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Here's the story we'll be discussing:
Whistleblowers Could be Casualties of Obama's Signing Statement
One of the clauses in President Obama’s first signing statement suggests he might resist lawmakers on a provision aimed at protecting whistleblowers — a suggestion that is drawing fire from a top Senate Republican and prompting a closer look by a leading whistleblower defense group.
If Obama’s statement really is an indication that the administration might not comply with the whistleblower language in the omnibus appropriations bill, it would add a new level of irony to the signing statement he issued Wednesday. Not only did Obama criticize President George W. Bush for issuing such signing statements in the first place, but watchdog groups specifically criticized Bush for allegedly trying to kill other efforts to protect federal whistleblowers from retaliation.
And here's some more
After all, Obama not only promised during the campaign to protect federal whistleblowers, he also included a directive to that effect in a memorandum to federal departments and agencies earlier this week aimed at preventing political interference in science. Obama told the departments to design procedures, “including any appropriate whistleblower protections,” to avoid the kind of interference that reportedly took place during the Bush administration.
So does Obama not really want whistleblowers to talk to Congress? Or was this just a case of the administration’s left hand not knowing what the right hand was doing? Either way, this could become a headache Obama doesn’t need right now — a high price to pay for presidential perogatives.
Read the whole article here; Permalink
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