Whistleblower Exposes More FBI Politicization And Abuse
In a tell-all book, former FBI agent turned whistleblower Stephen Friend has revealed additional details about the agency’s politicization, abuse and discrimination against conservatives.
In September 2022 after Friend stepped forward with his allegations, 30 former FBI agents — including a retired deputy assistant director, head of counterterrorism and five SWAT team members — stood up to defend him.
Now, the FBI whistleblower has published a book to reveal further details about the FBI’s actions.
Friend, a 12-year FBI veteran, noted that what he saw in the FBI during the investigations into the January 6 Capitol protests was “disturbing,” adding that he had “lived a few years over the last few months.”
“I never sought this path for myself. I had my dream job. The decision I made was tied to the oath that I took. I took the oath to protect the constitution. I truly believe that raising the flag is consistent with my oath of office,” the whistleblower wrote, going on to note that working for the FBI turned out to be completely different than he hoped.
According to his book, Friend “soon uncovered efforts by the FBI and Department of Justice to manipulate statistics and exaggerate the nationwide threat of domestic terrorism. [He] spotlighted how the politicized FBI was cooking the books to support an ongoing narrative from the Joe Biden administration to label Donald Trump voters as violent extremists.”
Friend went on to assert that he had witnessed the FBI taking extreme actions to harass conservatives, and realized that the agency was perverting the investigation process to turn it into a punishment.
After becoming a whistleblower and expressing concerns over the FBI’s handling of the January 6 investigations, Friend was suspended without pay.
Conservatives began accusing the FBI of retaliating against a protected whistleblower, with Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Ron Johnson (R-WI) sending a scathing letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Christopher Wray to address Friend’s suspension.
Despite their efforts, the whistleblower’s suspension was never lifted.
In a statement to the Washington Examiner in response to Friend’s book, the FBI and the Department of Justice (DOJ) argued that the FBI does not target people based on their political views — despite evidence to the contrary.
“The FBI’s top priority is to detect and stop terrorist attacks against the American people,” the statement read. “We focus on individuals who commit or intend to commit violence and criminal activity that constitutes a federal crime or poses a threat to national security. We do not investigate ideology, and we do not investigate cases based on a person’s political views.”
“The FBI’s authority to investigate a case as domestic terrorism requires the existence of a potential criminal federal violation, the unlawful use or threat of force or violence, and ideological motivation of any type,” the statement continued. “We follow the facts of each case and classify our investigations accordingly and appropriately. We are committed to upholding the constitutional rights of all Americans and will never open an investigation based solely on First Amendment activity.”
