Reaction Of Sen. Patrick Leahy
To TIME Magazine’s Selection
Of 3 Whistleblowers As Persons Of The Year
Sun., Dec. 22, 2002

[Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) is the outgoing chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee.  Leahy and Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) are the authors of the new corporate whistleblower protection law, enacted as part of the Sarbanes-Oxley corporate accountability law.  Leahy and Grassley also authored the FBI whistleblower protections in the FBI Reform Act, which the Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approved last spring but which was blocked from a Senate vote by an anonymous hold.  Grassley and Leahy currently are acting to protect another FBI whistleblower, John Roberts, from retaliation.  Leahy has also introduced the Congressional Whistleblower Protection Act, which would create a right of action for whistleblowers who face retaliation after reporting offenses to Congress.  Following is Leahy’s reaction to TIME Magazine’s selection of whistleblowers Coleen Rowley, Sherron Watkins and Cynthia Cooper as TIME’s Persons of the Year.]

“Whistleblowers make government work better.  Government agencies and big corporations do a good job in telling us what they do right.  We need whistleblowers to tell us when things are going wrong.

"I applaud Time Magazine for honoring three courageous whistleblowers and in helping to smooth the way for future whistleblowers.  The brave actions of these three already have resulted in reforms that will help restore confidence in our institutions and that will help protect tomorrow’s whistleblowers.

“Sherron Watkins’ example helped us enact the first corporate whistleblower protections in history.  Cynthia Cooper also showed the good that can come when courageous whistleblowers come forward.  Coleen Rowley’s testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee is leading to FBI reforms and also prompted promises to protect whistleblowers from FBI Director Mueller, Attorney General Ashcroft and from the President. 

“We need to do more to protect whistleblowers.  Though we now have a new law protecting corporate whistleblowers, the Administration already has sought to weaken these protections.  And in the Senate, the whistleblower protections in the FBI Reform Act have blocked by an anonymous hold. 

“I hope that this spotlight on the achievements of three whistleblowers will embolden others when we need to hear from them, and I hope it will convince Congress and the President to give whistleblowers the protection they will need and deserve when they do come forward.”

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