fiondaJul 17, 2023
Kevin Collier
This is truly jaw-dropping. Absolutely no one's doubting her credentials. A young Black woman already doing the job of acting National Cyber Director can't get formally Senate confirmed in that role because she has debt?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/07/15/kemba-walden-nomination-cyber-director/
Personal debts said to scuttle nomination of Biden’s acting cyber director

The White House has said it won't nominate Kemba Walden to be national cyber director over personal debts. The rationale has stunned colleagues.

The Washington Post
Jul 15, 2023 at 7:33pmMastodon for Android
Show threadAlex WildJul 15, 2023
@kevincollier Wow, funny how debt wasn't an issue for Brett Kavanaugh.
Show threadSamhain NightJul 15, 2023
@alexwild @kevincollier Just what I was thinking.
Show threadSharon Gibson MorganJul 15, 2023
@alexwild @kevincollier That's exactly what I was thinking.
Show threadFirstName BunchOfNumbersJul 16, 2023

@alexwild @kevincollier came here to say exactly this. Glad you did it for me!

Who *did* pay those debts, I wonder 🤔

Show threadOkazuYuriJul 15, 2023
@kevincollier But Santos got elected and that's okay
Show threadMothJul 15, 2023
@kevincollier and yet "Walden has a security clearance, which requires a scrub for unusually high debt that could expose a person to blackmail or recruitment by a foreign agent".
Show threadAmy HoyJul 16, 2023

@phoccer @kevincollier my brother was denied a security clearance for debt (he’s white) so there’s a data point.

the debt thing for security roles is a serious issue. but if she already passed clearance…

Show threadMothJul 17, 2023
@amy totally agree debt in security roles can be an issue. Like you said, having already received clearance requiring a debt check… this all seems very odd.
Show threadFardels BearJul 15, 2023

@kevincollier

She obviously needs to find a billionaire to pay off her debts. It worked for Brett Kavanaugh and Clarence Thomas.

Show threadSteve RigginsJul 15, 2023
@kevincollier she needs a rich white republican benefactor to secretly pay off her debts like Kavanaugh did
Show threadCam-ba-lopeJul 15, 2023
@kevincollier any way past the paywall? 12ft.io hasn't worked in a while
Show threadLursJul 16, 2023
@weatherprince @kevincollier open the link in safari and hit show reader you should be able to get past the paywall.
Show threadLazarou Monkey Terror 🚀💙🌈Jul 16, 2023
@kevincollier one way of knowing she's not crooked and not in a Billionaire's pocket, she's drowning in debt like the rest of us.
Show threadSusanBee Jul 16, 2023
@kevincollier Drunky McDrunkerson had huge debt that was mysteriously paid off by persons unknown and yet he’s a SCOTUS judge now. Somehow the white rapey guy got a pass and she doesn’t? I can’t qwhite put my finger on why.
Show threadMark T. TomczakJul 16, 2023

@kevincollier The rule about debt dates back to the Cold War in general for security positions; a debt that can be settled is a pressure point for turning an asset. It's something I was advised about when I was younger and might have ended up in a role that included security clearance: "use credit cards so your credit score goes up, but pay them consistently so the OPM doesn't have any pointed questions during a background check."

... but I think that's a rule that can and should be revisited in a nation where we've basically decided to debt-finance the way we all live.

Show threadCeleste PewterJul 16, 2023
@mark @kevincollier I was just coming here to say this. A lot of the the natsec field operates under super antiquated rules, which is going to make it harder to find a diverse cohort.
Show threadAgoraJul 16, 2023
@Celeste_pewter @mark @kevincollier isn't that the point?
Show threadJohn VecheyJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier jesus
Show threadMxhradJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier She just needs a Nazi to pay off her debts and Republicans will 100% vote for her.
Show threadJTrottJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier
DeSantis would love to have that criterion in his Christian White Nationalist arsenal.
Show threadlazy_cometJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier why didn’t somebody pay off her debts like those guys paid off Kavanaugh’s debts
Show threadErin ConroyJul 16, 2023

@kevincollier

Trump was the king of debt and bankruptcy and yet people were willing to let him act as the President.

Gosh, what could be the difference.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/danalexander/2021/10/07/trumps-debt-now-totals-an-estimated-13-billion/

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/12/donald-trump-undisclosed-debt

https://www.politico.com/video/2023/05/10/trump-u-s-might-as-well-default-on-debt-910431

Trump’s Debt Now Totals An Estimated $1.3 Billion

The real estate mogul should have no problem paying back his loans in the short term. But come 2024, when he might be running for president again, things could get dicey.

Forbes
Show threadBleistifterinJul 16, 2023
@chargrille @kevincollier he was/is also corrupt to the bones and I would not be surprised if his debts compromised him in Russia and Saudi Arabia.
Also, when will they indict him for emulement?
Show threadWoodswalkedJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier
Massive debt didn’t slow Kavenaugh.
I understand that debt is always a security issue, but this is pretext.
Show threadWolleysegapJul 16, 2023
@Woodswalked @kevincollier Yes. It is the classic rules for thee, but not for me
Show threadEdgeJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier @chargrille This is completely disgusting. They have no idea about the lives of Americans.
Show threadDaniel AJ SokolovJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier
I don't know the details/politics of this specific case. But I know that #debt is a serious #risk factor for security #clearances. Ask any #intelligence agency.
Show threadRagnell the Mildly UnpleasantJul 16, 2023
@newstik @kevincollier Yeah, but you can still get the clearance as long as you make it clear you have debt. No one's without a weak spot, and if you're honest about yours they expect you'll come to them if someone tries to press your weak spot.
Show threadRenéeJul 16, 2023
@ragnell @newstik @kevincollier like, who doesn't have student loans and a mortgage? That disqualifies anyone but trust fund babies FFS.
Show threadDaniel AJ SokolovJul 16, 2023

@reneestephen @ragnell @kevincollier Now you know why it is so important that public servants receive student loan relief.

