Trump and some of his family members were sued along with various other companies for housing based on racial discrimination.  The case

was settled in 1975.  Mr. Trump’s statements about the case and its outcome were inaccurately portrayed by him when asked about it during a presidential debate with Secretary Clinton.

In the 1980s and 1990s Mr. Trump employed several undocumented Polish workers in the building of Trump Tower.  The workers were underpaid (if at all), working without appropriate safety equipment, and some testified working up to 24 hour shifts (Time.com, Undocumented Workers).

Mr. Donald Trump has been criticized by many of his former employees and colleagues for his behavior in the workplace.  There are the aforementioned incidents of inappropriate sexual comments made on the escalator to a child and the Access Hollywood recording of Mr. Trump’s conversation with then host, Mr. Billy Bush.  Additionally, many contestants and other employees on the set of Celebrity Apprentice stated that Mr. Donald Trump used lewd language and sexually harassed some individuals (Newsweek, Alleged Sexism).

He has made sexist and lewd remarks about multiple women since he began his campaign and on camera, including but not limited to: FOX News correspondent, Megyn Kelly, former presidential candidate Carly Fiorina, and Secretary Clinton.

Mr. Trump has a long history of associations with persons involving criminal activity which includes the following: Daniel Sullivan (Time.com, Undocumented workers), Jeffrey Epstein (nymag.com, Jeffrey Epstein), alleged ties to organized crime in New York and Philadelphia (WSJ, Trump and the Mob).

Violation:

Guideline F: Financial Considerations [19(c,d,e]

(c) a history of not meeting financial obligations;

(d) deceptive or illegal financial practices such as embezzlement, employee theft, check fraud, income tax evasion, expense account fraud, filing deceptive loan statements, and other intentional financial breaches of trust;

(e) consistent spending beyond one's means, which may be indicated by excessive indebtedness, significant negative cash flow, high debt-to-income ratio, and/or other financial analysis;

While the American public has not been made privy to Mr. Trump’s current tax returns, a story in the New York Times revealed that his 1995 tax return showed a 916-million-dollar loss.  This was due to multiple poor business decisions and mismanagements involving his casinos, the airline industry, and a property purchase (New York Times, Avoided Taxes).

Additionally, the New York Times reported that Mr. Trump used tax loopholes (now outlawed) described by the expert in the story as: Whatever loophole existed was not ‘exploited’ here but stretched beyond any recognition. (New York Times, Legally Dubious).  Mr. Trump’s businesses have filed for bankruptcy six times (WP, Fact Check).  Mr. Donald Trump has been involved in at least 3,500 lawsuits (USA TODAY, 3,500 Lawsuits).  Seventy-five of those legal battles are ongoing (USA TODAY, 75 Pending).  Additionally, he has used over 1.25 million dollars from his charity to settle legal fees (WP, Trump Used $258,000).

Violation:

Guideline I: Psychological Conditions [28(a)]

(a) behavior that casts doubt on an individual's judgment, reliability, or trustworthiness that is not covered under any other guideline, including but not limited to emotionally unstable, irresponsible, dysfunctional, violent, paranoid, or bizarre behavior;

Mr. Donald Trump has continued to exhibit erratic and irrational behaviors while conducting his campaign.  His ongoing twitter rants at all hours of the day and night are well-documented.  I am not aware of any formal psychiatric evaluation on state of mind, but the guideline does not require one.  His behavior can be perceived by a reasonable person as being unusual, sometimes paranoid, and extremely narcissistic.

One specific example of questionable judgment is his obsession with an insult written thirty years ago in the Spy Magazine about the size of his hands.  The insult seems petty and something that could easily be blown off by a rational adult, but his sensitivity to this inconsequential remark has been played out over and over with Mr. Trump bringing the issue up himself on multiple occasions.  The editor who first wrote the remark stated that he still receives occasional envelopes from Mr. Trump with a photo enclosed with his hands circled with gold Sharpie (abcnews.go.com, Small Hands).

Another account is given by billionaire Richard Branson describing his luncheon with Mr. Trump: I left the luncheon feeling disturbed and saddened by what I’d heard….What concerns me most, based upon my personal experiences with Donald Trump, is his vindictive streak, which could be so dangerous if he got into the White House (Virgin, Meeting Donald Trump).

Many have expressed similar concerns, and until an objective and professional analysis could be done, I think there is a lot of evidence to suggest that Mr. Donald Trump is mentally unstable.

Based on the reasons stated above, I again request an immediate revocation of Mr. Donald Trump’s security clearance and the clearances of his inner circle.

Cited Sources

Barstow, D., Craig, S., Buettner R., & Twohey, M. (2016, October 1). Donald Trump tax records show he could have avoided taxes for nearly two decades, the Times found. New York Times. Retrieved November 13, 2016 from http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/02/us/politics/donald-trump-taxes.html.

Barstow, D., McIntire, M., Cohen, P., Craig, S., & Buettner, R. (2016, October 31). Donald Trump used legally dubious method to avoid paying taxes. New York Times. Retrieved November 13, 2016 from http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/01/us/politics/donald-trump-tax.html.

