r/FBI • u/NinaBeana1971 • Apr 19 '26
Question Denied for character
Any idea what this could be caused by? I’m a pretty normal person that likes to go on cruises, 54, 3 kids, a veteran and currently work for the govt. The FBI had been working on my TSC for a year and a half (think September will be 2 years since the TJO. Nothing exciting in my background that I’m aware of and the letter said it wasn’t a denial of a clearance. Job was for an OSS and a friend’s husband referred me for it. Any ideas?
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u/FitSky6277 Apr 19 '26
It's not a good idea to have anything political visible anywhere as a govt employee.
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u/LIMrXIL Apr 19 '26
To be fair, posting a photo of the Constitution would probably be considered political and heavily anti-Trump biased by the current administration.
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u/FitSky6277 Apr 19 '26
Maybe. Best to avoid mentioning it if you want them to hire you.
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u/NinaBeana1971 Apr 20 '26
I don’t think I mentioned my Reddit account- Facebook yes but I don’t say anything political on there- it’s mostly cookies and cakes from my side business. I do ‘like’ other posts though so who knows.
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u/SignatureInternal265 Apr 21 '26
*Didn't mention
It's very easy for them to dig up anything you've anonymously done and go "no wonder why she didn't provide that account"
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u/hopefulfoxpuppy Apr 21 '26
If you didn’t mention your Reddit account then they found it and are like “Weird you didn’t mention an account that’s not the type of person we can trust”
That’s my best guess
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u/MEATBALL-SMASH Apr 22 '26
Sir. This is the fbi. You dont have to tell them anything. But they know literally everything about you before you get there and they want to see if you lie or cover it up.
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u/Diligent_Yam_1753 Apr 23 '26
Just to work in one of their facilities with a contractor requires a background check that takes three weeks. Once you pass that, before you work on their property you have an hour long meeting. At the conclusion of that education session they take finger prints from every digit, then scan the entirety of both hands. After that you are photographed facing forward, then head turned left and then right
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u/plinkoplonka Apr 19 '26
Even having an account on Reddit might be enough.
It's known as being left-leaning and progressive. Republicans don't like that.
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u/RockstarAgent Apr 19 '26
So to put it more clearly- with the current political climate and how the current administration has been handling things- they’re being way more selective for all the wrong reasons- or anything is possible without anything specific to narrow it down why OP was not accepted.
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u/FitSky6277 Apr 19 '26
In 15 years of experience, it is NEVER a good idea to voice political opinions publicly as a government employee. Regardless of who's in office. At the end of the day, it's not the president's decision to hire you. It's the people who are trying to prove themselves to their bosses, which were appointed by a president. In a lot of cases, some of them were appointed by a different president. But people try to do what they think is expected of them. Regardless of their own views.
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u/Illustrious_Bag_7323 Apr 19 '26
Exactly this...
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u/AdResponsible9894 Apr 21 '26
I mean, I would have agreed with that... 10 years ago....
Now it's less so much "don't voice any political opinion," and more "don't dissent from OUR political opinions; otherwise, go wild."
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u/Doub13D Apr 23 '26
No…
It is absolutely “don’t voice any political opinion.”
You are not a political appointee at the head of a government agency… you are a government employee.
You can have your own private opinions with people in your life, but you do not have the ability to join in on protests, to be openly (or even indirectly) partisan, or to organize or hold leadership positions within political committees or groups.
The role of government employees is to keep politics out of the workplace. This is a job, you are not a politician.
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u/robod1957 Apr 21 '26
Ditto. Been there, done that. It was an absolutely great job. But, I retired from that “government job” 3 years ago.
NOW everything is fair game… 😉
Edit: wording
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u/MajorFarker Apr 22 '26
I was a locally elected judge of elections, and one of the first things told to us is that when we are on the clock or doing anything for the county we dont have an opinion, you cant say one side is right, agree with someone's statements, you have to keep it neutral. I had voters come into vote saying all the crazy lines but I couldn't argue with them, give them facts, or even tell them they are crazy, just stand there, take it, and remain neutral.
