White House employees signed nondisclosure agreements after President Trump asked them to, according to a report Sunday.
In the early months of the administration, Trump, upset about leaks from the White House, asked staff members to sign nondisclosure agreements vowing not to reveal confidential information and exposing them to damages for any violation, the Washington Post reported.
Some employees initially resisted, but complied when pressed by then-chief of staff Reince Priebus and the White House Counsel’s Office, concluding the agreements would likely not be legally enforceable.
The agreements limiting public disclosures of White House happenings are intended to last beyond Trump’s presidency.
The Post obtained a draft copy of the agreement, but has not seen a final version.
It would force violators of the agreement to pay financial penalties to the federal government, for any unauthorized revelation of “confidential” information, defined as “all nonpublic information I learn of or gain access to in the course of my official duties in the service of the United States Government on White House staff,” including “communications … with members of the press” and “with employees of federal, state, and local governments.”
It would prohibit revelation of confidential information in any form, including, “the publication of works of fiction that contain any mention of the operations of the White House, federal agencies, foreign governments, or other entities interacting with the United States Government that is based on confidential information.”
The restrictions would apply to Trump staff not only during their White House tenure, but also “at all times thereafter.”
