For years, lawmakers have argued that intelligence personnel concerned about government actions — like Edward Snowden and Chelsea Manning — should go through formal whistleblower channels instead of illegally leaking government secrets.
“I wouldn’t be concerned just about these reports. I only get worked up when there doesn’t appear to be cooperation on whistleblowing,” Grassley said. He also noted that because the complaint involves the president, the information could be “constitutionally privileged.” “There is no privilege that covers whether the White House is involved in trying to stifle a whistleblower complaint,” Schiff shot back Thursday, threatening to sue over the issue or even withhold funding from intelligence agencies until they complied.“If [Schiff] wants to engage in a conversation before all the facts are on the table, that’s his prerogative,” said Rep. Mike Conaway , a member of the House Intelligence Committee.
“This leaves the inspector general in a pickle,” said Jim Baker, the former general counsel at the FBI. “Now that DOJ has opined, that’s the law for the executive branch. As a technical matter, the inspector general has to fall in line. Or he could violate the law and tell Congress what happened, but he might be subject to prosecution if, for example, the information is properly classified.”
“"I think it's important to protect the ability of whistleblowers to communicate to the committee," said Rep. Will Hurd , a member of the House Intelligence Committee and former CIA officer."I want to make sure this is streamlined and doesn't happen again." Maguire made the call to redirect the complaint after consulting with the Justice Department. The DNI’s general counsel, Jason Klitenic, also determined that because the complaint doesn’t involve someone “within the responsibility and authority” of the intelligence community, it can’t be deemed “urgent” and therefore doesn’t require transmittal to lawmakers.
Democrats are saying the administration — not the law — is to blame.
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