The Federal Government holds a constitutional duty and a moral responsibility to uphold and promote the free speech rights of all Americans. However, recent years have seen a troubling trend where certain elitist leaders within the Government have unlawfully censored speech. These actions have involved the use of their unearned influence to silence political opponents and push preferred narratives, often based on flawed information concerning critical public issues.
These disgraceful acts have manifested as coercive threats aimed at the private sector, especially major social media platforms, with the intent to suppress conservative or dissenting voices. This manipulation of public discourse has severely distorted the free exchange of ideas and democratic debate, particularly during pivotal moments like a Presidential election.
One prominent figure in this issue is Christopher Krebs, the former head of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). Krebs has been identified as a significant bad-faith actor who misused his governmental authority to silence dissenting opinions. His actions included censoring views related to the 2020 election and the COVID-19 pandemic. Under his leadership, CISA suppressed conservative perspectives under the pretense of combating alleged disinformation, coercing major social media platforms to align with its partisan objectives.
During Krebs' tenure, CISA took measures to obscure public knowledge of the controversies surrounding Hunter Biden’s laptop. Moreover, Krebs actively promoted the censorship of crucial election information, including legitimate concerns about various voting practices. He also made unfounded claims denying any rigging or theft of the 2020 election, dismissing widespread allegations of election malfeasance and vulnerabilities in voting technology.
The abusive conduct exhibited by Krebs and his colleagues not only violates the First Amendment but also erodes public trust in government institutions, ultimately weakening the very fabric of our democracy. It is imperative that individuals who engage in or endorse such conduct be denied access to the nation’s secrets.
In light of these concerns, I have directed the heads of executive departments and agencies to promptly initiate actions, in accordance with existing law, to revoke any active security clearance held by Christopher Krebs. Additionally, I have instructed the Attorney General, the Director of National Intelligence, and other relevant agencies to take immediate steps to suspend any active security clearances of individuals associated with Krebs at entities including SentinelOne, pending a thorough review of their alignment with national interests.
I further direct the Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security, in collaboration with other agency heads, to conduct a comprehensive review of Krebs’ activities during his time as a government employee, particularly his leadership role at CISA. This review will assess any actions that may contravene suitability standards for federal employees and involve the unauthorized dissemination of classified information.
As part of this review process, I am mandating a thorough evaluation of all CISA activities from the past six years, with a specific focus on instances where the agency's conduct may have conflicted with the objectives outlined in Executive Order 14149, issued on January 20, 2025, which aims at restoring freedom of speech and ending federal censorship.
Upon completing these evaluations, the Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security will prepare a joint report to be submitted to the President through the Counsel to the President. This report will include recommendations for appropriate remedial or preventative actions necessary to uphold the principles and policies established in Executive Order 14149.
