US President Donald Trump reportedly ordered his chief of staff in May to grant his son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner a top-secret security clearance.
The New York Times says senior administration officials were troubled by the decision, which prompted then White House Chief of Staff John Kelly to write an internal memo about how he had been ordered to give Kushner the clearance.
The White House counsel at the time, Donald McGahn, also penned a memo outlining concerns raised about Kushner and how McGahn had recommended against the decision.
The Times said the memos contradicted a statement made by Trump in an interview with the newspaper in January that he had no role in Kushner's receiving his clearance.
Asked about the report, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said: "We don't comment on security clearances."
Peter Mirijanian, a spokesman for Kushner's attorney Abbe Lowell, said in an email White House and security clearance officials last year asserted Kushner's clearance was "handled in the regular process with no pressure from anyone".
"New stories, if accurate, do not change what was affirmed at the time," Mirijanian said.
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