Weston Lawyers: Is President Obama Undercutting Whistle Blowers?

While on the campaign trail, President Obama had promised that his administration would offer complete protection to whistle blowers. And yet, just a few months after assuming office, a leading Republican senator says that the president is breaking his pledge. Iowa Senator Charles E. Grassley recently sent a letter to the President that both questioned and condemned a signing statement that was attached to the $410 billion spending bill he affixed his signature to in March.

A signing statement is rarely used. It is a document that is attached to a bill that contains the President’s directive on how the new law is to be implemented. In the signing statement, the President flagged a provision that afforded protection to those officials who give information to Congress about their work or the functioning of their departments. The President said that his powers to restrict the flow of information to Congress could not be limited when such revelations are unlawful or the information is confidential.

Senator Grassley, in his letter has said that this statement was too broad and undefined and would discourage potential whistle blowers from bringing notice of fraud, waste or abuse of power before Congress.

A statement from the Government Accountability Project, a group that promotes whistle blowing, said the President’s statement was not clearly defined and could be interpreted in different ways. They called on the President to clarify what he meant.

A government official, responding to the debate, but asking that his name and designation not be revealed, said that he did not think that Mr. Obama’s statement has added any uncertainty to the existing policy and insisted that the President was committed to protecting whistle blowers. On being questioned about the types of cases where the President may use his powers to override the whistle blower protection laws, the official declined to discuss specific possible contingencies, but limited himself to saying that the administration would not exceed the actions previously taken by Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton on this issue.

The official drew attention to a memorandum President Obama issued a few days previously wherein his signing statement policy was outlined. The memorandum says that Mr. Obama will employ legitimate interpretations of laws. The official said that the whistle blower signing statement was consistent with that position.

Senator Grassley referred to Mr. Obama’s campaign promise not to issue signing statements that would affect legislative intent. The Senator says that the President has now “gutted the legislative intent” of the whistle blower provisions.

The new President has taken a lot of different actions in his first 100 days. It remains to be seen how this move will affect whistleblowers long term.