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White House Bans Use of Personal Devices From West Wing (cbsnews.com)
In the wake of damaging reports of a chaotic Trump administration detailed in a new book from Michael Wolff, the White House is instituting new policies on the use of personal cellphones in the West Wing. CBS News reports: White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders released the following statement on the policy change: "The security and integrity of the technology systems at the White House is a top priority for the Trump administration and therefore starting next week the use of all personal devices for both guests and staff will no longer be allowed in the West Wing. Staff will be able to conduct business on their government-issued devices and continue working hard on behalf of the American people."
Wolff reportedly gained access to the White House where he conducted numerous interviews with staffers on the inner-workings of the Trump campaign and West Wing operations. Sanders told reporters Wednesday that there were about "a dozen" interactions between Wolff and White House officials, which she said took place at Bannon's request. The White House swiftly slammed the book and those who cooperated with Wolff.
Wolff reportedly gained access to the White House where he conducted numerous interviews with staffers on the inner-workings of the Trump campaign and West Wing operations. Sanders told reporters Wednesday that there were about "a dozen" interactions between Wolff and White House officials, which she said took place at Bannon's request. The White House swiftly slammed the book and those who cooperated with Wolff.
Sheesh!
Security? How about that personal iPhone Trump runs around tweeting with. Take that away too.
It is correct to ban the devices. Of course it would also be correct to get his impeachment underway, but republicans care less about the good of the country, than they do about the good of their donors. The obstruction continues as they look for ways not to get to the truth, but to suppress it.
As far as Trump ignoring the rules, well is anyone surprised? I'd laugh my arse off if someone managed to own his iPhone and publish a few weeks of audio on the internet, provided it didn't hurt the country too much.
Simply put, Trump keeping an iPhone like this is worse than at the time Hillary having her own server. The reason it is worse is the threat environment is worse now and Trump is a far more appealing target.
Hillary should have known better. Trump _does_ know better. He spent the entire election bitching about it. Security is a real thing. The curious thing is Hillary's server didn't get owned as near as we can tell, while the department server did. It is probably the case of a simple installation run by a non idiot with nothing special being sometimes more secure than an installation used by so many. The private server probably just had a smaller attack surface. That doesn't make it a good idea, since part of it not getting owned is likely luck.
Still Trump has no excuse. He values his ability to tweet instantly more than he values the security of the country. Every tweet he makes should be verified by a couple of lawyers and probably some major staff member just to make sure it doesn't make matters worse, such as his latest tweets saying his "button" was bigger than the other guys and Hillary's aid should be jailed...
...this is as much security theatre as the TSA.
And you fucking know it is.
If it was all fiction Trump would not be so desperate to get it discredited and blocked from sale. I am sure their will be plenty of bullshit in it, but can't be anyworse than the bullshit Trump makes up on a daily basis.
Well, it mustn't be that far off if its mere announcement managed to detonate all ties between Trump and Bannon and have the WH sending cease-and-desist letters over the span of a single day.
And the thing is not even out yet. We'll see in a week.
Exactly. This new policy is Trump shutting the barn door after the horse bolted. Wolfe was allowed to record conversations in the White House, which only becomes a problem when your entire staff thinks you're a retard.
Because if I made up stuff about you that was blatantly false, you wouldn't ask me to quit it ? Really ?
I mean, I guess Slander and libel are fine with you.
"Not to mention all the idiots who use words like boxen."
Anonymous Coward on Monday August 04, @06:49PM
You know what would be very interesting? Given Trump's paranoid tendencies, and his previous experience as a businessman in the very shady real estate industry, he might be recording all his conversations, Nixon-style. _Those_ would make for some very interesting listening. Business executives record their conversations all the time...they're used to being double-crossed.
Banning personal devices might limit recording, but every staffer he fires is going to get a book deal just based on their experience. One of the biggest leaks is the personal use of Twitter. Conversations like, "Mr. President, can you please refrain from telegraphing our foreign policy positions and your disposition to adversaries?" must be hard to have, especially when ignored.
Can we ask Trump to quit for all the blatantly false things he has said?
"Action without philosophy is a lethal weapon; philosophy without action is worthless."
Bannon was on the national security council and had TOP-SECRET clearance. Now Trump says he has lost his mind. Bad judgement.
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SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
Every government on Earth is composed entirely of humans.
Most state leaders have pets, usually at least a dog, which presumably helps calm the humans and reduces the risk of rash decisions.
(Trump is the first US president in over a century that doesn't have a pooch. He hates them, like he hates anyone smarter than he is.)