House panel calls on Commerce inspector general to fire officials who forced 'gag clause' on whistleblowers

Federal inspectors general are supposed to protect whistleblowers, but a House panel has accused Department of Commerce Inspector General Todd Zinser of doing the opposite.

In a letter from a House Committee on Science, Space and Technology’s Subcommittee on Oversight, Zinser was called on the carpet for not firing two senior managers who, according to the Office of Special Counsel, forced four whistleblowers to sign a “gag clause” prohibiting them from exposing misconduct in the inspector general’s office.