I read a post today on the POGO blog by Angela Canterbury and Suzanne Dershowitz, titled: “Conservatives Tell Rep. Issa: Federal Whistleblowers, and Taxpayers, Deserve Their Day in Court.”
The issue is the concept that federal whistleblowers are entitled to protections and should have the right to use the courts and our legal system to hold the federal government accountable for waste, fraud, abuse, and illegal and unethical acts. And they should have recourse for the government or agents of the government exacting reprisal on federal whistleblowers for being…. well whistleblowers.
Representative Darrell Issa (R-California) is being pressured by press in his own district to “fulfill his promise of protections for federal whistleblowers.”
The Senate Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act was passed in May. The House version is said to ignore the need for federal whistleblowers to have access to the legal system and the courts. Issa is criticized for not seeing to it that federal whistleblowers have the same standard in federal whistleblower law that already exists for private sector whistleblowers. Further criticism of the current system is that federal whistleblowers take very large risks and rarely prevail in an iffy system where the government “always wins.”
Federal whistleblowers must have access to the courts and our legal system. The process should not be rigged against them, assuring they will endure massive reprisal and career destruction, and take on massive legal costs to try to prevail against what looms as a monolith of self-protection in the case of corruption and cover-ups at the expense of federal whistleblowers and their families. GFS
Link to original POGO blog post:
What are the wrong reasons you referred to?
I attempted to leave the comment below on POGO’s website but they did not approve it. It’s reposted here: http://mspbwatch.net/2012/08/30/pogo-urges-darrell-issa-to-support-strong-wpea/
““The Project On Government Oversight hopes the strongest possible version of the bill will reach the President’s desk this year.”
You’re in a privileged position to report on what happens in Congress beyond a superficial level. You can tell the community (and the world) who the obstacles are… one example is Lamar Smith (R-TX). I understand there is a concern with maintaining decorum and not risking credibility by appearing partisan or radical… but honestly, if you stick to the vetted, objective truth of what happens in Congress, no one can blame or smear you.
Now if you happen to pull punches out of concern over harm to working relationships or jeopardizing your other projects, or the m.o. at POGO is to be timid in your advocacy, that’s something that the whistleblower community needs to know as well. A half-hearted advocate occupying the position you’re in is worse than not having anyone speaking for us. In the absence of any advocates on the Hill, we can organize ourselves and not have any purported allies deter Congress from pursuing the change we want.
That said, thanks for this post, and keep up the info and pressure.”
I believe the right reason is to truly change the climate and culture of government so as to clean up this mess. I do not believe that choosing certain poster child examples of “new improved ethics” in government are believable, to try to show transparency when there really is none in so many areas that so much money is spent, wasted, and misappropriated. In those areas where serious money is involved, and powerful people conduct their machinations, the corruption continues to go on. The coverups continue to go on. The use of the “revolving door” continue to go on unabated and unchallenged. The abuse of federal employees, and federal whistleblowers goes on. And the broken Attorney General’s office and Justice Dept. go on and on down the same path. The sudden disappearance of people we suspect are involved in nefarious activities, that we find out were allowed to unexpectedly retire, or they turn up in the employ of yet another defense contractor in order to evade prosecution and culpability as government employees are too numerous to count at this point. That is what I meant. Yes, whistleblowers need full legal rights and protections, but the protections require honest transparency and empowerment of whistleblowers to be able to have parity with those they are reporting against, both in the government problem-solving processes as well as federal courts. Anyone watching what has been going on with the courts lately, will agree with the concerns, I believe.
Thank you very much for posting your comment here. I believe POGO is, as many organizations are now days, rather nervous about getting squarely in the sights of certain corporations. I heard that a lot of corporate money is being funneled to whistleblower organizations, but cannot say precisely to which ones. I am not accusing anyone of anything, at least at this point. I am still questioning that assertion that was sent to me as we speak. If anyone has any specific information about this, either positive or negative, please contact me. GFS
I agree with everything you mention here. The use of poster child whistleblowers (or “celebrity whistleblowers”) is troubling, ultimately ineffective, and creates a two-class system in the community.
