Kushner spent 7 hours with Mueller investigators last month

FAN Editor

President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior advisor, Jared Kushner, spent nearly seven hours with special counsel Robert Mueller’s team earlier this year for a second interview, a source familiar with the meeting confirmed Wednesday to ABC News.

The source added that, in the two times Kushner has met with investigators, it was in the role of witness – not as a target. The first interview, which happened in late 2017, largely dealt with Trump’s former national security adviser, Michael Flynn., according to the source.

The second, which occurred in April of this year, focused on the campaign, the transition and other topics, including the circumstances of the firing of former FBI Director James Comey, the source said, adding that there were no questions about Kushner’s financial dealings or his family business.

The news of the Mueller interview comes as ABC News has learned Kushner has been granted a permanent security clearance on Wednesday after a lengthy review by the White House and FBI, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Kushner’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, confirmed the change in Kushner’s security status. This caps a nearly 18- month review of his security application, which was held up after Kushner failed to disclose contacts he had with foreign officials – including Russians – as required by law.

“With respect to the news about his clearances, as we stated before, his application was properly submitted, reviewed by numerous career officials and underwent the normal process,” Kushner’s attorney Abbe Lowell said in a statement.

“Having completed all of these processes, he’s looking forward to continuing to do the work the president has asked him to do.”

In February, Kushner was stripped of his temporary, high-level security clearance after White House chief of staff John Kelly imposed new rules designed to crack down on West Wing staff with long-pending background investigations, sources told ABC News at the time.

Another attorney for Kushner, Jamie Gorelick, said that Kushner’s security clearance form, known as an SF-86, was “prematurely submitted” and that “among other errors, [it] did not list any contacts with foreign government officials.”

Kushner later updated the questionnaire multiple times to account for all relevant meetings, including “over 100 calls or meetings with representatives of more than 20 countries,” Gorelick told ABC News.

It was not immediately clear whether Kushner had access to some classified material in the months since his clearance was downgraded. At the time, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News that Kushner’s downgraded clearance may still allow him access to sensitive information, but details were never clarified.

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