“Presidents can keep them for 4 years after leaving office.”
Presidents don’t have security clearances in the first place, so how can they keep them? Security clearances flow from the President down, not in the other direction.
In other words, they are privacy to classified information for 4 years.
Not this nonsense that once President they’re cleared for life.
It was said that Soetero wouldn’t have been able to get one through traditional means.