Also, who funds GAP, POGO, etc. is a very worthwhile conversation to have. I have spent the past year trying to bring clarity to an intentionally murky area of advocacy where challenging the wisdom and judgment of whistleblower advocates is disloyal and un-civil. I believe the use of emotional bonds and other such manipulations is meant to prevent whistleblowers from asking tough questions about who represents whom. I know that SIbel Edmonds at http://www.boilingfrogspost.com has done some reporting on POGO’s foundational sources. They include the Carnegie Foundation, George Soros’ Open Society Foundation, etc. I can tell you that inquiries to get them to do some reasonable investigations were always ignored or dismissed with reasons that didn’t make much sense. I suspect they can’t respond to certain questions because the answers would be indefensible.
What’s even more troubling is that many whistleblowers in the community turn a blind eye or worse, act as useful idiots in shutting down debate. In my opinion this is driven out of blind loyalty, sentimentality, ignorance, patronage, or some combination of all. Harsh words, but this has been my experience in the past few months.
Whistleblowers do indeed go through a tremendous emotional gauntlet as well as a financial gauntlet once they are whistleblowers. Those who do not just disappear with their tail between their legs, are indeed subject to overwhelming targeting and abuse. To grasp for straws offered by those who say they want to help is understandable. Whistleblowers find themselves often the subject of intense efforts by managagement or the wrongdoers to create devisiveness and foster conflict and a breakdown of communication among coworkers, so as to create as much isolation for the whistleblower as possible. They often find these efforts even extend to family and personal life. If the possible liability to the wrongdoer(s) is large enough, I have observed there is nothing that will stop them from targeting the whistleblower. Whistleblowers often feel very alone and terribly isolated and often disconnected from those they thought would understand and support them. So loyalty to those who offer help of some description is understandable as well. Whistleblowers are human like all the rest of us. I have the greatest respect for them, all of them.
My use of the term “poster child” issues was not referring to whistleblowers but to the examples of things government does, partly does, or talks about doing without actually doing, in an attempt to try to convince the citizens that they are listening and are making changes. I just do not feel that we citizens are being dealt with honestly.
For instance, I can think of one or two elected officials even in my own state that are pretty much owned by a certain defense contractor, but every so often stand up and put up a red herring issue, one that will garner lots of emotional support. They wave flags, and claim they champion the issue, yet nothing fundamentally changes and the situation still remains, in some cases dire. One recent example was of supporting veterans and attending to their health care. I have not yet seen genuine change for the better with my local elected officials that I am referring to. It can,(these politicians must hope), attract votes before elections, and takes the heat off the politicians who conveniently do not want to stand up on other more controversial issues, and/or issues that might offend their corporate cash cows.
GFS
Don’t get me wrong – I admire what they do in the workplace, sticking their necks out for the rest of society. But unfortunately that type of critical, independent thinking eludes some when presented with evidence of the same bureaucratic tactics within the whistleblower advocacy field. I guess my expectations are higher for these individuals. As I see it, why trade one corrupted, murky field for another?
If you’re wondering why it will have taken 13 years to pass WPEA (assuming it passes), this is partly why: the whistleblowers become dependent on the advocates and then forego challenging them to put real action behind rhetoric.
And this is just one window into the one small sliver of accountability that whistleblowers provide against corruption in society. The corruption of elected officials is something else altogether. I guess I see whistleblowers as a last line of defense.
I understand and agree with much of what you said. That is why whistleblowers, as our last line of defense need support and help from more of us. We must break out of this isolated “company town” mindset, where there are no real choices. That is why I persist in this blog, albeit in an on again-off again manner, due to personal challenges in my own schedule and availability. If you too are volunteering to try to help, bless you! We need to encourage more to take up the flag. Thanks for the conversation! Keep up your good work, MSPB Watch. GFS
I see the biggest corruption in DCAA. The branch managers who are getting good pay, are sipping tea, or happy hour with contractors. If an auditor does what he is supposed to o, they try to get rid of them.
I have a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against me for a sworn statement provided to the SEC (the sworn statement is listed and cited in the suit). The statement relates to an alleged Ponzi scheme and individual responsible. SEC has instituted administrative and cease-and-desist proceedings against the individual, while the individual pushes forwards with the lawsuit against me.
Is there privilege or protection for the sworn statement I provided? The SEC has taken over three years to get this far, while I’ve been left to defend myself. In addition to the lawsuit, our business has been compromised and lives threatened. Yes, the FBI is involved.
We don’t know where to turn. Any insight you can provide will be greatly appreciated.