The attorney for the whistleblower whose complaint is at the center of impeachment proceedings against President Trump is warning that political figures need to hold back on naming his client.
The whistleblower’s attorney, Andrew Bakaj, made the remarks in a long Twitter thread Tuesday evening and come a day after Sen. Rand Paul called on the media to publish the name of the CIA officer who filed the complaint. The Kentucky Republican also said the whistleblower should be subpoenaed by Congress.
“I urge all of our government leaders – notably all Members of Congress – to step back and reflect on the important role whistleblowers play in our constitutional republic’s ability to oversee itself,” Bakaj said.
THREAD ON THE IMPORTANCE OF PROTECTING MY CLIENT’S IDENTITY: I urge all of our government leaders – notably all Members of Congress – to step back and reflect on the important role whistleblowers play in our constitutional republic’s ability to oversee itself.
— Andrew P. Bakaj (@AndrewBakaj) November 5, 2019
He went on to say that Congress “created a process” to allow members of the Intelligence Community to file complaints anonymously without fear of reprisal because “failure to do so would mean that the unauthorized public disclosure of classified information could cause grave harm to our national security.”
Failure to do so would mean that the unauthorized public disclosure of classified information could cause grave harm to our national security.
— Andrew P. Bakaj (@AndrewBakaj) November 5, 2019
Bakaj mentioned the Intelligence Community Whistleblower Protection Act, which was placed into law in 1998 and Presidential Policy Directive 19, signed by President Barack Obama in 2012, which allows those with classified information to report wrongdoing while protecting that information.
Subsequently in 2012, Presidential Policy Directive 19 was issued Protecting Whistleblowers with Access to Classified Information, the mechanism by which Intelligence Community Whistleblowers are protected from retaliation as a consequence of engaging in protected activity.
— Andrew P. Bakaj (@AndrewBakaj) November 5, 2019
He said that the purpose of those is to encourage members of the Intelligence Community to go through “appropriate channels” in order to prevent leaking of classified information that could be damaging to national security interests.
He said that disclosing the name of the whistleblower would “fundamentally harm” the process of anonymous reporting and “by extension” harm congressional oversight.
“If Congress and others do not protect my client’s anonymity-which my client is afforded to by law-not only does it jeopardize their safety, but it jeopardizes an entire system that took decades to build,” Bakaj said. “It will destroy effective Congressional oversight for years to come.”
“This is what is at stake. It is time for Members of Congress and our government leaders to internalize this fact,” he added.
If Congress and others do not protect my client’s anonymity-which my client is afforded to by law-not only does it jeopardize their safety, but it jeopardizes an entire system that took decades to build. It will destroy effective Congressional oversight for years to come.
— Andrew P. Bakaj (@AndrewBakaj) November 5, 2019
Speculation about who the whistleblower is has increased in the past few weeks. The Washington Examiner has reported that he is a CIA analyst who was detailed to the White House’s National Security Council. His attorneys have refused to confirm or deny his identity but have offered that their client can answer questions from congressional investigators in a written format.
