Retired Navy Adm. William McRaven asks Trump to revoke his security clearance: 'I would consider it an honor'

(Image credit: FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP/Getty Images)

published 16 August 2018

Retired Navy Adm. William H. McRaven is standing in solidarity with former CIA Director John Brennan, whose security clearance was revoked by President Trump on Wednesday.

As commander of the U.S. Joint Special Operations Command from 2011 to 2014, McRaven oversaw the 2011 Navy SEAL raid that killed Osama bin Laden. In an open letter to Trump published Thursday in The Washington Post, McRaven called Brennan "one of the finest public servants I have ever known," a man of "unparalleled integrity, whose honesty and character have never been in question, except by those who don't know him."

McRaven said he would consider it "an honor" if Trump would revoke his security clearance as well, "so I can add my name to the list of men and women who have spoken up against your presidency." McRaven said he was hopeful Trump would "rise to the occasion and become the leader this great nation needs," but his actions have instead "embarrassed us in the eyes of our children, humiliated us on the world stage, and worst of all, divided us as a nation. If you think for a moment that your McCarthy-era tactics will suppress the voices of criticism, you are sadly mistaken. The criticism will continue until you become the leader we prayed you would be."

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

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