-Caveat Lector- http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/3777258.htm=20
Posted on Thu, Aug. 01, 2002 Editorial | Reform double take Bush backs off whistle-blower protection. At a grandstanding White House signing ceremony, President Bush this week gave the corporate fraud law the equivalent of a bear hug. "This law says to every dishonest corporate leader: You will be exposed and punished," Mr. Bush said. Too bad that, several hours later, he issued a policy directive that appears to hamstring the new measure's effectiveness. The directive was nothing short of a swift kick in the hind quarters. And now, investors have more reason to question Bush administration resolve regarding boardroom scams. While the once-reluctant White House is on board with the law's high-profile provisions - tougher accounting industry oversight, longer jail time for securities fraud - it backed away Tuesday from whistle-blower protections. In an explanation of its interpretation of the law, the administration narrowed the instances in which corporate whistle-blowers get federal job protection. Whistle-blowers only will be shielded from company retaliation if they talk to a congressional committee "in the course of an investigation," the White House said. They would not be protected if they brought their information to an individual lawmaker or an aide. That came as a surprise to key senators, who said the law was meant to apply broadly to whistle-blowers who drop a dime to any authority. Long before any congressional investigation gets underway, in fact, most whistle-blowers reach out to other authorities or media. They'll do so now without any federal protection, if the administration view prevails. Little wonder most people aren't willing to do what Enron tipster Sherron Watkins did - buck the system at considerable personal risk. As corporate scold Ralph Nader said recently, "There are thousands of people who could have been whistle-blowers, from the boards of directors to corporate insiders to the accounting firms to the lawyers working for these firms to the credit-rating agencies." Could have, but were not. Encouraging whistle-blowers to come forth is why Congress wrote broad safeguards - and why Mr. Bush ought to redirect his directive. <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'�with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds�is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html";>Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/";>ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
