I certainly don’t want to be an alarmist. In today’s America, where all news, regardless of facts, is fake news, using a bullhorn to make your dissatisfaction known is the go-to means to not only let people know where you stand, but also shout very loudly, because apparently shouting very loudly is the only way to convey a sense of urgency bordering on a life-or-death situation. Damn, that was one heck of a sentence. My English teacher is aghast. Sorry, Mrs. Rocca.
The list of people Donald Trump has revoked security clearances from reads like a who’s who of people he is mad at for some reason or other. To be fair, there is nothing wrong with revoking clearances of government officials who are no longer a part of the government. It’s actually not a bad practice, regardless of the pettiness with which Trump approaches it.
But then we have the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE – pronounced “dodgy” for those wondering at home). DOGE seems to have gotten clearances overnight – at least I am assuming all DOGE workers have the necessary clearance to conduct government business.
A quick tangent. DOGE is doing exactly what we might expect a government organization with the word “efficiency” in its title to do. They are, in fact, making things exponentially less efficient. We can jest about DOGE in the same way we jest about things like “military intelligence,” except in this case, it is much truer than one would like.
Let’s finish this tangent because I am not here to speak of the many missteps DOGE has already taken or laugh at the many mistakes the pubescent wanna-be MAGA Chud workers DOGE has hired have made. And let’s be honest, these mistakes are no laughing matter.
No, I am here as a concerned citizen with a little bit of knowledge of how government clearances work, wondering how in the heck did so many DOGE workers get clearances so quickly. First, please understand that clearances are not a trivial matter. There is an army of men and women who work very diligently to ensure the clearances granted to government workers and contractors are not only in line with the work they are doing, but to also keep a crap-ton of information safe. And I want to add that just because you have a certain level of clearance, it does not mean you have access to “all the information.” Access to information is granted on a “need to know” basis. Second, depending on the agency and in some cases, the type of clearance, it can take months for the clearance process to run its course.
To review, clearances are not granted overnight. And just because you have a clearance, you do not necessarily have access to even confidential or protected information. And yet, in the case of DOGE, this seems to be exactly the case. Because they do have clearances right…
Speaking of someone with experience in such matters, I am confounded by why any DOGE employee (with or without a clearance) needs to see so much protected data and information. You find fraud by looking at budgets and expenditures, not farming secrets the US wants to keep from other countries. You look for efficiencies by looking at processes and practices, not by accessing people’s medical records. Again, I must reiterate that access to information is granted on a “need to know” basis. So why?
So now it’s broken record time. For the younger readers, a “broken record” alludes to a vinyl record that skips, playing the same section over and over again. I am assuming that at a minimum, DOGE workers have clearances. Perhaps DOGE has somehow streamlined the clearance process – at least for themselves. But it is hard for me to fathom why -even with clearances – they claim they need access to classified and private information, the release of which can invoke any number of privacy or security laws. This should be worrisome to every American, regardless of party affiliation.
I try to stay away from politics in my little cubby hole tucked away in the corner of the interwebs, but there is genuine concern because there is something nefarious going on here…
Jamoosh Interrupted 