Federal Whistleblowers & Advocacy Rights Groups Appear on HuffPostLive to Discuss National Security Presidential Policy Directive
7:56, October 13, 2012 by Evelynn Brown, J.D., LL.M
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Last evening, I appeared on HuffPostLive.com along with Jesselyn Radack, Government Accountability Project (GAP), Thomas Drake, former National Security Administration (NSA), and Scott MacDonald, former Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), to discuss the President’s new Policy Directive (PPD-19) dated October 10, 2012; Protecting Whistleblowers with Classified Information. It was good to see my colleagues brought together on a national broadcast, working collectively. We identified the perils the Directive has in store for federal whistleblowers.

Unfortunately, the experts are all disappointed in the language created by the White House which lumps honorable federal employees who uphold the 14 ethical principles of duty into the same bag with potential national security leakers, who would sell secrets. It’s a shame that the President, a Constitutional scholar did not have the foresight to realize that in the Directive, he is sending a message to both government and industry, that secrecy should prevail over openness.

The secrecy method attempted to imprison Thomas Drake for espionage. A false charge that the government dropped on the eve of the trial. However, the damage was done to Drake’s life and career, permanently. Yet to this day, no one has been held accountable for violating the rule of law, nor has any agency official been prosecuted for abuse of authority or waste of tax payer money on a legal case that was stitched out of rumor and innuendo.

The Directive, as written is overly broad, violating 1st Amendment Constitutional rights of free speech, cutting off any meaning way for federal employees to report fraud, waste, abuse, mismanagement and dangers to public health and safety. Further, the Directive sends a chilling message to thousands of federal employees, that should they attempt to report any wrongdoing outside their respective agency, they will immediately lose any right to pursue a complaint, in any forum.

In the bottom line analysis, there is no way out of the jungle except to sink into quicksand since there is no oversight provided nor a check and balance system to monitor whistleblower retaliation within the national security community. The Directive is simply a way for the President to send a resounding message to feds, keep your mouth shut or we will render you speechless. We will fire you and make sure you never work again. Go up against the federal government, as each of the panelists did, and we will bring to bear the full weight and power of an endless legal budget to crush you like a bug. Just the way the top official at the Government Service Administration (GSA) handled whistleblowers who reported his boondoggle travel expenses.

Although I would like to believe the President had some intent to create a new way for federal whistleblowers working for the long list of agencies to report wrongdoing, the Directive fell short on providing outlets to administrative processes and access to real courts. Way too many federal agencies have been swept into the Directive. For employees with a security clearance, they too can be subject to losing employment at the whim of any corrupt agency manager.

Whistlewatch.org will do a more thorough analysis on the Directive and it’s full impact with our colleagues at the National Whistleblowers Center (NWC) and GAP, in the upcoming weeks. There is a new day dawning in the field of advocacy work with a commitment by colleagues towards rooting out all injustice. Our combined energy last evening is a shining example of how on short notice, advocacy rights leadership can educate the public on government policy that threatens everyday life.

At this time, we are asking that the public become fully informed about the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act (WPEA), passed by the House and Senate. The legislative intent of Congress was to protect all federal employees from whistleblower retaliation. The PPD essentially renders certain employees of the federal government powerless to file a complaint through any meaningful channel, including the Office of Special Counsel (OSC). A significant mistake because OSC is an independent federal agency whose primary mission is to protect federal service workers from prohibited personnel practices (PPP). Particularly those where the honorable employee reports fraud, waste and abuse.

The American people deserve accountability on how their tax dollars are spent. In the agencies labeled as being involved in national security; State, Treasury, Commerce, Defense, DOJ, Homeland Security, Trade, the United Nations, Economic Advisors, National Intelligence, Science & Technology…whistleblowers voices will be silenced. The long arm of the law overshadowing the people who work for the public will become subject to the PPD with the potential to mute all federal whistleblowing. Tax payer waste will go unaccounted for and any new economic catastrophe on the horizon may be hidden from public view. No employer should be able to strip Constitutional protections from employees. And the last time I checked, I thought the 5th Amendment was a bar to the government taking property without due process of law.

Special thanks to Alyona Minkovski, Catherine Day at the Huffington Post and to Lindsey Williams, NWC!

http://live.huffingtonpost.com/r/segment/506b32592b8c2a45af000450