In a move that has turned heads in the media and prompted pushback from critics, House Democrats are considering taking “extraordinary steps” to hide the identity of the Ukraine call whistleblower from President Trump’s “congressional allies.” The Democrats’ consideration of “unprecedented” measures come amid new revelations about the whistleblower’s reported “political bias.”
Citing “three officials familiar with the deliberations,” The Washington Post reported Monday that the House Democrats heading up the investigation into Trump’s alleged “pressuring” of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate former vice president and 2020 presidential candidate Joe Biden are considering conducting the whistleblower’s interview in “a remote location” and “obscuring the individual’s appearance and voice.”
“There are lots of different protocols and procedures we’re looking into to find out what works and doesn’t work to protect the identity of the whistleblower,” one of the sources told the Post. The protection of the whistleblower’s identity is “paramount,” the source stressed.
This entire process has been a scam.
Dems now plan to only allow themselves and their staff to know the whistleblower’s identity, while concealing it from Republican committee members.
This is unprecedented. What are they trying to hide??#KangarooCourt https://t.co/AmIvachqKN
— Steve Scalise (@SteveScalise) October 7, 2019
If impeachment is designed to ‘Uphold the Constitution’ you are in the process of destroying it by preventing the President and his team from confronting the witnesses against them.
This is an unsustainable position.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) October 7, 2019
“The highly unusual arrangement for the whistleblower’s testimony underscores the toxicity between Republicans and Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee, which was once considered among the most bipartisan but is now spearheading the divisive impeachment investigation,” the Post notes. “One individual familiar with the discussions said this is the first time the panel has had to take such extraordinary measures to protect a witness — including from their GOP colleagues.” – READ MORE