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Showing posts with the label Whistleblower

Bill Browder’s “Red Notice” exposes Putin’s Russia as a mafia state

The timing of Bill Browder's new book, “Red Notice,” is quite impeccable. After years of craven appeasement, the West finally realized the failure of its “reset” policies with Russia. “Red Notice” provides a powerful glimpse of what’s been taking place in Putin’s Russia, while the world looked the other way. As the hedge fund manager, Browder was hugely successful with Hermitage Capital Management, a company he founded in Russia in 1996. It became the largest investment fund in the country. Browder was the prime example of succeeding the right way – without chicanery, fraud or embezzlement. This was the surefire way of irritating corrupt Russian elites. Big business and big government in Russia are intrinsically intertwined, brazenly operating as organized crime. Vladimir Putin is the Godfather of this far-reaching mafia family. He empowered the group of his cronies to enrich themselves at the expense of Russian economy, on the backs of the country’s longsuffering people. Resou...

The Great Pretender

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For the longest time, Robert MacLean was hailed as a  national hero . He was paraded around by the Government Accountability Project (GAP) and the Project on Government Oversight (POGO) as one of the most important whistleblowers of our generation. The mainstream media published a multitude of articles about MacLean and the horrors he faced for blowing the whistle. GAP and POGO called MacLean  a prime example of the federal whistleblower experience . Lawmakers rallied to join the outpouring of support, praising his heroic actions. MacLean declared that as the result of his firing by the Department of Homeland Security, he was destitute, in desperate need of a job and on the verge of bankruptcy. His case sounded like the prototype of a heartbreaking whistleblower story. Trouble is, much of it simply wasn’t true. Click on the link to read the rest of the article: http://www.examiner.com/homeland-security-in-los-angeles/the-great-pretender

Here Comes the Bride of Frankenstein

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Throughout their travails, whistleblowers were made vulnerable to the onslaught of corruption by the monstrosity known as the Whistleblower Protection Act (WPA). According to one of WPA’s key proponents, Tom Devine of the Government Accountability Project (GAP), the bill has become a “ disastrous trap ” that hurt whistleblowers, instead of helping them. Devine testified : “ the WPA is like my professional baby. I spent four years devoted to its unanimous passage in 1989, and another two years for unanimous 1994 amendments strengthening the law…and my baby grew up to be Frankenstein . Instead of creating safe channels, it degenerated into an efficient mechanism to finish off whistleblowers “. WPA’s Mary Shelley, Tom Devine, is now laboring to breathe life into the Bride of Frankenstein. Meet the WPEA (Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act), a bill S. 743 that is now pending in Senate . While the whistleblowers desperately lack adequate protection under the law, th...

Former head of OSC Scott Bloch gets off scott-free

Hundreds of whistleblowers betrayed by the disgraced former head of the  Office of Special Counsel (OSC) , Scott Bloch, were conflicted about his recently imposed 30-day prison sentence. It was too light of a punishment, but it seemed better than nothing. However, aided and abetted by government prosecutors and a federal judge, Bloch managed to avoid serving any part of that sentence. On August 3, 2011,  Chief U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth  allowed Bloch to withdraw his guilty plea. Click on the link to continue reading: http://www.examiner.com/homeland-security-in-los-angeles/former-head-of-osc-scott-bloch-gets-off-scott-free  

Disgraced former Head of OSC Scott Bloch finally sentenced

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Some semblance of justice seemingly caught up with Scott J. Bloch, the disgraced former head of the Office of Special Counsel (OSC). On March 30, 2011 he was finally sentenced for some of his criminal activities. After years of legal wrangling, Magistrate Judge Deborah Robinson sentenced Bloch to one month in jail plus one year of unsupervised probation and 200 hours community service. But wait, the Bloch saga is still not over. Bloch may be able to stay out of prison, while his sentence is being appealed. His attorney, William Sullivan said that he will file a motion to keep Bloch out of prison until the U.S. Court of Appeals considers his appeal. Robinson said she will consider this motion, along with a request that Bloch avoid the prison sentence altogether, by serving it out in home confinement instead. Throughout these proceedings, Bloch’s attorneys and federal prosecutors have done their best to keep him out of prison. Yes, Bloch was aided by the Department of Jus...

Scott Bloch wants your money

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Disgraced former head of the Office of Special Counsel (OSC) Scott Bloch is seeking donations from the American public to help with his legal bills. His shameless audacity is simply mind-boggling. On April 27, 2010 Scott J. Bloch, pleaded guilty to criminal contempt of Congress. Under his leadership, the historically inept OSC reached new lows. Bloch was accused of the following: Knowingly and willfully ignoring whistleblower disclosures; Dismissing and closing hundreds of whistleblowing complaints without investigation; Deleting hundreds of files pertaining to whistleblowing disclosures and complaints of retaliation and reprisal; Rolling back protections for federal employees against discrimination based on sexual orientation; Staffing key OSC positions with cronies who shared his discriminatory views; Engaging in retaliatory activities against OSC staffers who opposed his wrongdoing; Assigning interns to issue closure letters in hundreds of whistleblower complaints wit...

Office of Special Counsel (OSC) - the dark legacy

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Whistleblowers and federal government workers rejoiced on April 27, 2010, when former head of the Office of Special Counsel (OSC), Scott J. Bloch, pleaded guilty to criminal contempt of Congress. The justice continues to be delayed, as Scott Bloch’s sentencing has been rescheduled for the second time and is now set for September 8, 2010. U.S. Magistrate Judge Deborah Robinson said that she wants prosecutors and Bloch’s attorney to clarify the applicable guidelines for Bloch’s sentence and fine. Robinson is also apparently planning to “adjust” the sentence based on Bloch’s guilty plea. She stated that the lawyers failed to clearly define the sentencing guidelines in this matter. Prosecutors said they would not oppose probation without any imprisonment for Bloch. This should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with our courts. While the Department of Justice relentlessly pursues, prosecutes and imprisons inconvenient whistleblowers, high-ranking bureaucrats who violate their rights ...