Grassley suggests 'Whistleblowers Appreciation Day'

WASHINGTON, July 29 (UPI) -- Sen. Chuck Grassley introduced a bill Monday calling for a National Whistle-Blower Appreciation Day to honor those who expose government waste or misconduct.

Grassley, R-Iowa, cited July 30 as the date of the nation's first whistle-blower protection law, enacted by the Continental Congress in 1778, during the Revolutionary War.

"Our nation's Founding Fathers strongly support whistle-blowing, even in time of war, and even when whistle-blowing allegations threatened to embarrass high-ranking officials," said Stephen Kohn, executive director of the National Whistle-Blowers Center in a statement Monday.

Grassley has taken on legendary status in support of whistle-blowing since the 1970s, when he became acquainted with Ernie Fitzgerald, who exposed Pentagon cost overruns, the Des Moines, (Iowa) Register reported Monday.

"Anything we can do to uphold whistle-blowers and their protection is the right thing to keep government responsible. If you know laws are being violated and money's being misspent, you have a patriotic duty to report it," Grassley said.