The disclosure came three weeks after President Trump directed the Justice Department to investigate the former agency leader, Chris Krebs, in an act of score settling.
Trump administration officials said on Thursday that Chris Krebs, who debunked President Trump’s lies about the 2020 election as head of the federal cybersecurity agency, lost his membership in an expedited customs program for travelers because he is facing a federal investigation.
The officials declined to specify why Mr. Krebs was under investigation, nor did they indicate which agencies were conducting the inquiry. The disclosure came three weeks after Mr. Trump, in an act of score settling and intimidation, directed the Justice Department to investigate Mr. Krebs.
“Chris Krebs is under active investigation by law enforcement agencies,” a spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement. “That is a fact disqualifying him for global entry.”
The department offered no further explanation about the inquiry into Mr. Krebs, who was appointed to lead the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency by Mr. Trump in 2018. Asked about the suspension of Mr. Krebs’s Global Entry travel program status, a White House official supplied a similar statement, offering no other details. The official did not respond to a follow-up question.
It is unusual for a government law enforcement agency to confirm or deny an open investigation. Mr. Trump has cited comparable breaches of protocol in accusing law enforcement of trying to smear him during various investigations into his conduct.
The Global Entry program, administered by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, a division of the Homeland Security Department, allows low-risk travelers who have passed a clearance process to avoid time-consuming screening procedures at airports.
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Source: Elections - nytimes.com