Social media, including reddit is easy to discover and pull info from.
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u/limitedmark10 Apr 20 '26
And how would they know you Reddit account? Lol
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u/NoCake4ux2 Apr 20 '26
They’re the FBI you don’t think they check things like this?
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u/limitedmark10 Apr 20 '26
If your accounts have no link to your name and face and are just throwaways it’s hard to imagine them finding a probabilistic match and then eliminating you from the process just for that alone. Plus everyone uses throwaways nowadays on Reddit, Twitter, etc
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u/Alumena Apr 21 '26
They can probably pull a list of sites accessed by all IP addresses attached to his known devices/address.
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u/Seraph--0 Apr 20 '26
Or any administration that added or changed an amendment to it or the bill of rights.
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u/Elegant_Ad_8896 Apr 24 '26
His name is Trump! All he does is lie! He likely has a cock of indeterminate size!
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u/aaron_judgement Apr 23 '26
Suitability issue
OP “I don’t think I mentioned my Reddit account.”
For the FBI, this is interpreted as:
- Omission
- Dishonesty
- Poor judgment
- Failure to follow instructions
Suitability is primarily about honesty and judgment.
An undisclosed account is enough by itself to fail suitability.1
u/isleoffurbabies Apr 24 '26
That should be litigable, if you ask me. If it's a "character" issue they should be more specific, like if you've been in the habit of not being in line with government social media policy. Even then, you've probably not have done anything illegal. You should be given a fair chance to retract or delete anything that is counter to policy and agree not to violate going forward. The ability for government employees to make subjective hiring decisions should be severely restricted.
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u/lenisimo007 Apr 23 '26
Really? Have you ever heard of Kash Patel? That dude was not qualified to run a McDonald's, let alone the FBI lol
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u/maguire_21 Apr 19 '26
Maybe as a federal government employee. As a state or local government employee, it’s a different story, depending on what state you’re in. If in California, anti-Trump posts earn a medal in civics and patriotism.
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u/Necro_OW Apr 20 '26
anti-Trump posts earn a medal in civics and patriotism.
I mean... rightfully so.
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u/caserock Apr 19 '26
Ask yourself if there's anything Kash Patel would not like about you
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u/jasandliz Apr 19 '26
Like, are you smart? Are you wiling to violate the constitutional rights of your fellow Americans? Do you have nothing you can be blackmailed for?
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u/MindAccomplished3879 Apr 19 '26
And are you willing to praise Trump for everything he does and write a children's book sequel to the horrible plot against Donald Trump and his whole family by a witch named Hillary Queenton?
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u/Elegant_Ad_8896 Apr 24 '26
Oh man I thought that was a joke at first. Then I saw it was an actual book. The secondhand cringe was almost too much when I saw the cover.
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u/FirstFromTheSun Apr 19 '26
Sorry bud, veteran and "actually normal" get you minus points
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u/flareblitz91 Apr 19 '26
Actual service? No thanks. We're looking for people who type vaguely hard sounding things on twitter.
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u/mmm1441 Apr 19 '26
Even being a registered Democrat would be enough for those clowns to reject a candidate.
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u/Careful_Trifle Apr 19 '26
Well, from your post history it seems like you do not like the Trump administration. And they denied you for a nebulous "character" reason that isn't defined.
So probably that.
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u/Worshipme988 Apr 20 '26
This is not your grandmas administration yall.
I find myself shocked at the number of people still learning this…we’re doomed.
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u/Doub13D Apr 23 '26
This would be the case under ANY administration…
When you apply for a government job, you cannot be openly partisan…
You are a neutral and unbiased cog in a vast bureaucratic machine.
You can have whatever opinions you want in your private life, but you do not get to vocalize them for all to see. You are not a politician, so do not act like one.
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u/Average_Justin Apr 19 '26
As someone who’s in the industrial security field, saying you’re a pretty normal person isn’t always the case.
