FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
11/06/2019 

Government Accountability Project Condemns Trump Family’s Irresponsible Comments on Alleged Whistleblower Identity

Guessing at a Whistleblower’s Identity Chills Critical Speech, Harms Uninvolved Parties  

WASHINGTON — Today, Donald Trump Jr. tweeted out the name of the individual that some claim is the intelligence community whistleblower. In the tweet, Trump linked to a Breitbart article containing information that claims to reveal the alleged whistleblower’s identity. Trump’s tweet follows weeks of intense public discussion about the whistleblower and calls from President Donald Trump himself for media outlets to release the whistleblower’s name. Under federal law, intelligence community whistleblowers have a right to anonymity. Further, identifying or even misidentifying a whistleblower can have tragic consequences.  In this case, Trump may have opened up an uninvolved person’s career to unfair scrutiny and potentially put the individual’s life in danger. 

A whistleblower filed an anonymous complaint with the Intelligence Community Inspector General (ICIG) in July following President Trump’s troubling call with the President of Ukraine. In the complaint, the whistleblower raised the concern that President Trump was “using the power of his office to solicit interference from a foreign country in the 2020 election,” and the ICIG substantiated the complaint as a credible, “urgent concern.” 

Government Accountability Project CEO and Executive Directive Louis Clark condemned Trump’s comments:

“If the Trump family has revealed the name of the intelligence community whistleblower, it is an outrage and unprecedented threat to all whistleblowers. If President Trump is responsible for this potential breach of federal law, the House should consider adding this attempted violation of confidentiality to its impeachment inquiry. It is despicable that this President is waging war against whistleblowers – the courageous patriots and truth-tellers who deserve support, not exposure to danger, threats, ridicule, and abuse.” 

Contact: Andrew Harman, Government Accountability Project Communications Director
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 202-457-0034 ext. 156

 Government Accountability Project

Government Accountability Project is the nation’s leading whistleblower protection organization. Through litigating whistleblower cases, publicizing concerns and developing legal reforms, the Government Accountability Project’s mission is to protect the public interest by promoting government and corporate accountability. Founded in 1977, Government Accountability Project is a nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C

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