Branson, R. (2016, October 21). Meeting Donald Trump. Virgin. Retrieved November 13, 2016 from https://www.virgin.com/richard-branson/meeting-donald-trump.

Calabresi, M. (2016, August 25). What Donald Trump knew about undocumented workers at his signature tower. Time.com. Retrieved November 13, 2016 from http://time.com/4465744/donald-trump-undocumented-workers/.

CBS/AP (November 10, 2016). Russia: there were contacts with Donald Trump’s campaign before election. CBS News. Retrieved November 13, 2016 from http://www.cbsnews.com/news/russia-contacts-donald-trump-campaign-election/.

Fahrenthold, D. A. (2016, September 20). Trump used $258,000 from his charity to settle legal problems. The Washington Post (WP). Retrieved November 13, 2016 from https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-used-258000-from-his-charity-to-settle-legal-problems/2016/09/20/adc88f9c-7d11-11e6-ac8e-cf8e0dd91dc7_story.html.

Lee, M. (2016, September 26). Fact Check: Has Trump declared bankruptcy four or six times? The Washington Post. Retrieved November 13, 2016 from https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2016/live-updates/general-election/real-time-fact-checking-and-analysis-of-the-first-presidential-debate/fact-check-has-trump-declared-bankruptcy-four-or-six-times/.

Parker, A.& Sanger, D. (2016, July 27). Donald Trump calls on Russia to find Hillary Clinton’s missing emails. The New York Times.  Retrieved on November 13, 2016 from http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/28/us/politics/donald-trump-russia-clinton-emails.html.

Penzenstadler, N. & Kelly, J. (2016, October 25). How 75 pending lawsuits could distract a Donald Trump presidency. USA TODAY. Retrieved November 13, 2016 from http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2016/10/25/pending-lawsuits-donald-trump-presidency/92666382/.

Penzenstadler, N. & Page, S. (2016, June 1). Exclusive: Trump’s 3,500 lawsuits unprecedented for a presidential nominee. USA TODAY. Retrieved on November 13, 2016 from http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2016/06/01/donald-trump-lawsuits-legal-battles/84995854/.

Przybyla, H. M. (2016, October 27). Clinton seizing on Trump’s Russian business ties. USA TODAY.  Retrieved on November 13, 2016 from http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2016/09/22/clinton-trump-russian-business-ties-putin/90847608/.

S.E. Cupp vs. Trump spokesperson on Trump’s Muslim ban proposal [Video file].CNN. Retrieved November 13, 2016 from http://www.cnn.com/videos/tv/2015/12/08/trump-ban-muslims-cupp-pierson-politics-panel-lead.cnn.

Shapiro, E. (2016, March 4). The history behind the Donald Trump ‘small hands’ insult. abcnews.go.com. Retrieved November 13, 2016 from http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/history-donald-trump-small-hands-insult/story?id=37395515.

Sommers-Dawes, K. (2016, March 11). All the times Trump has called for violence at his rallies. Mashable. Retrieved November 13, 2016 from http://mashable.com/2016/03/12/trump-rally-incite-violence/#x6FLRlxDliql.

Rothfield, M. & Berzon, A. (2016, September 1). Donald Trump and the Mob. Wall Street Journal (WSJ). Retrieved November 13, 2016 from http://www.wsj.com/articles/donald-trump-dealt-with-a-series-of-people-who-had-mob-ties-1472736922.

Thomas, L., Jr. Jeffrey Epstein: International money man of mystery. nymag.com. Retrieved November 14, 2016 from http://nymag.com/nymetro/news/people/n_7912/.

Trump calls out NBC reporter Katy Tur (2016, November 3) [Video file].Politico.com. Retreiev November 13, 2016 from http://www.politico.com/video/2016/11/trump-calls-out-nbc-news-reporter-katy-tur-061144.

Trump, D. [realDonaldTrump].(2016, November 10). Just had a very open and successful election.  Now professional protesters, incited by the media, are protesting.  Very unfair!  Retrieved November 13, 2016 from https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/796900183955095552?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw.

U.S. Department of State (2006, February). Adjudicative Guidelines for Determining Eligibility to Classified Information. Retrieved November 13, 2016 from http://www.state.gov/m/ds/clearances/60321.htm#j.

Westcott, L. (2016, October 3). Donald Trump’s alleged sexism on ‘Apprentice’ detailed by Associated Press. Newsweek. Retrieved November 13, 2016 from http://www.newsweek.com/trump-sexism-apprentice-alicia-machado-associated-press-505625.

About Unpresidented

Welcome to Unpresidented!  This blog seeks to expose the unlawful and criminal acts of the incoming administration.  The current posts will show that the president-elect and his inner circle are ineligible to access classified information.  As the blog evolves, posts may come out exposing criminal or unlawful acts committed now or in the past of persons involved in the Trump presidency.  I will strive to keep posts based on factual and accurate information from respectable sources and avoid unfounded conspiracy theories and other types of misinformation.