Issa warns ATF not to retaliate against whistleblowers

Via Sipsey Street Irregulars

House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa is warning the Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms, Tobacco and Explosives (ATF) not to retaliate against whistleblowers who contradicted initial blanket denials by the Justice Department over “Operation Fast and Furious” in testimony to Congress.

A June 21 letter from Issa to William Hoover, deputy director at ATF, lists a series of accounts from whistleblowers recounting fears they would face retaliation.

ATF agents testifying before the Oversight Committee at a June 15 said that retaliation was common at the agency for officials who did not toe the company line.

But a deputy for Attorney General Eric Holder said the Justice Department would never strike back at whistleblowers. “The Department of Justice will not, would never, retaliate against whistleblowers,” Assistant Attorney General Ronald Weich said.

In his June 21 letter, Issa tells another story, recounting testimony from four agents saying ATF is “a very retaliatory agency,” in the words of an unnamed “Special Agent Number 3.”

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Also: (Issa staffer: Gunrunner investigation points much higher than ATF director)