Recently, the House Committee on the Judiciary held another hearing on the Weaponization of the Federal Government. The room was called to order by reciting the pledge of allegiance, a practice, ironically, banned by rabid, liberal Democrats from public schools for decades. This, coupled with the banning of the Bible from the public school system, has left a vacuum into which the principles of post-modernism and political relativism have flowed. The result is a host of indoctrinated government officials and employees who have no qualms about weaponizing the government against its citizens.
The committee chair, Representative Jim Jordan (R-OH), began the proceedings by outlining some of the egregious actions perpetrated by the FBI on whistleblowers, and FBI misfeasance with regard to the investigation of the January 6th pipe bombs, failing to identify who leaked the Dobbs decision, lying to the FISA court, labeling pro-life Catholics as extremists, and investigating parents who attended school board meetings. Rep. Jordan said, “I think the FBI is driven by politics today.”
He’s not wrong.
Jordan stated that the FBI has used its security clearance adjudication process to unlawfully punish those whose views are contrary to those held by FBI leadership. A primary example of “the process is the punishment” doctrine is Marcus Allen, a former FBI Staff Operations Specialist. Among other allegations, Allen questioned FBI Director Chris Wray’s testimony regarding the presence of FBI confidential human sources during the January 6th protest. The FBI’s despicable treatment of Allen was criticized by DOJ’s Inspector General, Michael Horowitz, whose opening statement detailed the abuses perpetrated on Allen. Horowitz described the FBI’s handling of Allen’s security clearance investigation as “concerning,” but he felt encouraged by the FBI’s subsequent revision of its investigatory practices.
Subsequent to litigation, Allen’s security clearance has been reinstated, and he’s also been awarded a back pay settlement for the 29 months the FBI placed him on unpaid leave. Significantly, Allen is the only FBI whistleblower to date to have his security clearance reinstated. It is also significant to note that Mr. Allen was the only whistleblower to be recalled to this subcommittee hearing.
Whistleblowers are fundamentally important to conducting proper oversight of government institutions. They’re the individuals who are best positioned to call attention to abuses and waste. So long as FBI whistleblowers make disclosures to authorized individuals and representatives, they are statutorily protected, or should be. Mr. Allen, as well as the IRS whistleblowers, have clearly taken the weight and responsibility of their actions seriously. Others have not, tarnishing what should be a noble action, and muddying the critical issues with allegations of grift, toxic personality, and animus.
During the subcommittee hearing, Representative Gerry Connolly (D-VA)—not a particularly bright bulb—tore into FBI “whistleblower” Garret O’Boyle who, Connolly said, “posted the names and personally identifying information, including parts of home addresses, for four current or former FBI officials.” He went on to detail an X post by former FBI Agent Kyle Seraphin wherein Seraphin stated, “the people who left Garret O’Boyle’s family and my family homeless should experience what guys like us are prepared to do to evil.” O’Boyle, Seraphin, and former FBI Agent Steve Friend are close associates, and regularly appear on each other’s podcasts, and other social media.
Seraphin has engaged in repeated attacks of prominent conservatives to include Julie Kelly and James O’Keefe. After a particularly noxious series of attacks on Kelly, in which Seraphin and O’Boyle implied that Kelly should contract cancer, Dan Bongino declaimed any further support of Seraphin or his associates stating, “I try my best to give people a platform…but sometimes it goes wrong…if you’ve seen what’s happened with this former FBI guy…it’s really a shame…I guess they fall in love with themselves and go crazy.” Seraphin and O’Boyle have even railed against Rep. Jordan for what they perceive as a lack of support—not to mention the “FBI’s anti-Catholic memo” hoax perpetrated by Seraphin. Aside from O’Boyle and Seraphin’s malfeasance and grift, Steve Friend embroiled himself in difficulty, having given an interview to RT, a known Russian propaganda outlet while still an FBI employee.
It’s a shameful commentary on what should otherwise be an analysis of FBI politicization and policy abuses.
Among the distinguished members of the testimonial bench, Rep. Jim Jordan recognized the critically important work of Tristan Leavitt, President of Empower Oversight, responsible for bringing to Congress whistleblower allegations regarding the rampant bias within the FBI’s Security Division (SecD). Leavitt’s work revealed that SecD investigators, using an ad hoc form, were querying fellow employees about their support of Trump, and sought to document opinions regarding COVID vaccination mandates. The then head of SecD, Deputy Assistant Director, Jeffrey Veltri was accused of creating an environment where it was permissible to ask those kinds of completely inappropriate questions. Veltri now heads the Miami Field Office — the office which has jurisdiction over Trump’s residence. For FBI Director Wray, the best that can be said is that this was an incredibly unaware assignment.
During his comments, Rep. Jordan pointed to the May 13th 2024 DOJ Inspector General memo, finding the Justice Department and FBI failed to comply with clear statutory and regulatory requirements.
After a 24 month investigation into Marcus Allen’s security clearance suspension, the FBI reinstated his clearance after determining “the original security concerns have been investigated and mitigated.” Rep. Jordan went on to say that during the last hearing Democrats attempted to impugn Allen’s character by ascribing someone else’s (Seraphin’s) tweets to him and characterizing him not as a whistleblower, but as someone with simple grievances — a clear example of how the misconduct of some can cast doubt and aspersions on real whistleblowers with patriotic motives.
To date, Marcus Allen has stayed above the fray of grift and pettiness. This gives him the most valuable commodity a whistleblower can possess — credibility. As of this writing, he has yet to receive his backpay. Consider supporting him and other genuine whistleblower’s legal expenses by donating to Empower Oversight’s Give-Send-Go.