Trump fired George Banks, special assistant to the president for international energy and environmental policy, because he could not get a security clearance. The reason he could not get the clearance was because he admitting to smoking marijuana in 2013.
In the Obama White House, they had lower standards. Obama gave security clearances to people who came clean about past drug use.
Banks said he was told that his clearance would not be granted because he admitted to smoking marijuana in 2013. Banks said he subsequently offered his resignation, which the White House accepted.
More...A former Obama administration official who worked on personnel and vetting issues said the Obama White House usually only denied clearances when there was both past drug use and a lack of full disclosure.The whole thing is just demoralizing, a White House official told POLITICO, arguing that Banks was a victim of the Porter firestorm. I think a lot of us are scratching our heads.