Hashing it Out

I've got the perfect guest for the moment: Andrew Bakaj, he served in the CIA and DOD, he’s an attorney with Compass Rose Legal Group who just so happens to represent the whistleblower in this case. On today’s show, we’re going to discuss the Espionage Act as it applies to whistleblowing and leaking within the intelligence and national security communities, and examining how important whistleblowing is to report waste, fraud, and abuse in our government.

I want to issue a disclaimer here. Back in August, I interviewed Andrew Bakaj for the podcast, thinking we would have an in-depth discussion on the topic of whistleblowing and leaking. It wasn’t until late September that I learned that Bakaj was representing the government employee who filed a whistleblower complaint against Trump that caused Speaker Nancy Pelosi to ramp up the impeachment inquiry. As the story has unfolded, I reached out to Bakaj to comment on the Trump case. Unsurprisingly, he wouldn’t offer to comment on it. What you’re about to hear is my conversation with Bakaj about whistleblowing and leaking, and while he doesn’t comment on anything relating to the Trump case, it could very well provide some insight into this issue and possibly Trump’s case.

Also noteworthy, Bakaj worked for three Democratic senators including Hillary Clinton and Chuck Schumer.

Hashing it Out is a podcast hosted by Siraj Hashmi, Washington Examiner's commentary video editor & writer. Each episode includes a political guest to offer historical context of the news and politics of the day, and insight into how we got to where we are. If you want to find the deeper meaning behind current events, then Hashing it Out is the podcast for you.

Donald Trump ran for president in 2016 with a central plank in his platform: building the wall.

 

While reports from July indicate that no new miles of wall or fencing had been added along the southern U.S. border, the Trump administration has been aggressive at attempting to reform an immigration system that Americans across the political spectrum agree is broken.

 

My guest today is Art Arthur. He’s a Resident Fellow in Law and Policy at the Center for Immigration Studies, and served as an immigration judge under both the Bush and Obama administrations.

 

So on today’s show, we’re going to discuss how broken the U.S. immigration system is, how it became this way, and why there doesn’t seem to be any solution on the horizon.