Whistleblower to Make Rare Public Appearance at Capitol Hill Event

Ben Kostyack

Published On: July 28th, 2018

Tripp, Grassley, Horowitz Among Speakers

Washington, D.C. July 28, 2018 – Prominent whistleblowers and government officials will address a crowd of over 200 people on Monday, July 30, 2018, in celebration of the 240th anniversary of America’s first whistleblower law at the Senate Dirksen Office Building. Hosted by the National Whistleblower Center (NWC), the luncheon will commemorate whistleblowers who expose corruption and ensure government accountability.

Notable speakers at the event include:

White House whistleblower Linda Tripp, who will be making her first public appearance since 2000.
Senator Chuck Grassley, who is the founder and chairman of the bipartisan Senate Whistleblower Caucus and Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Michael Horowitz, Inspector General of the Department of Justice.
Former Director for Whistleblowing and Transparency in the Office of the Intelligence Community Inspector General (OIG) Dan Meyer. Meyer specialized in whistleblower protection for the OIG but was removed in March for reasons that are still confidential.
Former Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Daniel Ashe. Ashe is now the President and Chief Executive of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and supporting efforts to expand whistleblower protections to combat wildlife trafficking.
Whistleblower Aaron Westrick, whose allegations of unsafe body armor saved hundreds of lives and recalled thousands of vests off the market.

The U.S. Senate, in a unanimous resolution, recognized July 30th as National Whistleblower Appreciation Day, in honor of the strong support demonstrated for whistleblowers by America’s Founding Fathers when they enacted the first whistleblower law on July 30, 1778. The program will run from 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM, in Dirksen G50. Members of the press interested in attending should contact [email protected].

The whistleblower law firm of Kohn Kohn & Colapinto (KKC) strongly supports the event as part of their pro bono service to the National Whistleblower Center. KKC represented Linda Tripp when she filed her Privacy Act lawsuit after the Department of Defense illegally released her confidential personnel file to the media. KKC partner Michael Kohn said the following regarding his former client:

“Linda Tripp was before her time when she blew the whistle on sexual harassment in the workplace. Tripp was an early pioneer of the #MeToo movement, and we are looking forward to what she has to say on Monday. “

LIVESTREAMS: This event will be livestreamed via Twitter and Facebook.

Members of the press interested in attending this event should contact Mary Jane Wilmoth at [email protected]. This event in by invitation only, RSVP required.