I've posted before that FBI Dir Wray's #1 priority should be restoring public trust in the FBI.

He seems oblivious to that need.

He talks about defending the 110 year "brand" of the FBI, but doesn't seem to be even conscious of how much the FBI reputation is in tatters.

I want a strong & powerful FBI, but it must be honest, fair, and lawful. If the FBI won't take on the necessary rebuild on its own, it should suffer some powerful organizational and authority changes by the AG or congress.

As the declassification process rolls out, we will most likely learn even more behavior that most Americans would call treasonous.

Former civilian federal employee. Compliance with the hatch act went out the window during Obama’s first campaign. I don’t say that in jest at all. When Obama ran, all of the sudden campaign swag and Obama shirts, buttons, hats, etc. were in most cubicles and offices, and on most employees. You were committing a career limiting move if you spoke up. I didn’t last long after that point and got out.

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Originally posted by Sig Sauer Kraut:
Former civilian federal employee. Compliance with the hatch act went out the window during Obama’s first campaign. I don’t say that in jest at all. When Obama ran, all of the sudden campaign swag and Obama shirts, buttons, hats, etc. were in most cubicles and offices, and on most employees. You were committing a career limiting move if you spoke up. I didn’t last long after that point and got out.

That's terrible. Sorry to hear it. Reckless and consistent disregard for the law by the Federal workforce is the end democracy as far as I am concerned. That didn't happen at SSA, probably because we're a public contact agency, and we would have been called on it by the public. SSA management is very sensitive to public perception of the agency.

The FBI is a pale shadow of it's former self. It will take a long time to win back public trust. If it ever does.

Even without the politicization, they have displayed astounding incompetence. Robert Hanssen betrayed us to the then-Soviet Union for 20 years. More recent examples include, but aren't limited to, leaving computers in restaurants, getting computers and weapons stolen out of cars, and that idiot doing backflips and shooting a bystander retrieving the gun that fell out. They should be overhauled at the very least, or, failing that, disbanded.

I worked civil service for the Army. The Hatch Act was part of our various annual training requirements.

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Originally posted by Fed161:

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Originally posted by Sig Sauer Kraut:
Former civilian federal employee. Compliance with the hatch act went out the window during Obama’s first campaign. I don’t say that in jest at all. When Obama ran, all of the sudden campaign swag and Obama shirts, buttons, hats, etc. were in most cubicles and offices, and on most employees. You were committing a career limiting move if you spoke up. I didn’t last long after that point and got out.

That's terrible. Sorry to hear it. Reckless and consistent disregard for the law by the Federal workforce is the end democracy as far as I am concerned. That didn't happen at SSA, probably because we're a public contact agency, and we would have been called on it by the public. SSA management is very sensitive to public perception of the agency.

That is probably a good point. We were not an agency with public contact. At least not those of us in DC.

quote:

Originally posted by Sig Sauer Kraut:
Former civilian federal employee. Compliance with the hatch act went out the window during Obama’s first campaign. I don’t say that in jest at all. When Obama ran, all of the sudden campaign swag and Obama shirts, buttons, hats, etc. were in most cubicles and offices, and on most employees. You were committing a career limiting move if you spoke up. I didn’t last long after that point and got out.

Yea, I remember that, too, predominantly with the African-American employees. And if you said anything about it, they'd be yelling racist all the way to the HR department.

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Originally posted by 229DAK:

quote:

Originally posted by Sig Sauer Kraut:
Former civilian federal employee. Compliance with the hatch act went out the window during Obama’s first campaign. I don’t say that in jest at all. When Obama ran, all of the sudden campaign swag and Obama shirts, buttons, hats, etc. were in most cubicles and offices, and on most employees. You were committing a career limiting move if you spoke up. I didn’t last long after that point and got out.

Yea, I remember that, too, predominantly with the African-American employees. And if you said anything about it, they'd be yelling racist all the way to the HR department.

You have to complain directly to the OGC, not your agency. Link here: https://osc.gov/pages/file-complaint.aspx The problem is you have to give your name. OGC investigates, not your agency. Theoretically, you are protected against retaliation. The operative word is "theoretically." I probably wouldn't do it because of the resulting shit storm from the employees you work with. But I might consider it if I was about to retire and didn't mind the broken relationships with your left behind fellow employees.

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Originally posted by Fed161:

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Originally posted by 229DAK:

quote:

Originally posted by Sig Sauer Kraut:
Former civilian federal employee. Compliance with the hatch act went out the window during Obama’s first campaign. I don’t say that in jest at all. When Obama ran, all of the sudden campaign swag and Obama shirts, buttons, hats, etc. were in most cubicles and offices, and on most employees. You were committing a career limiting move if you spoke up. I didn’t last long after that point and got out.

Yea, I remember that, too, predominantly with the African-American employees. And if you said anything about it, they'd be yelling racist all the way to the HR department.

You have to complain directly to the OGC, not your agency. Link here: https://osc.gov/pages/file-complaint.aspx The problem is you have to give your name. OGC investigates, not your agency. Theoretically, you are protected against retaliation. The operative word is "theoretically." I probably wouldn't do it because of the resulting shit storm from the employees you work with. But I might consider it if I was about to retire and didn't mind the broken relationships with your left behind fellow employees.

I have personally seen the system fail when a whistleblower tried to do the right thing. In fact, he was targeted and the manager he reported was protected. The whistleblower program is a scam. If I were ever to use it, it would be anonymously with an identical report sent to the media so it wouldn’t be shelved.

