The Unexpected Reason Why Donald Trump Has Now Refused to Accept Intelligence Briefings

Donald Trump has never been as mindful throughout his presidential campaign as he is now. The Republican candidate told Daily Mail on Wednesday, August 21, 2024, that he's refused to get intelligence briefings he's entitled to as the Republican party's nominee so he couldn't be accused of leaking classified information like he's been before. 

He told the correspondent, "I don't want them, because, number one, I know what's happening. It's very easy to see what's happening," as he alleged a trap laid out for him before attacking rivals POTUS Joe Biden and his newly installed election opponent Vice President Kamala Harris. "We have an incompetent leader, and we have two incompetent leaders. 

The 78-year-old is noticeably playing safe amid the tight race with his Democratic rival. Although as a presidential nominee, he's entitled to be briefed by the United States spy agencies to prepare him for the role as commander-in-chief, Trump however denied accepting any sensitive information. His decision could be a lesson he learned after the FBI recovered classified documents from his Palm Beach property Mar-a-Lago. 

Trump further called Harris a Marxist, "We have a Marxist that's going to try and be president, and this country is not ready for a Marxist or a communist president, and that's what she is. She destroyed San Francisco, she destroyed California, and this country is not ready for it. So I don't want that, because as soon as I get that, they'll say that I leaked it. So the only way to solve that problem is not to take it I don't want it understood. I'll have plenty of them when I get in." 

Historically, former presidents are also briefed by the US Intelligence as a courtesy to keep them updated in case their advice is needed. But back in 2021, Biden prohibited his predecessor Trump from receiving the country's sensitive information citing his "erratic behavior." The now-81-year-old told CBS News' Norah O'Donnell, "I just think that there is no need for him to have the intelligence briefings. What value is giving him an intelligence briefing? What impact does he have at all, other than the fact he might slip and say something?"

This decision marks the first time any former president has been barred from the briefings ever since President Harry Truman introduced them in the early 1950s. They are designed for a smoother transition of power conducted by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Currently, ex-presidents Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama are briefed on a regular basis. 

Aside from Biden, other White House officials had trust issues regarding Trump's ability to retain secret information. For instance, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Representative Adam B. Schiff, echoed, "[A] number of intelligence partners around the world started withholding information from us because they didn't trust the president would safeguard that information. And that makes us less safe," per The New York Times.