By Duke London
The Secret Service is set to loosen its policy on prior drug use by potential agents, according to new Director Randolph Alles. Alles believes the adjustment will help the agency accomplish its goal of growing the number of agents by at least 3,000 in the next few years.
Thursday marked the first time Director Alles met with reporters for an official press briefing since starting his new post in April, and he wasted no time making headlines.
Alles explained that while his agents are “very dedicated,” they just don’t have the numbers to sustain the amount of protection they must provide around the world. Mounting terror threats worldwide and the increasing cost of paying his existing agents overtime have put enormous pressure on the Director to expand his workforce.
“We need more people. The mission has changed,” explained Director Alles.
Previously, any candidate who admitted to using marijuana more than a couple of times when they were younger was disqualified from the hiring process. Now, after the policy was officially changed sometime in the last month, the Secret Service will employ a “whole-person” hiring process.
The shift is an acceptance on behalf of the agency that cannabis use is ubiquitous in today’s society and will allow them to open their doors to a far wider range of younger applicants. Under the new policy, even if the candidate admits to using the drug, only the amount of time in between their most recent admitted use and their application filing will be analyzed as part of the selection process in addition to traditional vetting methods like a polygraph and credit check.
Some of the added strain on the Secret Service can be traced back to January when President Trump took over for Barack Obama. Trump brings a new set of challenges for the Secret Service, considering he has numerous properties and an extensive family tree, all of which must be protected 24 hours per day by law.
“I think between that and the fact that he has a larger family, that’s just more stress on the organization. We recognize that,” Alles said of the increased strain on the Secret Service under the new administration.
Trump has frequented both his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida as well as his New Jersey golf course and home since taking office at the beginning of the year. First Lady Melania Trump and son Barron have spent a significant amount of time in New York City at the family’s Trump Tower residence.
Alles added that threats against the President are constant, usually flying in at a clip of roughly six to eight per day, ranging from the seriously credible to the not-so-funny satirical shows of resistance made by comedians like Kathy Griffin this week.
