[morpheuskafka]

> There's a common joke with civilian defense employees that you can't get fired without committing a felony.

That seems strange in the context of defense since the government has a high degree of latitude in revoking or refusing security clearances. There are certain appeal mechanisms, but there is still a lot of room for the government to keep the actual evidence secret and a lot of deference to the governments opinion.

At any rate, it could take as a little as talking to someone from the wrong country, or a crime much less serious than a felony to lose one and therefore one's job.

[sidlls]

There are strong network effects at the level where clearances are actually hard to obtain, though. People leave government service (both military and civilian) to start consultancies and other businesses that sell products and services to the organization(s) they formerly worked for. Both they and the government workers buying their goods are incentivized to build strong relationships: the former so they can easily win contracts and the latter so they can continue to receive and expand their budgets/fiefdoms.