Capitol Police IG: Only two of total 650 total reports from office have been made public since 2005

Russo committed to internally investigating a previous claim of retaliation against whistleblowers at the U.S. Capitol Police and reporting his findings to the subcommittee.

By Nicholas Ballasy

Updated: July 19, 2023 - 3:27pm

The U.S. Capitol Police inspector general on Wednesday told a House panel that he would never disclose the name of an internal whistleblower and revealed thatjust two of a total 650 reports from his office have been made public.

"We would protect that information at all costs," Inspector General Ron Russo told the House Administration Subcommittee on Oversight. "It's super serious that people feel comfortable to come to us without fear of retaliation so it's a priority to make sure we handle that with great care."

Russo officially became inspector general Jan. 29. Inspectors general offices are government watchdogs that essentially monitor the agency for waste, fraud, abuse and performance issues.

Russo also told the panel that the IG office is not required to make any of its reports public but said he personally supports publicly releasing the reports going forward. However, Russo noted that he currently cannot make the decision to publicly release reports unilaterally.

"The [Capitol Police] board makes the decision on a case by case basis," he said. "We put two online and I think there are six of seven in review now. I would anticipate those becoming public more rapidly."

According to the Capitol Police website, Congress established the U.S. Capitol Police IG office in August 2005.

New York GOP Rep. Anthony D'Esposito asked Russo about Capitol Police employees who came forward before he became IG about intelligence failures on Jan. 6, 2021.

D'Esposito said these whistleblowers were put on a performance-improvement plan and forced out of the department.

He pressed Russo on whether he would consider such actions retaliation. In response, Russo said he wasn't familiar with the details of that situation but he emphasized that protecting whistleblowers is "one of the most important things we do."

Russo committed to internally investigating the allegations D'Esposito laid out and reporting his findings to the subcommittee.

"Absolutely," he said.

In his opening statement, Chairman Rep. Barry Loudermilk said the subcommittee is reviewing claims of retaliation against employees after they spoke with the Inspector General's office. He vowed to "aggressively protect whistleblowers from any internal retaliation."

https://justthenews.com/government/congress/us-capitol-police-inspector-general

Top DEA member resigns after revelations about previous consulting for Big Pharma

The man is another example of the ethical concern of government high ups who have switched from industry to government leadership

By Colman Rowan

Updated: July 19, 2023 - 2:44pm

The second-in-command at the Drug Enforcement Administration has resigned amid a new report that he previously consulted for Big Pharma, including a company called Purdue Pharma, a pharmaceutical company at the center of the prescription drug opioid epidemic, which has since been sanctioned for suspicious painkiller shipments and under the spotlight amidst the opioid epidemic.

The official,Louis Milione, worked at the agency for 21 years, until 2017 when he took a job to do consulting for Big Pharma.

In 2021, Milione returned to the DEA to serve as top deputy for the Administrator Anne Milgram, according to the Associated Press.

The proper position ofNo. 2 for the DEA – “deputy administrator” – has been empty for years.

The position Milione held as the DEA's No. 2 – “principal deputy administrator” – has nearly the same duties but requires neither presidential appointment nor congressional consent where scrutiny of conflict of interests could be addressed.

In his consulting, Milione testified on behalf of Morris & Dickson, the country's fourth-largest wholesale drug distributor, which fought to preserve its license to supply painkillers to pharmacies and hospitals, AP reported in May.

Four years ago, a federal administrative judge ruled that the company, during the height of the opioid crisis, failed to flag thousands of suspicious drug orders, but it was only a few days after the wire service inquired about the case that the DEA moved to strip the company's license.

Milione reportedly said this week that he stepped down for personal reasons, which are unrelated to the reporting on him.

He and the Justice Department also said that he kept out of matters in which there may be contention given his previous positions in the business.

Milione also said that just ashis consulting helped drug companies comply with DEA standards, so does his return to the DEA give insight into how real-world business decisions are made. (So he advised pharma companies to skirt the rules and lie to the DEA)

The exit of Milione adds to the tumult at the top of the DEA, which includes otherhigh level resignations and investigations into contracts given to past associatesof agency Administrator Anne Milgram.

Since taking charge of the DEA in 2021, Milgram has reportedly cycled through over 30 senior aides, many of whom were veteran agents that were purportedly either edged out or quit due to differences with her.

Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, the top Republican on the chamber's Budget Committee, commented that the “DEA has demonstrated a willingness to take painstaking measures to avoid the Senate’s watchful eye – including by potentially using a technicality to shirk Senate confirmation of a key agency decision maker.”

"Avoiding congressional oversight is a tired game the DEA can’t stop playing. It begs the question:What else is the DEA trying to hide?”(Hmm, well they are drug dealers and allow drugs to flow into the country killing 100s of 1000s, but penalize people that are taking a prescription drug that they want to control…and a 1,000 other corrupt practices==

https://justthenews.com/government/federal-agencies/top-dea-member-quietly-quits-after-previous-consulting-big-pharma-comes

Stanford president to step down after report finds he failed to correct research data mistakes

(Remember Comrades, Trust the Science, because Scientist’s are always right! Science & Research anons, do you have any comment on this?)

The panel did not find evidence that Tessier-Lavigne "engaged in, directed, or knew of the misconduct when it occurred," the report stated.

Updated: July 19, 2023 - 3:22pm

Stanford University President Marc Tessier-Lavigne on Wednesday said he will resign after an independent panel foundhe co-authored papers with "serious flaws" in data.

The panel analyzed the president's research over thepast several decadesand concluded in a report that "Tessier-Lavigne did not personally engage in research misconduct for any of the twelve papers about which allegations have been raised" but "several of these papers do exhibit manipulation of research data."

The panel did not find evidence that Tessier-Lavigne "engaged in, directed, or knew of the misconduct when it occurred," the report also stated.

Tessier-Lavigne said in his resignation statement that he has consistently denied any allegations that he "engaged in fraud or any other unethical conduct related to my research and papers" and that he has "never submitted a scientific paper without firmly believing that the data were correct and accurately presented." (That statement is such bullshit because that is all scientists do, experiment, discover and put together data that confirms their hypothesis. How can he “firmly believe the data were correct and accurate if he didn’t double check it?” Who messed with the data and why didn’t he understand the data didn’t confirm what they published? He released 12 big reports, not just one.)

Tessier-Lavigne also said that he regrets not being "more diligent when seeking corrections" and he takes responsibility for the work of his lab members. (Guaranteed scientists are going to come out roaring at this statement saying, he had to know what they were doing. Or they are going to go with the "Covid model", all science is right even if its completely wrong.)

Even as he steps down as president, he plans to remain on Stanford's faculty and continue his research.

https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/education/stanford-president-step-down-after-report-finds-he-failed-correct

Accused Pentagon leaker Teixeira argues he should be treated like Trump and not remain in jail

(That’s a novel defense tactic, what a weird statement to make. Maybe he’s trying to tell them he is not a Trump supporter?)

Attorneys for Teixeira said he is entitled to be released before his trial because he does not pose a serious flight risk.

July 19, 2023 - 12:52pm

Jack Teixeira, the Air National Guardsman accused of posting classified information online, is arguing in court that he should be treated like former President Donald Trump by not requiring him to remain incarcerated until his trial.

Attorneys for Teixeira wrote in a filing Tuesday obtained by ABC News that prosecutors made a "reasoned decision not to seek pretrial detention in other espionage cases, including most recently for either former President Donald Trump or his personal aid, Waltine Nauta," who are facing charges under the Espionage Act.

Teixeira was arrested in April and has remained behind bars ever since. He pleaded not guilty to all charges last month after he allegedly published hundreds of pages of classified documents over several months on the messaging platform Discord.

Attorneys for Teixeira said he is entitled to be released before his trial because he does not pose a serious flight risk.

"Prior to his arrest, Mr. Teixeira believed that his apprehension was imminent. If Mr. Teixeira was inclined to flee from law enforcement and his country, he would have done so at that time. Instead, without any judicial restraints or obligations, Mr. Teixeira chose to stay at his mother’s house, reading, expecting law enforcement to arrest him," the defense wrote.

Comparing his case to that against the former president, Teixeira's attorneys also wrote that Trump has a private plane and properties in multiple foreign countries but the government did not even request for Trump to turn over his passport.

"The government’s disparate approach to pretrial release in these cases demonstrates that its argument for Mr. Teixeira’s pretrial detention based on knowledge he allegedly retains is illusory," the defense attorneys said.

https://justthenews.com/government/courts-law/accused-pentagon-leaker-teixeira-argues-he-should-be-treated-trump-and-not