this post was submitted on 18 Dec 2024
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Summary

Elon Musk is unlikely to receive the highest-level government security clearance due to concerns over drug use, foreign contacts, and potential risks of disclosing classified information, according to Wall Street Journal reports.

Musk, who holds “top-secret” clearance, has faced scrutiny for past drug use, including marijuana and alleged ketamine use, and reported contacts with Vladimir Putin since 2022.

SpaceX lawyers advised against seeking higher clearance, fearing denial and revocation of existing clearances.

While Musk may bypass traditional clearance under Trump’s incoming administration, he currently lacks access to SpaceX's most classified projects.

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[–] boaratio@lemmy.world 63 points 4 days ago (4 children)

I had a friend, at my first job out of college, have his "sensitive" security clearance denied after a full year of background checks because during his polygraph he admitted to trying cocaine when he was in college. That's the lowest level of security clearance, and yet musk somehow has a clearance near the top.

[–] ThomasCrappersGhost@feddit.uk 28 points 4 days ago (1 children)

I bet the secret ingredient is money.

[–] ours@lemmy.world 7 points 4 days ago

And the content of their address book.

[–] vikingr@lemmy.world 18 points 4 days ago (1 children)

This happened to me almost 20 years ago. Answered truthfully about smoking weed. Instant denial.

[–] Someonelol@lemmy.dbzer0.com 15 points 4 days ago (1 children)

Yep. The spooks are prudes about weed. No wonder we have a lack of talent in classified work.

[–] Cosmonauticus@lemmy.world 7 points 4 days ago

Seems to me they're just weeding out the folks who can't lie. Can't have any honest ppl in government /s

[–] bitjunkie@lemmy.world 8 points 4 days ago

Did your friend have hundreds of billions of dollars?

[–] pearsaltchocolatebar@discuss.online 4 points 4 days ago (1 children)

How long ago was it? When I did mine, there was an established secondary process if you answered about drugs to explain the circumstances around your usage.

[–] boaratio@lemmy.world 4 points 4 days ago

2005, long before any states had legalized weed or any other recreational drugs.

[–] hark@lemmy.world 92 points 4 days ago (3 children)

I hope he pisses off trump enough to get destroyed.

[–] HootinNHollerin@lemmy.dbzer0.com 59 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

Hopefully they destroy each other while they’re at it

[–] Mobiuthuselah@lemm.ee 52 points 4 days ago (2 children)

If enough people start talking about President Musk and his sidekick Trump...

[–] takeda@lemmy.world 6 points 4 days ago (1 children)
[–] VieuxQueb@lemmy.ca 1 points 4 days ago

This has to spread enough for orange turd to watch !

[–] Chainweasel@lemmy.world 18 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

It's inevitable.
They're both extreme narcissists and only Trump has any legitimate power out of the two. Eventually musk will try too hard to control him and Trump will use everything in his power to destroy him which, thanks to the Supreme Court, is now unlimited.
So I'd expect to see the IRS weaponized against Musk sometime in the next 12 months at the absolute latest.

[–] Red_October@lemmy.world 42 points 4 days ago

It's a good thing Trump has a history of rigorously protecting classified documents, right guys?

[–] treadful@lemmy.zip 59 points 4 days ago (6 children)

Musk, who holds “top-secret” clearance, has faced scrutiny for past drug use, including marijuana and alleged ketamine use, and reported contacts with Vladimir Putin since 2022.

That escalated quickly.

[–] SarcasticMan@lemmy.world 38 points 4 days ago

Marijuanas is a gateway drug. I smoked 3 marijuanas and 5 weeks later came out of my k hole and I was in the middle of multi-billion dollar business deal with Kim Jong Un. Never smoking marijuanas again.

[–] Deceptichum@quokk.au 19 points 4 days ago (1 children)

That's the logical progression from smoking a marijuana, it's not worth doing it.

[–] tiptaptoe@lemmy.sdf.org 15 points 4 days ago (1 children)

That's correct, been smoking for a few years now and didn't meed Putin until last month.

[–] Jesus_666@lemmy.world 13 points 4 days ago

Remember the classical progression: Marijuana, then ketamine, then Putin.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 13 points 4 days ago

I would bet his ketamine use predated the time he famously smoked weed on Rogan's show.

And he does not strike me as a regular consumer of cannabis.

[–] JackFrostNCola@lemmy.world 8 points 4 days ago

Remember kids, Putin: not even once.

[–] Graphy@lemmy.world 8 points 4 days ago

I quickly went from thinking “yeah i can’t blame him those sound like the usual reasons why no one wants to work for the feds” to “oh”

[–] HootinNHollerin@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

One of those is not like the others

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 24 points 4 days ago (2 children)

Is it unlikely or will he not get it?

Anyway, whatever level of security clearance he gets, he'll invariably blab out some secret on Twitter while making one of his "hilarious" jokes during a ketamine binge.

[–] DreamlandLividity@lemmy.world 9 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

If I am not mistaken, the President has a lot of authority over security clearances. So for the next 4 years, just like with many other things, it will depend on how a certain Orange feels that day.

[–] ILikeBoobies@lemmy.ca 7 points 4 days ago

Trump already gave military secrets out on twitter during his last presidency

It’s not as low of a bar as you think

[–] HootinNHollerin@slrpnk.net 29 points 4 days ago

He shouldn’t have any clearance

[–] tiptaptoe@lemmy.sdf.org 22 points 4 days ago (1 children)

Interesting that he doesnt have access to his own company's project

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 13 points 4 days ago

Not that he should, but I would bet that's less unusual than you would think. I imagine a lot of defence contractor CEOs are not given the clearance to access certain pieces of information that those working on the project have because some things need to be kept need-to-know.

[–] Geobloke@lemm.ee 8 points 3 days ago

I'm sure he'll just catch up on it on the bathroom