Protecting Truth-Tellers in the Age of Trump

By Louis Clark, Executive Director and CEO

Since the 2016 presidential election, we have been facing a political environment that presents unprecedented challenges to holding our government institutions accountable: flagrant, deliberate disregard of truth; attacks on lawmakers, journalists and judges; censorship of information and of employees; contravention of ethics norms and rules; stacking control of public agencies with appointees proudly committed to private interests at the expense of the public interest; expectations of compliance with illegal and unvetted executive orders; a climate of swift reprisal against those who challenge this administration's legitimacy—including the press, the judiciary, elected officials and career civil servants deemed "disloyal"—in the form of mendacity, venomous verbal attacks, and threatened and real reprisal.

In the latest outrage, the Department of Interior has announced a plan to transfer 20 percent of the top civil servants to jobs that don't exist, to areas of the country that will prompt resignations, to job duties that are outside of their expertise or to bureaucratic "Siberia." We are now seeing what is in store for many other or maybe even most other agencies. It just happens that 100 percent of the senior staff being transferred were appointed during Obama's presidency and are overwhelmingly female or minorities.

However, we have also found at this unique moment in time that while concerns about the direction of this country are at a fevered pitch, there is widespread hunger for tools beyond marches and phone calls to hold the Trump administration accountable and prevent harm to national security, civil and human rights, the environment, consumers, children, workers and other fundamental public interests. Whistleblowers—and the information they disclose—may be the most powerful of those tools, reflecting the adage that information is power and tends to flow to those who are either able to suppress that information or to those who are able to strategically disclose it.

Throughout our 40-year history, we have learned that whistleblowers typically stay silent for two primary reasons: fear of reprisal and fear of futility. As you know, for those who choose to speak up, we have always used multiple tactics to address both of these legitimate fears. We provide legal representation to employees who suffer retaliation for blowing the whistle, and we work strategically with executive agencies, sympathetic elected officials and the press to ensure that the problems disclosed by the whistleblowers are addressed.

Made possible because of the critical support of our members, we are now preparing to take this strategy to an entirely new level, one where we increase the power of our experience and expertise both representing whistleblowers and addressing the problems they disclose through additional capacity and new partnerships. Your support will allow us to bring special attention to the rights and revelations of federal employees and contractors who are now under fire, as well as continue to expand our ongoing cases and initiatives to enhance truth-telling throughout the federal government at a time when the rule of law is clearly under siege by an administration that often presents lies and allegations without evidence to justify its actions.

I will be sure to keep you apprised of these efforts throughout the year. If you have any questions or need anything at all during the coming months, please don't hesitate to reach out to me directly. Or contact Michael Termini at michaelt@whistleblower.org or (202) 926-3321 to learn more about the many ways you can support this important work.