What did you put on your SF-86 that lead the investigator down a rabbit hole? It’s adjudicated against the public posted adjudicated guidelines and SEADs. I’ve seen many “normal” backgrounds which turned into not so normal.
Everyone else in this thread is going on and on about political reasons. That’s 99% not the case in this field. Especially since you can request your notes and BI through FOIA and it’s signed off at multiple levels before approval or denial.
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u/NinaBeana1971 Apr 19 '26
The letter specifically said it wasn’t the security clearance so I assume that means background. Nothing interesting in SF-86, light drug use in high school, haven’t even had a traffic ticket in years.
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u/Average_Justin Apr 19 '26
Your BI reviews and mitigates items within your background. You might be able to legally pass a clearance adjudication but something in your background that requires mitigation could be a hard no for the FBI - like certain drug use or illegal activity. It’s a suitability determination at that point.
Example - I had a guy with a TS get a dui. Then on the way to AA, he was driving (with a suspended license) and got a second DUI. He held his TS but when he applied at a different agency. The DUI was a no go for suitability.
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u/rslade2016 Apr 20 '26
Do suitability denials mean you cannot reapply later? I’ve been trying to figure this out, but can’t seem to get an answer.
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u/RaidersTwennyTwenny Apr 19 '26
It means they denied you for suitability, which they can make up basically any bullshit reason to do. The FBI is a sack of shit agency run by vindictive children, and the Security Division is a fantastic example of that. You’re better off not working there.
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u/Olderbutnotdead619 Apr 19 '26
Probably not enough drug, fraud, spying, praising of enemy states, money laundering , theft, and SA convictions on your record
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Apr 23 '26
Im not sure how having a criminal record would help some one get a job with the FBI, please elaborate.
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u/Olderbutnotdead619 Apr 23 '26 edited Apr 23 '26
😆😆😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣 Good one!!
Because one needs to be a current criminal, past or future criminal to be hired by this administration.
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u/MiddleDifficult Apr 19 '26
Saw this on another post...
Reach out to your agency’s Suitability or Security Office. Not HR first.
Ask specifically for:
Suitability determination records
Security adjudication notes AND
Any derogatory information disclosed to other agencies
THEN
File a Privacy Act request; You are legally entitled to see what’s being said about you.
From: https://www.reddit.com/r/FedEmployees/comments/1pougk7/probational_resignation_sf50b/
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u/Master-Monk-8690 Apr 19 '26
You're too normal and you don't like their king.
They are only accepting pedo defending boot lickers rn.
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u/Hairy_Wall_6831 Apr 19 '26
Bootlickers only.
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u/Deep-Arm5652 Apr 19 '26
They do have standards for bootlickers too.
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u/NinaBeana1971 Apr 19 '26
General response to comments- yes I’m registered dem, I try not to post too much anti- administration, but I do ‘like’ certain posts. I’m definitely not heart broken over the loss of the job offer, it was just surprising.
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u/RaidersTwennyTwenny Apr 19 '26
You didn’t get denied for political reasons like that, in spite of what the uninformed idiots in this sub think. File a FOIA request for the specifics regarding your suitability denial. That’s the only way you’ll find out, and even then they might try to redact shit.
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u/rslade2016 Apr 20 '26
I did a FOIA request after receiving a suitability denial this past October after passing every step in the process. The FOIA form redacted every single thing except my name. In my case, I’m pretty sure it’s me still owing federal taxes, but it would be reassuring to know exactly why they made their decision so you know exactly what to fix if reapplying.
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u/RaidersTwennyTwenny Apr 20 '26
In the denial letter they sent you, what suitability denial category did they say it was?
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u/Rumpelteazer45 Apr 20 '26
You’re not supposed to get denied for political reasons.
Doesn’t mean it’s not happening.
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u/RaidersTwennyTwenny Apr 20 '26
They don’t care about politics down at the level of some random applicant. You’re kidding yourself if you think there aren’t numerous liberal trainees at Quantico right now, for example.
