Yes, presidential nominees receive intelligence briefings

The presidential candidates for the 2024 general election are all but decided: President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are on track to easily secure their parties’ nominations.

Trump will be campaigning while facing four different criminal prosecutions, including one for mishandling classified documents.

Many VERIFY readers wanted to know whether, as the Republican nominee, Trump might soon again have access to classified intelligence briefings, echoing concerns some conservatives raised about Hillary Clinton in 2016 following her email scandal.

THE QUESTION

Do presidential nominees receive intelligence briefings?

THE SOURCES

• Central Intelligence Agency

• Center for Presidential Transition, a nonprofit group

• Kenneth Gray, a former FBI agent and current criminal justice lecturer at the University of New Haven

THE ANSWER

Yes, presidential nominees receive intelligence briefings.

WHAT WE FOUND

Presidential nominees have historically been briefed on national security matters, but such briefings are not required by law.

The custom began in the 1950s, after Harry Truman was shocked to learn of the existence of the atomic bomb only after he took office.

Ever since, the sitting presidential administration has offered intelligence briefings in some form to top candidates to ensure a smooth transfer of power and avoid any surprises that could weaken national security.

Because there’s no law requiring these briefings, precisely who receives them, when they are given, their frequency, and what they cover isn’t set in stone. But, historically they’re given to candidates after they’re officially nominated at the conventions, and they contain only a broad overview of threats and national security issues.

Candidates can decline these briefings; Republican nominee Barry Goldwater did in 1964, a CIA spokesperson told VERIFY. 

In 2016, Republican Speaker of the House Paul Ryan lobbied unsuccessfully for the Obama administration to refuse to brief Hillary Clinton, saying she couldn’t be trusted with the intelligence following her email scandal. Clinton used a private email server while Secretary of State, which led to an extensive investigation into the potential security vulnerabilities that might have caused, but no criminal charges were filed related to the investigation.

In 2023, former President Trump was charged with criminal mishandling of classified material after he refused to return several boxes of documents to the National Archives, instead keeping them at his Mar-a-Lago club, where he allegedly allowed people to view them who did not have clearance. Nonetheless, multiple outlets have reported that the Biden administration will brief Donald Trump if and when he’s nominated. But it is not required to do so.