Federal Oversight: A Failure to Act

It is a good thing that talk and dialogue continue regarding the Office of Special Counsel (OSC), the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), and the environment for whistleblowers in the federal government. It is even better that there are hearings going on to decide what to do about the almost utter failure of both of those agencies. However it is important to realize that the sum total effect of the inactivity of real accomplishment means that real people’s lives are being affected, and in some cases, ruined and families torn apart. One federal employee over the course of his/her career conducted a number of serious investigations with regard to the inappropriate handling and mishandling of classified national security information and technology.

In one investigation, the Investigator was called in by a Security Specialist from the Dept. of Energy (DOE), to investigate the refusal of DOE management to take their investigative findings seriously. The Department of Defense (DOD) Investigator was dispatched along with a second DOD Senior Security Specialist, to look into the allegations. The DOD Investigator met with a DOE scientist, and the DOE Security Specialist, making the allegations. The DOE scientist, and Security Specialist provided sworn statements and documented evidence to the DOD investigator and DOD Senior Security Specialist.

Upon return to the DOD field office, the Investigator and the Senior Security Specialist wrote a classified report of findings (administrative inquiry). What had been shared with the DOD was a DOE security program out of control. The evidence documented critical nuclear weapons design information (CNWDI), and fissionable nuclear material being improperly stored at a DOE facility. The report was appropriately classified, and appropriately forwarded through channels to the DOD headquarters. Several weeks later, the DOD field office received a telephone call from one of the DOD headquarters personnel who had read the report. The comment made to the DOD investigator and Senior Security Specialist was “And what do you expect me to do with this?”

The DOD field office personnel said that they expected it to be briefed to the DOE Director, believing that the problem was extremely serious, and when disclosed, would be addressed and fixed by the DOE Director. At that point, the DOD headquarters individual said “If you think that DOD headquarters is gonna walk over to the director of the DOE and brief her on the fact that she has fissionable nuclear material being improperly stored, you’re out of your God damned mind.”

The effect of this DOD management level person’s refusal to do his job was that good people within the DOE that wanted to do the right thing were left swinging in the wind. For the past 10 years, these people’s lives have been holy Hell. The scientist was forced to relocate to another DOE facility; one much more remote to his/her family, by DOE and commutes back to his/her home several times a year, time permitting. The DOE Security Specialist that tried to do the right thing, and when all appropriate channels failed within the DOE, then reported it to the DOD, found that DOD miserably failed them also. For the past 10 plus years, that person’s career has been lost; their life has been ruined. They have lost almost everything they owned. And nothing has changed. It’s time to get past just talking about this. It is time to DO something.