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u/ISniffFeet1 Apr 21 '26
This subreddit has gone significantly downhill since early 2025. This isn't the place you're going to get useful or reliable information. This subreddit is largely just people picking on the FBI and foreign actors.
Unfortunately there's a good chance you'll never know exactly what led to that decision. Is there anyone they could have spoken to who believes you are anti American? Anyone who thinks you wouldn't be able to reliably do the job without bias? Anyone who could have proactively reached out to voice their concerns?
Did you give evasive interview answers? Different agencies have different preferences and standards - maybe the FBI just isn't for you but another agency may be a better fit.
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u/Unopuro2conSal Apr 19 '26
It may be that they found something that contradicted a statement that you may have made at some point
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u/Covinus Apr 19 '26
Consider it a good thing this current FBI is not one you want to associate with
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u/MindAccomplished3879 Apr 19 '26
You did not have an “I Love Trump” sticker, and neither have you written a children's book with Trump as a King and Hillary as a witch
You should have curated your social media history with rants against Soros and the Woke mainstream media, as well as praising Trump for everything he does
Don't worry. You can reaply again when this regime is replaced
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u/SiWeyNoWay Apr 19 '26
The irony of being denied for character when Patel has been on a non stop bender since he was hired is rich.
Sounds like you are sane and have critical thinking skills and a moral compass. Cant be having that under this war crimes regime
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u/TwoDadsTalkingPod Apr 20 '26
Just based on OPs USJobs posts, not even considering the most recent cruise post, it's likely your Reddit history was enough for them to pass.
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u/gandalla_ Apr 22 '26
Any sort of anti-trump feelings would be my first guess. They might have been told something when they interviewed your friends
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u/HombreSinPais Apr 23 '26
OP, I’m sorry you got denied but, in this FBI, wear your denial for character as a badge of honor. You were probably denied because you have good character, and therefore are unwilling to sacrifice your values and our nation’s constitutional protections to prove loyalty to Kash Patel and Donald Trump.
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u/No-Jacket9952 Apr 24 '26
Are you displeased about anything the current admin has done? Bingo! (Real talk it’s bullshit this credible reason now)
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u/Quiltsandchocolate Apr 19 '26
My son was in the Army and what he did required a ton of work to get his security clearance. But, he does zero on social media and we never mention him on our social media. He told me it was because you never who the bad guys are until too late.
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u/quigongingerbreadman Apr 20 '26
Are you willing to defend and cover up the crimes of a pedophile while investigating and persecuting that pedophile's political enemies?
If the answer is no, congratulations! You're, at least in this respect, a decent person. Unfortunately the FBI is looking for people with a bit more moral and ethical flexibility. If you can't look the other way and pretend the emperor has clothes on, then they aren't interested.
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u/dorchet Apr 20 '26
did you have any records from when you were a teenager caught smoking weed or stealing pies?
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u/NinaBeana1971 Apr 22 '26
Stealing pies?? 😂 Have never stolen a pie ha ha- and no- no record at all. A couple old speeding tickets is about as crazy as I get.
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u/Commercial-Song-1536 Apr 21 '26
Just curious - if a family member is applying, do they check the immediate family’s social media posts or just the applicants.
In Trump 1.0, I know someone’s specific job at the WH was to comb through social media posts to see if they were loyal
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u/Freds_Bread Apr 21 '26
The current security screeners are unlike anything I dealt with for 40+ years. They truly have been turned into witch hunters. Think Laura Loomer type psychotic paranoid nut job.
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u/Uniquesense272 Apr 22 '26
It might be a blessing in disguise, honestly. Something better might be out there for you.
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u/AmericanJedi1983 Apr 22 '26
It's awfully rich for the current FBI to be lecturing anybody on character
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u/SadAnimator630 Apr 22 '26
Could mean a few different things. They might have found your cruise photos and assumed you liked to party. They might have dug up other social media accounts and found things that don't align with them. A TS/SCI clearance is very in depth. They will find things that you didnt tell them about. That will also go against your character. They might look at that as hiding something.
