Cowardice in Leadership

I revealed to Congress in 2008 that the United States Air Force was operating a fleet of specialized reconnaissance aircraft (RC-135s) that were not airworthy. The agency retaliated with an immediate attack on my character to divert attention away from the maintenance issues that I had reported. The diversion included a trip through the Pentagon, Congress, and the Nebraska State Court system. Eventually, government investigations substantiated the non-airworthy conditions that I had reported, but not before the United States had secured a 1.3 billion dollar foreign military sale to the United Kingdom for the same type of aircraft. The agency suspended my security clearance and refused to provide me with the derogatory information it had compiled against me. After 17 months, I conducted a one man, lawful and peaceful protest at the off-base residence of Lt. Col. Dana C. McCown, the aircraft maintenance commander of the 55th Wing.  My protest broke the stalemate when McCown petitioned the Sarpy County District Court for a harassment protection order against me. Through civil court actions, I was able to prove that McCown had lied to federal investigators, paving the way to a global settlement in April 2011. My security clearance was adjudicated in April 2012. Although a Federal administrative law judge recommended the reinstatement of my security clearance, the personal security appeals board (PSAB) chose to disregard his recommendation. Through these events, I stumbled upon a breach of national security involving two major commands, spanning several decades. When I reported this security breach to senior defense officials, a “be on the lookout” was issued against me by the 55th Wing, challenging my authority to act as an officer of AFGE Local 1486. I decided that it was in the best interest of the bargaining unit to “shut-up and color” until I retire in the year 2014. Congress and the Justice Department clearly demonstrated an inability to protect me from prohibited personal practices (5 U.S.C. § 2302). Now that I have retired and the blackmail has ended, I provide this book as a demonstration to the American public of how harassment, intimidation, and reprisals are used  to control the Federal workforce when management fears that it has been caught doing something unethical or illegal, thus the title, “Cowardice in Leadership”.