Elon Musk’s Governmental Security Clearance in Question Over Pot Use: Report
“I mean, it’s legal, right?” said Musk before taking a toke during the Joe Rogan interview.
SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk's secret security clearance is under review by the Pentagon over the billionaire's pot use on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast, reports Bloomberg.
Musk reportedly recently refiled his SF-86 form, titled “Questionnaire for National Security Positions.” The questionnaire is required to be filed by any government employee or contractor who seeks any form of security clearance through the U.S. government, including those who renew expiring clearances. Musk in particular holds a secret-level clearance due to his close intertwinings as the CEO of SpaceX and the company's governmental contracts with NASA.
A U.S. official reportedly presented Bloomberg with the news, which was later noted not to have a noticeable impact on the day-to-day operations at SpaceX by an employee. Meanwhile, the Department of Defense (DOD) says that it isn't abnormal to have such information reviewed and updated accordingly.
“The Department of Defense is following its normal process when information which may affect an individual’s clearance eligibility is brought to our attention,” said the DOD in an email to Bloomberg. “For privacy and security reasons, we do not publicly discuss individual clearance status.”
Musk, a living and breathing meme, toked on an episode of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast and received heavy backlash from investors and critics. While recreational cannabis is legal in California, where the episode of Rogan's podcast was recorded, it still remains illegal on a federal level—hence the review by the DOD. Other people found the conversation to be a humanizing conversation for the CEO who pleaded that people "be nicer to each other".
This also isn't the first time that Musk's special stuff has gotten him into a bit of a kerfuffle. The Securities and Exchange Commission says that the CEO's most notorious tweet regarding taking Tesla private at $420 per share was most definitely about weed, which, for the record, Musk previously denied.