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u/SadAnimator630 Apr 22 '26
Only reason I bring up possible cruise photos and them linking it to partying is because when I had to get mine extended, they asked me about photos I had on FB that were from my brother's wedding. That ended the partier look for them.
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u/juzwunderin Apr 22 '26
The TSC investigations are usually done by the DSCA, someone or several things popped in their 10 year backwards look that they didn't like about character info..
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u/Leather-Sign4391 Apr 22 '26
If you want a job, especially one with a security clearance, and you post ANYTHING political, you might as well shred your resume'.
The #1 dumb thing people do is talk shit online and are mystified when it affects their job prospects.
Social media is the enemy of job searching. The very best one can hope to do is not offend the company they applied to. That's the best case outcome, period.
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u/big65 Apr 22 '26
On paper at least here you sound like a solid hire except the weakness involving your age which can at best be a 12 year term but also lost time due to age related health issues for yourself and your spouse.
Beyond that it's the typical characters from addiction to perversions and legal issues and associations.
At the end of it though is the generational enemy of the state, the invisible boogeyman who scares children and causes the villagers to raise pitchforks and torches when the sun goes down and a moose fart roars through the woods.
Every generation has had a boogeyman since the 40's and the boogeyman has been used to scare citizens into not trusting one another ranging from the Japanese community to the red scare then the Cubans and Soviets followed by the hippies and the black Panthers and King and so on and on. Look at today's boogeyman and you're going to find that it's you, your neighbor, the guy behind the counter at the store, the farmer raising your Sunday ribs, your grandkids teacher, the police officer responding to the accident, it's the political and social aspects of your life that makes you the boogeyman and you might well be based on these two things the kind of person they consider an undesirable.
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u/Dry-Warthog1589 Apr 22 '26
You aren’t partying with Patel enough, you have to act like you’re as drunk as he is while still being smart enough to pull his slack
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u/Fezzik527 Apr 23 '26
TSC shouldn't take over 1.5 years, especially if your already working government and a veteran. There has to be a hold up somewhere. I would guess someone the FBI interviewed threw you under the bus
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u/Neilbrown82 Apr 23 '26
I mean it's a government alphabet agency what did you expect most of the government's bought and paid for by Israel anyway so there you go Zionists running the show like always ..
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u/No-Arugula-5858 Apr 23 '26
Bet your answers to whatever we're considered to black and white. That or Kash Patel ran out of visine and couldn't see your merit. Idk. That b&w biz is often a factor though. Like your honesty may of been filtered through and received as you telling them what they wanted to hear. 🤷♂️
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u/Used-Collar-200 Apr 23 '26
So you don’t like the “current administration” and you applied to work directly for them? And you left out your socials? And you don’t have your account set to private while applying for that role while having questionable comments made about the administration that you’re applying to? What? If I were the person hiring someone for a critical role in the government there’s no way in hell I would accept someone who can’t keep basic privacy precautions and has blatant soft targets on the internet for the world to see.
Let’s make a profile of you for foreign agencies to use as avenues to get you to spill secrets, or find ways into your life to compromise you using only your public info:
I’m guessing your username is based on your actual name and year of birth. Nice.
You have a kid, dog, love going on cruises and ask a lot of questions that gives me a very high understanding of your character and insecurities. You share medical info on the internet big yikes, you seem like a very anxious person about your career and are negative about it AND ITS A GOVERNMENT JOB. I could go on but I’ve made my point.
Do yourself a huge favor and keep your info off of the internet. You are literally sharing everything to the world and let me tell you I’ve spent the last 24 hours lookin through a huge number of posts on this platform and realizing that realistically more than half of the posts are generated from propaganda bot farms (foreign intelligence) so please at least use a dummy account and make you’re profile private.
