Former presidents are sometimes consulted (quietly) when there is a crisis for which their experience may be useful. In that instance whoever the current president is decides what and how much to share with them. That may or may not include regular briefings on certain topics, but it’s always at the discretion of the current president, and of course only if the old guy feels like helping out.
There should be a sticky for future threads: The President is the head of the executive branch. No regulation on what is classified material applies to the President. If Hillary wants to call ME up and tell me a bunch of classified information to solicit my advice, then that is her privilege by virtue of being the President. Any law attempting to restrict that would be an unconstitutional violation of separation of powers.
Per this NY Daily News article:
So as of 1980, former presidents were receiving intelligence briefings?
Correct, but if stuff was leaking and the source was someone without a security clearance who the President trusted, impeachment would likely follow. Presidents have to be very careful about this stuff.
Personally I’d be very surprised if many Presidents haven’t discussed sensitive policy issues with their spouses (or at least the shrewder spouses) from time to time when they needed a fresh perspective from someone who didn’t work for them. I don’t know if GWB ever talked things over with Laura Bush, for example, but Bill undoubtedly shared with Hillary. Nancy Reagan, Eleanor Roosevelt and Florence Harding, to pick some easy examples, were also notoriously involved with current political matters during their tenures as FLOTUS. It’s often controversial, but it’s not unexpected.
As noted, of course, if the FLOTUS then leaked sensitive information elsewhere it’d be the President’s head that would roll, but that’s part of the job.
It wouldn’t surprise me to hear that Michelle Obama was consulted on a few issues by Barack.
Nor would it surprise me to hear that she has told him that she didn’t want to be “in the know” on some of those issues, like taking out Osama bin Laden.
Laws do not apply to the Clintons!
Cite please.
The FBI.
Good point. Like Presidents are allowed to pardon people but if they started pardoning serial killers, impeachment would likely follow. So they have to be really careful.