by WorldTribune Staff, August 17, 2016
Donald Trump was expected to bring New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn along on Aug. 17 as the GOP candidate received his first classified intelligence briefing.
Career staffers from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), the nation’s top intelligence office, were to lead the briefing at the FBI’s New York Field Office. The briefing was expected to cover major threats and emerging concerns around the world.
DNI Director James Clapper and the White House recently said they had no problems with briefing Trump or Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, noting that providing the briefings is a “long-standing tradition in our system,” dating back more than 60 years.
“Ensuring a smooth transition to the next president is a top priority … and that’s important, in part, because of the significant threats around the world,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters in Washington, D.C., last month.
The FBI was to have no role in the briefing, which was required to be held at a location with secure rooms, known as “sensitive compartmented information facilities.”
The briefing came just days after Trump delivered a series of major foreign policy proposals, including plans for the “extreme vetting” of immigrants and the temporary blocking of immigration from “the most dangerous and volatile regions of the world.”
Both Christie and Flynn, who Trump is said to be considering them for Cabinet positions, spoke in support of Trump at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland last month.
Each of the campaigns decides the location for the classified briefings, according to Clapper. Trump and Clinton are each expected to receive two or three classified briefings before Election Day.
Flynn, Christie to join Trump for first intel briefing by DNI added by World Tribune on
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