2/25/2025: Memo:Suspension of Security Clearances and Evaluation of Government Contracts. Directs agencies to remove clearances for the law firm Covington & Burling (and a named attorney, Peter Koski), and to evaluate government contracts with the firm. Koski and Covington & Burling worked with former Special Counsel Jack Smith (Trump criminal cases).

The order directs Federal agencies to suspend any active security clearances held by Miles Taylor and individuals at entities associated with him, pending a review of whether such clearances are in the national interest. This directive involves the Attorney General, the Director of National Intelligence, and all other relevant executive department and agency heads. The Secretary of Homeland Security is also directed to review Taylor's activities as a government employee, identify any instances of unauthorized dissemination of classified information, and prepare a report with recommendations for appropriate remedial or preventative actions. [Editor: Miles Taylor is a former Trump I administration official (DHS) who criticized the president's handling of classified documents and other conduct.]

The order directs Federal agencies to revoke any active security clearance held by Christopher Krebs. It instructs the Attorney General, the Director of National Intelligence, and other relevant agencies to suspend any active security clearances held by individuals associated with Krebs, including those at SentinelOne, pending a review. Additionally, the Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security are directed to review Krebs' activities as a government employee, including his leadership of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and to evaluate all of CISA’s activities over the last six years, with a joint report to be prepared upon completion. [Editor: Christopher Krebs is a former Trump I administration cyber-security official. Later he was a cyber-security official in the Biden administration. He was critical of the president in November of 2020 as the president sought to spread falsehoods about the election. The president fired Krebs via tweet.]

The order directs Federal agencies to suspend any active security clearances held by individuals at Susman Godfrey LLP, pending a review of whether such clearances align with national interest. The Office of Management and Budget is instructed to identify all government goods and services provided for the benefit of Susman Godfrey LLP, and agency heads are to cease such provision where legally permissible. Government contracting agencies are directed to require contractors to disclose any business they do with Susman Godfrey LLP, and agency heads are to review and potentially terminate contracts with Susman Godfrey LLP or entities doing business with them, in accordance with the law. [Editor: Susman Godfrey represented election systems maker Dominion Voting Systems in its succesful defamation lawsuit against Fox News. Fox News and Trump allies had spread falsehoods about Domion's machines following the president's election loss in 2020.]

The five law firms are said to have signed the deals in order to remove the possibility they might be sanctioned by the administration. In addition to the provision of pro bono legal work, the firms agreed to eliminate DEI in hiring and other practices.

The FBI has suspended an agent, Brian Auten, who had worked on two high-profile investigations: Russian meddling in the 2016 election and the analysis of Hunter Biden's laptop. FBI chief Kash Patel included Auten's name in a list of federal employees contained in a book he wrote ("Government Gangsters").

Chris Krebs, a former Trump I cybersecurity official, is now under investigation by federal authorities. Krebs had criticized the president for his comments on election security following the 2020 election. Earlier this week Krebs was informed he’d lost his Global Entry privileges. Later, DHS confirmed this was due to the investigation.

The journal Nature has tallied up the number, and value, of federal research grants the Trump administration has cut from Harvard researchers: nearly 1,000 worth $2.4 billion. By far the largest number of deleted grants were offered by the National Institutes of Health, for bio-medical research (600 grants worth $2.2 billion over multiple years). Other federal agencies to cut grants are the Department of Defense (56 grants, $105 million), and the National Science Foundation (193 grants, $150 million).

The administration is making it harder for all foreigners to visit Harvard University, not just international students. Visa applicants whose itinerary includes a visit to Harvard will undergo additional screening, including review of their social media accounts. The enhanced measures extend to "faculty, employees, contractors, guest speakers, and tourists," according to a State Department memo reviewed by the Washington Post.