WASHINGTON, D.C. Feb. 16, 2012 - Jesselyn Radack, the Department of Justice (DOJ) whistleblower who exposed violations in the federal government's handling of the case against "American Taliban" John Walker Lindh, has released a new memoir about her experience blowing the whistle on Bush administration officials' wrongdoing, the subsequent and significant retaliation against her for doing so, and how she used her experiences to later guide other high-profile whistleblowers. Radack serves as National Security & Human Rights Director for the Government Accountability Project (GAP).
Radack's book explains her experiences as a DOJ ethics adviser who disclosed that the FBI committed ethical violations in its interrogation of Lindh, such as interrogating him without an attorney present. She also exposed that the DOJ attempted to suppress that information, and that former Attorney General John Ashcroft and other senior government officials made misleading public statements about the case.
Praise for Radack's actions, and the book, have been overwhelmingly positive. Noted New York Times bestselling author Glenn Greenwald wrote the book's foreword:
[Jesselyn's] sobering book should be required reading for all first-year law students because it shows poignantly how "national security" is being used to fundamentally bastardize constitutional law, criminal procedure, human rights, civil liberties and legal ethics.
Traitor illustrates just how long and how extreme retaliation against whistleblowers can be. For example, Radack was put on the No-Fly "Selectee" List from 2003 through 2009, always being forced to go through extra, unjustified, completely unnecessary security measures (at one point, she was even asked to drink her own breast milk by a TSA agent).
Importantly, Radack explains how she was able to apply the lessons she learned during her ordeal to future whistleblowers – notably National Security Agency (NSA) whistleblower Tom Drake, one of six individuals charged by the Obama administration with violating the Espionage Act for whistleblowing-related disclosures. These six Espionage Act prosecutions against truth-tellers are more than all other administrations combined. With four of these cases still outstanding and progressing toward trial, the book is a timely read for all concerned about this heavy-handed and overzealous DOJ tactic.
Daniel Ellsberg was the first person charged under the Espionage Act in this fashion. This pioneer of modern-day whistleblowing provided this inspiring review of the book:
There's simply no better first-person book about whistleblowing. It illustrates dramatically both the risks of conscientious truth-telling – fully experienced by Jesselyn, a horror story greatly to the discredit of the government – and the compelling need for indomitable whistleblowers like her.
A list of her upcoming public appearances can be found here.
The Government Accountability Project is the nation's leading whistleblower protection organization. Through litigating whistleblower cases, publicizing concerns and developing legal reforms, GAP's mission is to protect the public interest by promoting government and corporate accountability. Founded in 1977, GAP is a non-profit, non-partisan advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C. www.whistleblower.org
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