Now having debt isn't an automatic disqualification. I don't process security clearances, but I assume that debt amount in relation to income as well as assets, trend (these relations going up/down), credit rating, non-imminent liabilities (a family member with a severe illness/addiction/connection to crime, being sued for damages by a third party, etc) play a role.

Show threadRenéeJul 16, 2023

@newstik And here I was thinking that free tertiary education and not saddling people with debt to achieve it was simply something that healthy countries provided for citizens because education is a strong social good, but sure, this is a good reason too

@ragnell @kevincollier

Show threadDaniel AJ SokolovJul 16, 2023
@reneestephen @ragnell @kevincollier #Education you don't have to pay for supports upward social mobility. How would that be in the immediate interest of the elite?
Show threadferricoxideJul 16, 2023
@ragnell @newstik @kevincollier For clearances, it's more the nature of the debt and your ability to eventually clear that debt.
Show threadRagnell the Mildly UnpleasantJul 16, 2023
@ferricoxide @kevincollier @newstik So it's probably student loan debt, which is unclearable.
Show threadferricoxideJul 16, 2023
@ragnell @kevincollier @newstik

"Clearable" as in "can you retire the debt based on current and like future excess earnings" (where "excess" being what you have after your cost of living).


There's a reason so much of the DC area federal workforce lives in PG county and deeper suburbs of Maryland and Virginia: cost of living is considerably lower than if they were to live within public transit distance of their jobs.
Show threadDaniel AJ SokolovJul 17, 2023
@ferricoxide @kevincollier @ragnell Makes sense. So if your debt is rising, it's a problem. (And if I understand the report correctly, this couple has been going deeper into debt to pay for better schooling for their children, which may continue for years to come, so the debt is likely not clearable for a considerable amount of time?)
Show threadferricoxideJul 17, 2023
@newstik @kevincollier @ragnell

I can't speak to their rejection of her just the process that other entities that consider debt in their trust-evaluations for potential "hires". I just know that debt is seen as a point of leverage. Meaning that, if someone has too much debt, particularly the kind of "too much" that is difficult for them to clear without "hardship", someone could use that to either extort or entice them into revealing high-value information in exchange for under-the-table help. As such, people in a "too much debt" scenario are often declined positions of trust (much the same way landlords or mortgage companies will look at your income and credit reports and try to make a reasonable determination of whether you are likely able and willing to pay your liabilities on time).
Show threadLursJul 16, 2023
@newstik @kevincollier she has security clearance.
Show threadAndiJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier lt <Leonard Leo or similar> apparently only pays off debt for corrupt white males … 🤔😢
Show threadFerdi MagellanJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier
The oligarchy retains its grip.
Show threadgeographileJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier maybe someone can figure out who paid Kavanaugh's debts and ask them to help her.
Show threadChuckJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier Because Republicans are only happy when people are saddled with burdensome debt (see: student loan forgiveness). They ate so insecure about their place in the world that other people’s suffering is the only thing that makes them feel superior.
Show threadJoyce ParkJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier And we all should know that Black women have to take on way more debt than anyone else to get through college. :(
Show threadAgoraJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier 🤦🏾‍♀️🤦🏾‍♀️ we are so screwed.
Show threadRobert MJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier She should apply to be a Supreme Court Justice ...
Show threadShannonJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier Crazy.
Show threadbubbajetJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier @lisamelton Young, black, woman, with personal debt. Pretty sure it’s not the debt that’s keeping her out.
Show threadMickJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier Who paid off SCOTUS Kavanaughs 100,000 debt? The gop corrupt everything.
Show threadAKMAJul 16, 2023

@kevincollier

Justice Kavanaugh may be able to advise her on how to clear a large debt in a short time once one has been nominated for an important office.

Show threadWogan MayJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier Could anyone with personal debt get confirmation for that role, though? It's one of *the* most low-hanging fruit for corruption risk.
Show threadJosh O'Connor-ChenJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier wait, they're defining "debt" as "has a mortgage"? What the actual.
Show threadMugsysRapSheet Blog ☑️Jul 16, 2023

@kevincollier
If having #Debt makes one too much of a security risk to be in charge of #ClassifiedDocs...

...I think you see where I'm going with this. 😞 #GOPHypocrisy #IOKIYAR #CyberSecurityDirector

Show threadKerri LevineJul 16, 2023

@kevincollier

But paying off the debt for a SCOTUS nominee is fine.

Show threadrēd ⭐Jul 16, 2023
@kevincollier https://www.usdebtclock.org/
Show threadBen WestJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier Biden's eventual successor most certainly will not be as zealous in screening their nominees for unsecured personal debt. With that successor perhaps only 18 months away, this is nothing but self defeating.
Show threadjohnbessaJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier Biden is behind this. Historically, he is no great shakes:
The White House’s preferred choice is Harry Coker, a former top official at the CIA and National Security Agency who is well-regarded, two people said. Coker, who is Black, is undergoing the vetting process now, they said.
Show threadferricoxideJul 16, 2023
@kevincollier When you don't have patrons like Kavanaugh's...
Show threadNick PhillipsJul 17, 2023
@kevincollier "Has debt" clearly a proxy for "not corrupt enough"...
Show threadMordantivoreJul 17, 2023

@kevincollier it's pretty common that debts will disqualify someone for classified clearances but also Biden can have those requirements waived (as Trump did w Kusher, his kids, others)

It's because she's Black (and probably being a woman doesn't help, in his eyes) that he won't lift a finger