Blowing the Whistle, Becoming a Target

It's an age-old story: Federal employee testifies at a congressional hearing (or appears at a press conference or is quoted by a news organization), and suddenly allegations of misconduct by the employee appear out of nowhere and he or she becomes the target of an agency investigation.

Three members of Congress -- Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, Rep. John Conyers Jr., D-Mich., and Rep. Robert Scott, D-Va. -- say that's what happened after FBI agent Bassem Youssef testified May 21 before the House Judiciary subcommittee on crime, terrorism and homeland security. The Washington Times reports today that the lawmakers have sent a letter to FBI Director Robert S. Mueller saying that after Youssef told panel members about the effects of vacancies in the FBI unit that tracks al Qaeda members, he "was informed by his supervisor that unknown accusers had claimed he violated various FBI rules and regulations."

Scott, the subcommittee's chairman, said that if the FBI has retaliated against Youssef for his testimony before Congress, that would be "more than disturbing -- if true, it is criminal."