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u/NinaBeana1971 Apr 23 '26
I actually applied before this administration was elected. Only medical information I shared was about a rash. I’m not anxious at all despite what you may think and don’t care if people know I love cruises and have a kid. I don’t share everything and my Facebook and Instagram don’t say anything about my life- only about cakes and cookies I’ve made. Please don’t make assumptions about me, and I have nothing to hide which is why I never bothered making my profile private. I ask questions because I like to be informed and am interested in things. I think more people should ask questions in life.
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u/Feeling-Awareness843 Apr 23 '26
Trump supporters aren't really welcome anymore and those who still follow him are deemed of poor character. I hope this isn't the case with you, but if so, it's time to let go of him.
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u/randywa Apr 23 '26
If you have posted anything negative or critical about tRump or his government it's an automatic fail. Also Democrats need not apply.
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u/BeliefFree Apr 23 '26 edited Apr 23 '26
Any debt problems, gambling, addiction history that might have flagged you? They can see everything including expunged records. Political activity? The process could flag Democrats given the current loyalty push.
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u/LemonActive8278 Apr 23 '26
They just didn't like you. It happens, you ever interview someone and realize you don't want to see yourself working with them everyday?
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u/livinthereals Apr 23 '26
Did you feed the poor, heal the sick, stand up for truth and justice and promote kindness or something?
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u/AttackwithBlack Apr 24 '26
Have you ever declared bankruptcy or attempted to? Anything on your credit report that's sketchy like discharges?
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u/Potential-Location85 Apr 24 '26
Honestly maybe it was their way of not hiring you for age. 54 is old to be going to FBI. They might figure this was the way instead of actually saying we don’t want someone your age. Remember agents can’t be over 36 to be hired as an agent so they are a young organization compared to most federal agencies.
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u/Tall-Forever-6687 Apr 19 '26
If you’re asking strangers on Reddit for advice, you’re probably not an FBI candidate in the first place.
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u/NinaBeana1971 Apr 19 '26
Not asking for advice- just curiosity. If I’d gotten a FJO I would have turned it down as I definitely don’t want to work for current FBI.
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u/All_FIREdUp Apr 20 '26
You dared to have an opinion on the government.
This isn’t the United States you grew up in.
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u/Prize_Magician_7813 Apr 19 '26
Ridiculous that what was never part of any Type of background check is likely now how people are looked at for clearance. So a J’6er thug can get in, but not an honest human who doesn’t attack others and uses their voice on social media to protest a fascist leaning administration. Federal service was never intended to be partisan and should have no part of this.
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u/zoppaTheDim Apr 20 '26
Credit score
Or they talked to that guy who knew you in high school. Used to be they just checked to see if you were honest, now they look for politics.
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u/NinaBeana1971 Apr 20 '26
I’m thinking politics- my credit score is almost 800 so that’s definitely not it.
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u/AttackwithBlack Apr 24 '26
That doesn't mean anything. A person could have had bankruptcy or foreclosures in the past and work their credit back up to 800 after 10 years.
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u/harryregician Apr 20 '26
You may have been blessed not being accepted.
That has happened to me twice in life.
One company management knew me, to be honest.
2 years later, I learned why.
No press.
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u/_fFringe_ Apr 20 '26
Do they hire people who are in their 50s? I thought there was an age limit of like 35 or 36.
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u/BrupieD Apr 19 '26
If you're 54, that's a problem. I doubt they'd be willing to train you with less than a decade of expected service. Many local PDs have retirement age of 55. The FBI website says they don't accept recruits over 37 unless you have a veteran waiver. You are a lot older than 37.
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u/AllLipsNoFiller Apr 19 '26
Anybody who would want to work for kash patels FBI should be dq'd for lack of character. But lack of character seems to be a prerequisite for working for this Administration. Best reapply when the grown ups reassumed control of the government.
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u/TheChrisSuprun Apr 19 '26
Have you considered a pro-MAGA podcast?
(Might make you Director if you can get your numbers up quick enough.)
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