Officials in at least four countries -- the United Arab Emirates, China, Israel and Mexico -- discussed ways they could manipulate White House adviser Jared Kushner through his "complex business arrangements, financial difficulties and lack of foreign policy experience," the Washington Post reported Tuesday, citing unnamed current and former U.S. officials "familiar with intelligence reports on the matter."

The news comes as reports emerged Tuesday of Kushner and other White House appointees' security clearances having been downgraded.

The Post reported:

   Officials from the UAE identified Kushner as early as the spring of 2017 as particularly manipulable because of his family's search for investors in their real estate company, current and former officials said.

Peter Mirijanian, a spokesperson for Kushner's lawyer, told the Post: "We will not respond substantively to unnamed sources peddling second-hand hearsay with rank speculation that continue to leak inaccurate information."

I wonder, too, about the Trump v. Kelly situation: did Trump expect that the "right thing" he said Kelly would do would be to let Jared's interim clearance stand?

White House Communications Director Hope Hicks will resign in the coming weeks, the New York Times' first reported Wednesday.

The announcement comes one day after Hicks testified before the House Intelligence Committee for their investigation of Russian meddling in the 2016 election.

She reportedly told the committee she sometimes tells "white lies" in her official capacity.

Hicks is the fourth person to serve as communications director in the Trump administration, in addition to Sean Spicer, Mike Dubke and Anthony Scaramucci.