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Report: Biden staffers fired for past marijuana use after being told it would be ‘overlooked’

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A number of young White House staffers have been suspended, asked to resign, or placed in a remote work program due to past marijuana use, despite being told the past transgressions would be “overlooked,” The Daily Beast has reported.

Incoming staffers were initially told by the Biden administration that recreational use of cannabis would be “overlooked” and they were still encouraged to apply for the positions, sources told Daily Beast.

The staffers were fired because they revealed past marijuana use in an official document they filled out as part of the background check for a position in the Biden White House.

Many of the ex-staffers lived in one of the 14 U.S. states where marijuana use is legal.

“It’s exclusively targeting younger staff and staff who came from states where it was legal,” a former staffer said.

The staffer added that “nothing was ever explained” while on firing calls led by Anne Filipic, the House director of management and administration.

“The policies were never explained, the threshold for what was excusable and what was inexcusable was never explained,” the staffer said.

When asked about the White House’s policy on marijuana and its effect on the administration’s staffing, a WH spokesperson disputed the number of affected staff and said the Biden administration is “committed to bringing the best people into government—especially the young people whose commitment to public service can deepen in these positions.” The spokesperson noted that the White House’s approach to past marijuana use is “much more flexible” than previous administrations, the Daily Beat reported.

“The White House’s policy will maintain the absolute highest standards for service in government that the president expects from his administration, while acknowledging the reality that state and local marijuana laws have changed significantly across the country in recent years,” the spokesperson added. “This decision was made following intensive consultation with career security officials and will effectively protect our national security while modernizing policies to ensure that talented and otherwise well-qualified applicants with limited marijuana use will not be barred from serving the American people.”

The firings come after the Biden administration officially updated its guidelines earlier this year to allow for “limited” use of the drug in the past.

“I find it absurd that, in 2021, marijuana use is still part of a security clearance background check,” Tommy Vietor, former spokesperson for President Obama and the United States National Security Council, said Thursday. “To me, marijuana use is completely irrelevant when you’re trying to decide whether an individual should be trusted with national security information.”

While marijuana has been legalized in a growing number of states, in the eyes of the federal government, the drug remains illegal — making it difficult for staffers to get security clearances if they’ve used the drug before.

The president remains the final authority on who can receive a clearance.

Follow Annaliese Levy on Twitter @AnnalieseLevy

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Economy

White House announced $6 billion student loan forgiveness for 78,000 public service workers

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The White House recently announced a $6 billion loan forgiveness program. Nurses, teachers and firefighters are among the 78,000 public service workers who will qualify. Fox Business reports:

Due to fixes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, workers that never received forgiveness are now having their debts partially forgiven or canceled. Only about 7,000 public service borrowers received forgiveness prior to the Biden Administration, now that total hovers closer to 870,000, the announcement said.

“Today’s announcement comes on top of the significant progress we’ve achieved for students and student loan borrowers in the past few years,” the announcement stated. “This includes: providing the largest increases in Pell Grants in over a decade to help families who earn less than roughly $60,000 a year; fixing Income-Driven Repayment plans so borrowers in repayment for years get the relief they earned; and creating the most generous Income-Driven Repayment plan in history – the SAVE plan.”

However, there is concern over fairness that older generations are still paying off student loans and could risk losing Social Security. A group of representatives wrote a letter to Congress, hoping to address the issue of seniors still paying down student loans. Currently, under the Treasury Offset Program (TOP), the government can collect funds, such as tax refunds and Social Security, to pay outstanding student loan balances, reports Fox Business.

“Under the TOP, the federal government can withhold up to 15 percent of monthly Social Security or disability benefits for defaulted student loans,” the lawmakers explained in their letter.

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