[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 177 (Wednesday, November 6, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Page S6428]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                 Unanimous Consent Request--S. Res. 408

  Ms. HIRONO. Mr. President, if you work for the Federal Government, 
you work for the people. You have a duty by law to come forward to 
report misconduct, fraud, misdemeanors, and other crimes going on in 
government.
  This duty has been on the books since 1778. Why? Because people 
working in government are in a pretty good position to see when 
something is not right in their workplace.
  We want a government that is doing right by us.
  It is not easy for whistleblowers to come forward to report 
wrongdoing in government. That is why we have laws that protect a 
whistleblower from intimidation, discrimination, and retaliation, and 
laws that protect their identity.
  On August 12, a whistleblower--and we don't know whether this was a 
man or a woman, so for ease of reference, I will refer to the 
whistleblower as ``she''--came forward, as the law required, to file a 
complaint with the Inspector General of the Intelligence Community.
  The complaint alleged that the President was ``using the power of his 
office to solicit interference from a foreign country in the 2020 U.S. 
election.''
  The inspector general, also as required, determined that the 
complaint was credible and involved an urgent concern.
  The House, on learning of the whistleblower's complaint, began to ask 
questions. What did the House investigation uncover? That the 
whistleblower's complaint was right.
  Bill Taylor, the top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine; Tim Morrison, the top 
Russia and Eastern Europe expert on the National Security Council; and 
others have corroborated the whistleblower's complaint about the 
President.
  Just yesterday, the U.S. Ambassador to the European Union, Gordon 
Sondland, confirmed that security assistance for Ukraine was dependent 
on the Ukranian Government's launching an investigation into the 
President's political opponents.
  Let's face it. What Donald Trump did was wrong. It is wrong for the 
President of the United States to shake down the Ukrainian President to 
get dirt on his political rivals in return for almost $400 million in 
U.S. military aid to help Ukraine fight Russia. Faced with growing 
evidence of Donald Trump's wrongdoing, what happens? What happens is a 
President and his minions attack the whistleblower, suggesting that she 
was spying and guilty of treason.
  Donald Trump has threatened the whistleblower with ``Big 
Consequences''--capital B, capital C--and put her safety at risk with 
comments such as: ``I do not know why a person that defrauds the 
American public should be protected.'' Guess what, he wasn't talking 
about himself.
  Donald Trump's devoted rightwing allies have been quick to echo and 
amplify the President's attacks. The whistleblower's own attorney 
warned Acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire that the 
President's threats are compromising her personal safety. Just last 
Sunday, Donald Trump said: ``There have been stories written about a 
certain individual, a male, and they say he's the whistleblower . . . 
if it's him, you guys ought to release the information.''
  House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy also insisted that the 
whistleblower ``should come before the committee . . . he needs to 
answer the questions.'' While speaking at a Trump campaign rally, my 
colleague from Kentucky who has joined me on the floor today, demanded 
that the media print the name of the whistleblower. Representative   
Jim Jordan, one of Donald Trump's fiercest allies, dismissed the 
whistleblower as biased and called for her identity to be made public.
  With his attacks on the whistleblower, Donald Trump has made clear 
that he will use the full power of his office to bully, intimidate, and 
threaten anyone who dares to stand up to him or to speak out against 
him.
  Can you imagine what a young career foreign service officer at the 
State Department might do after seeing the President tell the world 
that whistleblowers are spies who defraud our government? Do you think 
that person would risk destroying their career and suffer the wrath of 
Donald Trump and his fiercest allies and supporters in reporting the 
President's misconduct?
  How about a career employee at the Department of Defense who sees 
that military aid is being held up to pressure a foreign government to 
help the President of the United States win reelection? Do you think 
that Defense Department employee would risk being accused of betraying 
our country and acting as a spy?
  Let's be clear here: The real purpose of these attacks is to scare 
anyone else who may be thinking of coming forward to stay silent. We 
see the President, time and time again, through tweets, in interviews, 
at his rallies, openly attacking anyone who questions or disagrees with 
him. The chilling effect of what the President is doing cannot be 
overstated. It totally undercuts our whistleblower laws. These are not 
normal times. In normal times, we would be protecting whistleblowers. 
That is what this resolution does.
  The resolution I am presenting affirms that if anyone expects public 
servants to report misconduct, we have a corresponding duty to protect 
their identity and safeguard them from retaliation, from threats. The 
whistleblower has done her duty. Now, we need to do ours.
  Madam President, as if in legislative session, I ask unanimous 
consent the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 
408 introduced earlier today; that the resolution be agreed to; the 
preamble be agreed to; and the motions to reconsider be considered made 
and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  Mr. PAUL. Mr. President, reserving the right to object.