Following the firing of FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe on Friday, reports began circulating that the timing of the firing meant McCabe lost his eligibility for a federal pension — a claim shown to be completely inaccurate.
“McCabe has been fired 26 hours before his formal retirement — a move that could cost him his federal pension,” wrote Vox.
NBC’s Andrea Mitchell also spread this notion through a tweet published Saturday. “One suggestion from a McCabe supporter: if a friendly member of Congress hired him for a week he could possibly qualify for pension benefits by extending his service the extra days.”
As explained by Forbes contributor Elizabeth Bauer, these statements give “the impression of a veteran, elderly federal official being cheated out of his pension accruals due to a vindictive Trump administration.”
However, the notion that McCabe lost his entire pension is untrue.
As outlined in the Federal Employees Retirement System, federal employees are guaranteed pensions after five years of employment.
“McCabe is all of 49 years old, likely 50 by the time readers see this, and what he lost out on was … the ability to take his benefits at age 50, rather than somewhere between age 57 and age 62, and he lost his eligibility to a special top-up in benefit formula,” Bauer explained.- READ MORE
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