Washington Examiner: Bad Things Happen to Whistleblowers When Watchdogs Become Attack Dogs
When Terrance Peterson reported wrongdoing to the Department of Veterans Affairs inspector general – detailing unsanitary conditions at a Delaware VA hospital where he worked – the IG turned his charges over to the agency “so they could investigate themselves.” Unsurprisingly, the department found that it did nothing wrong, dropped the case, and retaliated against Peterson. According to the article, this is a typical pattern, with federal agencies regularly utilizing the IGs to silence whistleblowers. GAP Legal Director Tom Devine is quoted.
Devine also appeared on Federal News Radio, where he discussed the conflict of interest present in acting IGs that subverts their supposed independent watchdog role.
Key Quote (Washington Examiner): A recent twist is that agencies are now using IGs to retaliate against whistleblowers or silence them by threatening criminal investigations rather than just personnel actions, said Tom Devine, legal director for the nonpartisan Government Accountability Project.
Criminal investigations conducted by the IGs mean agencies do not have to contend with complex personnel rules or whistleblower protection laws, Devine said.
Trumped-up charges can be anything from accusing the whistleblower of making threats to disclosing classified information, Devine said. The effect is intimidation.
“The IGs are the hatchet men for that phenomenon,” Devine said. “It’s cheap. It’s easy. You can’t lose and the chilling effect is far greater than firing someone. You may scare other employees by firing a whistleblower. You terrorize them by prosecuting a whistleblower. And the IGs have been the natural vehicles for this.”
One America News: Overcrowded, Watched and Broke
GAP National Security & Human Rights Deputy Director Kathleen McClellan appeared on OAN’s On Point with Tomi Lahren to discuss legislative updates on reforming the NSA surveillance state, including the recent Senate vote against considering the USA Freedom Act.
WRAL: Willingham – Never Wanted to be a UNC Whistleblower
Mary Willingham, former literacy specialist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH), said she never wanted to become a whistleblower when she raised concerns about student-athlete literacy levels. She left the university last spring after experiencing alleged retaliation for voicing academic misconduct, but Willingham plans to continue working to clean up collegiate athletics. A recent report on UNC-CH’s years-long academic fraud to keep athletes eligible to play (including fake “paper classes”) substantiated many of her concerns. “We know that it’s not just a UNC problem. We know that it happens across the country,” she said.
National Law Journal: Federal Employee Speech and the Whistleblower Protection Act
This piece highlights the Supreme Court case of GAP client and federal air marshal whistleblower Robert MacLean, who was terminated after exposing TSA plans to remove marshals from long-distance flights at the same time terrorists were threatening to target them. The author delves into the obstacles government employees like MacLean still face in seeking relief under current federal whistleblower protection legislation.
Key Quote: MacLean has had to spend years challenging his 2006 removal, even though Justice Sotomayor said at oral argument that the facts were in his favor …
The WPA deprives federal employees of the opportunity to seek relief for violations of their First Amendment rights. A federal employee faces immense obstacles and very long odds against achieving any remedy under the WPA. A federal employee must hope that legal counsel, such as the Government Accountability Project.