Maybe we Should Fire The Drunks?
A former federal guard reports a hidden culture of on-the-job drinking within Washington’s power circles—raising serious questions behind closed doors.
SCOOP: D.C.’s Drinking Problem Reaches the Top
Saturday, January 25, 2025: By Walter Curt
You may have heard the whispers that Washington, D.C. has a drinking problem. Now, a former federal building security guard confirms it’s more than just talk—he’s seen it firsthand. “It’s everywhere, in all the federal buildings. Even in the FBI terrorist screening center and DNI. But especially in the Senior Executive Services (SES) suites,” the guard told me.
Attached photos taken in the Thurgood Marshall Federal Judiciary Building’s SES suite kitchen show refrigerators fully stocked with alcohol. According to the guard, federal employees regularly help themselves while on the clock—on the taxpayer’s dime. And it’s not just bureaucrats: Senator Markwayne Mullin pointed out that some members of Congress show up drunk to vote.
During Pete Hegseth’s confirmation hearing, Mullin turned the tables on senators questioning Hegseth about alleged alcoholism. “How many of you know your fellow congressmen have shown up for a vote drunk—and don’t say that you haven’t, because I know that you have,” he asked, highlighting the extent to which alcohol misuse may run through the Capitol.
Most Americans would be fired if caught drinking at work, yet in D.C.’s executive suites, it apparently goes unchecked. With talk of cleaning up Washington, the incoming administration might want to start by asking why taxpayer-funded liquor is flowing in the highest levels of government. If Republicans truly plan to get tough on waste and corruption, they might begin with the drunks at the top.