He will have zero luck getting a non-resident permit from any other state as well, so that's out. Utah, for example, which is the most accepted NR permit in the U.S. requires that an applicant for an NR permit have a valid carry permit in their resident state. Almost all of them have the same honorable conditions requirements for military discharge as well.
http://www.handgunlaw.us/documents/NonResidentPermits.pdfThe OP is, essentially, ass out for a CHP due to the discharge over illegal drug use 36 years ago. Without hiring an attorney and trying the very difficult route of getting the entire military record changed, he's OC nor No C only.