WASHINGTON, D.C. – F.B.I. whistleblowers testified publicly for the first time Thursday, as House Republicans make the case the agency is unfairly targeting some Americans.
The testimony is part of the Weaponization of Government House Subcommittee alleging the F.B.I. and Justice Department have become politicized.
Garrett O’Boyle, a suspended F.B.I. agent, told the committee, “All I wanted to do was serve my country by stopping bad guys and protect the innocent. To my chagrin, bad guys have been running parts of the government, making it difficult to continue to serve this nation and protect the innocent.”
Another former F.B.I. agent, Steve Friend, said, “You may think I’m a political partisan, you may think I’m a grifter, you may think I’m a conspiracy theorist – it doesn’t matter. Simply put, this committee should avoid the temptation to impugn the character and the motivations of the messengers seated before you.”
Some of the accusations in the whistleblower report accused the FBI of inflating domestic violence extremism to fit a political narrative from the Biden administration and forcing out conservative employees.
Suspended F.B.I. Agent Marcus Allen testified that “Despite my unblemished service to the United States, the F.B.I. suspended my security clearance, accusing me of being disloyal to my country.”
The day before the meeting, the FBI said it had revoked the security clearances of three agents, including two who were testifying at the hearing, because of ties to January 6th.
The FBI said staff operations specialist Marcus Allen obstructed lawful investigation into people involved with the January 6th riot.
The agency alleged former FBI agent Steven Friend objected to using a SWAT team to arrest a January 6th suspect. The agency says he also downloaded agency documents on an unauthorized flash drive.
Democrats on the committee used that to question the testimony of the whistleblowers.
Representative Delegate Stacey Plaskett (D-U.S. Virgin Islands) stated, “My colleagues on the far right are on a mission to attack, discredit, and ultimately dismantle the F.B.I. This is defund the police on steroids.”
The hearing comes as the F.B.I. is under increased scrutiny after the release of the Durham Report this week, where Special Counsel John Durham concluded the F.B.I. should not have launched a full investigation into connections between former President Donald Trump’s campaign and Russia during the 2016 election.
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