President Donald Trump’s choice to serve as director of national intelligence (DNI), former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D/R-HI), says that past marijuana use should not disqualify a person from receiving a security clearance—but “ongoing” use of cannabis is a “more complex” eligibility consideration.
Gabbard addressed two questions regarding cannabis policy in her written replies to the Senate Intelligence Committee’s questions. While Gabbard has advocated marijuana decriminalization in the past and may have even suggested that support was possible for more sweeping drug decriminalization efforts, she walked a fine line when asked to comment on the topic as part of the confirmation process.
Gabbard’s response was that she did not agree with DNI policies “that prior marijuana use is not determinative for the determination of security clearances.” The question asked whether she agreed that “ongoing marijuana usage should also not be determined and treated as alcohol consumption.”
The former congresswoman said, “I agree that the DNI’s current policy is not to use past marijuana consumption as a factor in determining security clearances. This applies only if it does not reflect broader concerns with judgment and reliability.
She added, “however the ongoing use of marijuana is a more complicated issue, since it’s still illegal under federal laws.” It must be evaluated carefully in the context of an applicant’s behavior and their compliance with the law. “The applicant’s ability to protect classified information.”
A more general question was asked to the nominee: “Does cannabis use ever constitute a reason for refusing an individual access to classified data?”
She affirmed that the decision to grant a security clearance “must always be made individually, taking into consideration an individual’s judgment, their reliability and their ability to protect classified information.”
As cannabis laws change at the state-level, [intelligence community] Gabbard added that it was important to balance the adherence of federal laws with a knowledge of social changes. If confirmed, I will work to make sure that clearance decisions are consistent and fair while taking into account individual circumstances.
Although the Intelligence Committee’s QFRs do not indicate who asked each question, Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon has worked for years to ensure that applicants to intelligence agencies, such as CIA and NSA, aren’t denied security clearances because they have admitted to previous cannabis consumption.
It was not enacted. In 2023 the committee decided to amend a bill on intelligence oversight to include Wyden’s reform.
Avril Haines, the former DNI for Joe Biden and his successor, stated separately that the current federal government policy is to not deny security clearances solely based on marijuana use. This is contrary to the recruitment effort, in particular, given the legalization trend.
Gabbard’s ambiguous responses to QFRs are inconsistent with the drug policies she defended in Congress, and when she ran for 2020 Democratic Presidential nomination.
Gabbard has spent eight years as a member of Congress. She is a strong advocate for cannabis and hemp reform. Gabbard introduced numerous pieces on the subject and worked to gain bipartisan support.
She told MEDCAN24 that in 2020, “The more I learned and the more I researched, I realized how outdated our laws were in relation to cannabis, in particular, as well as how many opportunities there are, both from a health perspective and an economic one. This is especially true for hemp.”
The same year, she stated that the “direction we should take” is to decriminalize individuals’ choice to consume whatever substance they choose while continuing to criminalize those who traffic and sell these drugs.
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Lorie Schaull provided the photo element.