What are "whistleblower" protections?
Employees in the White House situation room took notes during the conversation. And afterward, a member of the intelligence community, who noted that he or she didn't witness this conversation -- wrote a five-page complaint, available on the webpage of the U.S. House of Representatives Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. The complaint explained the official's concerns that Trump's actions pose risks to U.S. national security.
Trump has described the whistleblower's actions as treason. But the webpage for the U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence points out that officials have a responsibility to report such issues:
"Over 240 years ago, on July 30, 1778, the Continental Congress unanimously enacted the first whistleblower legislation in the United States, proclaiming that 'it is the duty of all persons in service of the United States, as well as all other inhabitants thereof, to give the earliest information to Congress or other proper authority of any misconduct, frauds or misdemeanors committed by any officers or persons in the service of these states, which comes to their knowledge.'"
A whistleblower discloses to an authorized recipient information that he or she "reasonably believes evidences wrongdoing," according to the Congressional Research Service. The need to hear what whistleblowers have to say is enshrined in U.S. law. Here is an overview of whistleblower law, along with links and references for further study:
Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989: The law protects employees who come forward to expose government corruption. These employees "serve the public interest by assisting in the elimination of fraud, waste, abuse and unnecessary government expenditures," the law explains, and "protecting employees who disclose government illegality waste, and corruption is a major step toward a more effective civil service."
The law does this by "mandating that employees should not suffer adverse consequences as a result of prohibited personnel practices; and ... establishing that the primary role of the Office of Special Counsel is to protect employees, especially whistleblowers, from prohibited personnel practices."
Intelligence Community Whistleblower Protection Act of 1998: The first law did not include members of the intelligence community. There were gaps that "many observers believed left whistleblowers vulnerable to reprisal," the Congressional Research Service recounts. In 1998, Congress approved whistleblower legislation specific to the intelligence community. The website Congress.gov summarizes provisions of the act this way:
- An employee or contractor of the CIA who wishes to report an "urgent concern" to Congress should make the report to the inspector general of the CIA.
- The inspector general acts on the information within 60 days and forwards the complaint to the CIA director.
- The director is required to forward the information to the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the U.S. House of Representatives and the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate within seven days after its receipt.
- An employee is allowed to contact the intelligence committees directly concerning such complaint or information in limited circumstances.
2012 Presidential Policy Directive 19: Signed by President Barack Obama, this provided protections against reprisal for making a complaint. Indeed, it sets up a structure for employees who feel they were not given a fair hearing. An officer of an executive branch agency cannot take "any action affecting an employee's eligibility for access to classified information as a reprisal for a protected disclosure."
Resources:
- Congress.gov: S.20 - Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989.
- Congress.gov: H.R.3829 - Intelligence Community Whistleblower Protection Act of 1998.
- Congressional Research Service: Intelligence Community Whistleblower Protections, Sept. 23, 2019.
- Office of the Director of National Intelligence: Intelligence Community Whistleblowing.
- Office of the Director of National Intelligence: Presidential Policy Directive 19: Protecting Whistleblowers with Access to Classified Information.
- U.S. House of Representatives Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence: Whistleblower's memo, Aug. 12, 2019.
- Whitehouse.gov: Memorandum of telephone conversation, President Zelensky of Ukraine, July 25, 2019.
Related:
What are high crimes and misdemeanors?
Three presidents and the price of scandal
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