Maybe after President Trump is re-elected, he will have more flexibility, to disband the FBI.

Hey hey, ho ho, the FBI has got to go.
Hey hey, ho ho, the FBI has got to go.

I am not joking, Bulldog. I was compelled to work with them intermittently for years. They are condescending, patronizing, political and love to take credit for other's work. I once had to be a virtual ventriloquist for an agent. He sat at a computer doing the interview while I sat in the next room listening and instant messaging him the questions. I also saw a high profile snitch manipulate them into two full days of unmonitored phone use (in a prison) while teams of agents dug up a horse barn looking for a body.

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Originally posted by Fredward:
I am not joking, Bulldog. I was compelled to work with them intermittently for years. They are condescending, patronizing, political and love to take credit for other's work. .

Very true. As I mentioned previously, SSA OIG had a major case that involved a lot of money and several components of the fraud. Since SSA OIG is a small shop, they needed some help to run down all of the aspects of the case. They asked for help from the FBI. The bureau said no. SSA OIG was able to get some help instead from the USSS on part of the case involving SS checks (their jurisdiction). The FBI said the case was too chicken shit for them. Well, the case made the papers, got some local TV exposure, and some inquiries from local Congressmen. As soon as that happened, after saying no, the FBI tried to come in and take over the case. This was when most of the work had been done. To their credit, SSA OIG told them to shove it. They completed the case with no help (and no headlines) for the FBI.

Not limited to the FBI, by any stretch!

Back before obummer was in office, I had experience with a first class crook running multiple scams against people who bought stock in his phony company. I reported it to the IRS and the FBI.

$12 million of investor money at stake and neither agency would touch it. The scam ran across multiple state borders. I talked on the phone with the IRS agent, and she admitted that the agency did not find that this "fish was big enough to fry!"

That was back in the late '80s. And it has not gotten any better.

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Originally posted by Fredward:
I am not joking, Bulldog. I was compelled to work with them intermittently for years. They are condescending, patronizing, political and love to take credit for other's work.

We actually use "FBI" as a verb in my office. As in, "I'm getting FBI'ed on [insert case name]." It usually consists of being fed-- no pun-- bits and pieces of info on a supposedly joint case.

There's a lack of institutional knowledge on many of their squads/RAs because of Mueller-promulgated rotation and promotion policies. Agents and supervisors simply aren't on squads long enough to really learn the lay of the land or develop expertise in some of the "steep learning curve" violations. By contrast, smaller Fed shops and local/state agencies can have multi-generational families of informants and DECADES of experience working those same violations. So when you're being FBI'ed, it's usually transparent to the point of being comical. Like watching a 5-year-old trying to be surreptitious ans stealthy.

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Originally posted by Fredward:
I am not joking, Bulldog. I was compelled to work with them intermittently for years. They are condescending, patronizing, political and love to take credit for other's work. I once had to be a virtual ventriloquist for an agent. He sat at a computer doing the interview while I sat in the next room listening and instant messaging him the questions. I also saw a high profile snitch manipulate them into two full days of unmonitored phone use (in a prison) while teams of agents dug up a horse barn looking for a body.

Oh I know how they are. I've worked with them several times over the years. But to say that to your face has to win the grand prize.

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Originally posted by DennisM:
There's a lack of institutional knowledge on many of their squads/RAs because of Mueller-promulgated rotation and promotion policies. Agents and supervisors simply aren't on squads long enough to really learn the lay of the land or develop expertise in some of the "steep learning curve" violations. By contrast, smaller Fed shops and local/state agencies can have multi-generational families of informants and DECADES of experience working those same violations.

Which was the exact point I tried to make in several threads back during the Obama era, when a number of members were losing their shit about the feds spending money on bullets for XYZ federal LE agency, and how there was no need for such specialized fed LE agencies, when the FBI could just handle everything.

Specialists beat Generalists.

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Originally posted by Fredward:
I actually had a SAC tell me my people need to go in first because we were of “less value.”

I would have went on a long and lengthy letter writing campaign. Letters to my two senators, my congressman, his supervisor, the head of his agency, the local news, ALL of the big national news organizations. Make him famous.

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Originally posted by 229DAK:

quote:

Originally posted by Sig Sauer Kraut:
Former civilian federal employee. Compliance with the hatch act went out the window during Obama’s first campaign. I don’t say that in jest at all. When Obama ran, all of the sudden campaign swag and Obama shirts, buttons, hats, etc. were in most cubicles and offices, and on most employees. You were committing a career limiting move if you spoke up. I didn’t last long after that point and got out.

Yea, I remember that, too, predominantly with the African-American employees. And if you said anything about it, they'd be yelling racist all the way to the HR department.

This, right there is the answer and reason for what happened. I was military, and we got annual reminders about political campaigns, re-enforced during the Presidential Election years. Once I retired from military and went to work for INS/ICE in 2002 during the start-up of the DHS, it was pretty much a non-issue except for maybe an occasional joke.

But once the “Great Black Hope” came on the scene in 2008, it was treading lightly on eggshells in the minefield if anyone said anything about campaign literature or paraphernalia being displayed. After he ascended to the Office, the DHS/ICE became highly political in everything that happened, and if anyone said anything against it, the wrath of the PC Police came down on the unfortunate individual; it scared everyone, and silence condoned actions. Couldn’t wait to get out of there.