Lankford from Oklahoma cautions CBP about recruits’ past drug use

Oklahoma GOP Sen. James Lankford wrote a letter warning U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) not to loosen its policy on the use of marijuana by Border Patrol agent recruits before they had applied for the job.

The CPB’s previous policy involved looking back through the prior two years before applying for employment to determine if the recruit had used marijuana; the policy had been changed to only checking the previous 90 days.

“As you are aware, marijuana is currently classified as a Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act,” Lankford wrote to Troy A. Miller, a senior official performing the duties of the commissioner for CBP. He noted CBP briefers told his staff that the change had been effected in part “because of confusion between Federal law and state law in states where marijuana has been legalized. However, as a Federal agency, CBP should ensure its personnel comply with Federal law regarding the illicit or otherwise prohibited use of controlled substances.”

“Briefers noted to my staff that recruits who admit to marijuana usage during their polygraph often admit to other disqualifying criminal conduct,” he continued. “In addition to users’ decisions, the marijuana industry and markets in states where marijuana has been legalized often are riddled with corruption.”

“… marijuana use has been shown to increase schizophrenia and psychosis among users, particularly among young adults — an age range that CBP targets as potential recruits for U.S. Border Patrol agents,” he pointed out, noting that a “rogue or corrupt Border Patrol agent has the ‘potential to cause exceptionally grave damage to national security’ and could produce a ‘substantial or even inestimable amount of harm or serious damage to the public trust.’”

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“In evaluating this policy change, was CBP aware of the effects of marijuana on users, including a higher incidence of psychosis or schizophrenia? If so, how did this factor into CBP’s decision?” he asked.

“According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, legislation to regulate marijuana for non-medical purposes or adult usage has been enacted in 24 states, as well as two territories and Washington, D.C. The NCSL’s data was updated Nov. 8, 2023,” Fox News noted.