Intern applicants at the White House must continue to disclose any prior drug use — including cannabis, and even if that use occurred within a legalized state or jurisdiction — Marijuana Moment reports.
Ignoring calls to relax its drug use disclosure policies, the White House listed the requirement in an intern FAQ on its website. Candidates who advance in the hiring process will have to fill out a Security Clearance Form and past cannabis use is listed as an activity that “could affect eligibility,” the report says.
The revelation on the FAQ is not a departure from the White House’s previous stance on the issue. Reports emerged early in the Biden administration of staffers being terminated due to past cannabis use. Former Press Secretary Jen Psaki tried to dampen the controversy by stating that no staffers had been fired for “marijuana usage from years ago,” or “due to casual or infrequent use during the prior 12 months.” However, she failed to clarify whether any employees had been suspended or handed remote work after admitting to past cannabis consumption on a federal background check.
President Joe Biden (D) has long been opposed to cannabis legalization but earlier this year did grant clemency to a number of people convicted of federal cannabis crimes. It was the president’s only visible effort to follow through on his cannabis campaign trail promises, so far.
A report from last year by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) revealed that the president has the power to go further and grant mass federal pardons for cannabis convictions.
Voters in Washington DC opted to legalize adult-use cannabis in 2014 although cannabis remains strictly prohibited on federal properties.
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