whistleblower (Photo credit: ElectronicFrontierFoundation)

By Tim Collins

Barack Obama said that he would have the most transparent government in history, yet he has quickly signed executive orders without public knowledge, and now he is attacking whistle blowers.

The American government “is using its power to intimidate, prosecute and prevent government employees from sharing information about state officials’ misconduct”, insists Stephen Kohn, attorney and author of The Whistleblower’s Handbook.

Former CIA Officer John Kiriakou, who was the first official to confirm the waterboarding of terrorist suspects, has been indicted for repeatedly disclosing sensitive information to journalists. The government used the same tactics against Bradley Manning who leaked information to Wikileaks.

Stephen Kohn points to the 1st Amendment of the US Constitution to show protection from such charges.

“It is government misconduct that the government wants to suppress the public ever learning about. It is the heart of the First Amendment,” Kohn continued, explaining that “the core of the First Amendment is the protection of the people who want to expose the misconduct of government.”

During the 2008 campaign then candidate Barack Obama said that he was in favor of protecting those who bring attention to suspect activities. “I wrote a brief for a federal whistleblowers law, to make sure that it applied in more situations all the way to the Supreme Court… making sure that those whistleblowers get protection,” Obama said.

During the Obama presidency, whistle blowers have suffered harsher consequences than during the Bush administration.

So why all the secrecy? Some believe that Obama is in bed with the likes of George Soros and other shadowy figures. When the truth comes out, it causes too much damage so it’s easier to intimidate potential whistle blowers by making examples of those who are caught.

Americans need to be careful about this dangerous attack on whistle blowers as it is possible that it could spread to those who don’t agree with an administration. Protesting at political rallies, writing unfavorable criticisms of politicians, and decrying injustice might soon get you locked up. The longer this is allowed to continue, the worse it will get for everyone.