President Donald Trump is considering revoking security clearances for ex-CIA Director John Brennan and other Obama-era critics of his administration.
The White House named six former intelligence, law enforcement and national security chiefs.
Press secretary Sarah Sanders said they had “politicised and in some cases monetised their public service” to make “baseless accusations” about Mr Trump.
They include former FBI Director James Comey, whom the president fired.
In Monday’s daily news conference, Mrs Sanders also targeted former Director of National Intelligence National James Clapper, former National Security Adviser Susan Rice, former National Security Agency Director Michael Hayden and former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe.
Mrs Sanders denied a reporter’s suggestion that the president wanted to punish the former officials for free speech.
The press secretary said Mr Trump “doesn’t like the fact that people are politicising agencies and departments that are specifically meant to not be political and to be monetised off security clearances”.
She said security clearance “provides inappropriate legitimacy to accusations with zero evidence”.
Mr Clapper told CNN the plan was “a very, very petty thing to do”.
Mrs Sanders said that “accusing the president of the United States of treasonous activity… when you have the nation’s deepest, most sacred secrets at your hands” was something that made Mr Trump “very concerned”.
This story is from The BBC News. To read the full story, please go to https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-44930955.