Obama Memo Threatens Whistleblower Protections

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February 28, 2013

In a January memo, President Obama asked for new rules for designating federal workers as “national security sensitive,” which would make them easier to fire and could severely hurt whistleblower protections, according to a Bloomberg article.

Many prominent whistleblowers come from the national security community, including Franz Gayl, Thomas Drake, and Thomas Tamm. This new rule could strip whistleblowers of protections and silence reports of fraud, waste and abuse that not only save money but can save lives.

The article quoted Tom Devine, legal director for the Government Accountability Project, on the dangers of the new rule.

“Most of our whistle-blowers are national security professionals,” Devine said. “If they get rid of the civil service system for those jobs, we’re not just going to be vulnerable to a national security spoils system -- we’ll have it.”

Find out more about this critical, but underreported, memo in the full Bloomberg story.

Topics: Whistleblower Protections

Authors: Andre Francisco

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