Last week, a series of bombshell reports exposed Jim Jordan’s so-called whistleblowers as just another political stunt for his “Weaponization of Government” subcommittee. After being cited as justification for this subcommittee for months, these individuals turned out to be little more than partisan actors who support far-right conspiracy theories, hold close financial ties to Trump’s closest allies, and continue to defend those involved in the January 6th attack on our country. The House GOP is consumed by political stunts, and these MAGA witnesses are yet another example of Jim Jordan and House Republicans putting politics and their MAGA agenda above the American people.
WITNESSES
George Hill is a retired FBI analyst who lacks the credibility to testify as a witness—let alone as a whistleblower. His allegations were rejected by federal whistleblower protection boards, and Hill even admitted during his testimony that he received financial support from Kash Patel, a high-ranking Trump loyalist.
- George Hill Is Beholden To Unproven Right-Wing “Deep State” Conspiracy Theories. Hill has a history of aligning himself with right-wing conspiracy theories, particularly the so-called “deep state” conspiracy. He has claimed the “leftist” U.S. government intends to “enslave” the American people, and claimed (without evidence) that the FBI “interfered” in two presidential elections, sharing an article calling the 2020 election “‘unconstitutional.” In the past two months alone, Hill has likened the FBI to “cancer,” argued against the need for domestic intelligence, and suggested the FBI entrapped suspects in the Gov. Whitmer kidnapping case.
- George Hill Has A History of Using Racist Rhetoric. Hill has repeatedly used racist rhetoric to describe civil rights leaders, members of Congress, and even former President Obama. He referred to Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) as a “race hustler,” and called the former President “the race-baiter in chief.” In 2022, he shared concerns about a race war, and claimed “the Left likes Blacks fatherless, dependent on government(when not in jail), and ignorant.”
- Hill Spread Lies and Conspiracy Theories About COVID-19. Hill has spent the past three years disseminating outlandish conspiracy theories about the COVID-19 pandemic. He has claimed that vaccine mandates were “a coordinated effort to purge independents (conservatives) from law enforcement,” baselessly accused the CDC of spreading disinformation, and likened vaccine mandates to Nazi Germany.
- George Hill Has Embraced Right-Wing Lies About January 6th. Hill has repeatedly spread conspiracy theories about January 6, 2021. While at the FBI, he supervised intelligence analysts supporting several cases related to Jan. 6 — despite calling it “a set up” and tweeting, “insurrection my a$$.” Hill declared that the Jan. 6 committee “conducted an illegal investigation,” and criticized a bank that he says shared with the FBI records of people who were in DC on Jan. 6. He also denounced the FBI investigation into Jan. 6, describing national calls after the attempted insurrection as “bordering on hysterical,” yet he had “very little personal involvement.” Hill even embraced a far-right conspiracy theory about a Jan. 6 informant that the Jan. 6 committee rejected as unfounded.
Stephen Friend is a former FBI special agent claiming to be an FBI “whistleblower,” despite failing to receive federal whistleblower protections. He is part of a group of former agents calling themselves “the suspendables” who were placed on leave after prioritizing right-wing conspiracies over the law of the land.
- The FBI Suspended Friend After He Refused To Participate In a Raid January 6 Insurrectionists. In September 2022, Steven Friend was suspended from the FBI after filing an official complaint, alleging that the “politicized” bureau was using “overzealous” January 6 investigations to “harass conservative Americans.” Following his complaint, Friend was stripped of his badge and escorted out of the office. He had already been declared absent without leave in August for refusing to participate in SWAT raids against insurrection suspects. Friend has a track record of supporting those involved with the violence on Jan. 6 and allowing right-wing conspiracy theories to influence his approach to law enforcement. While he worked for the FBI, Friend engaged with Russian propaganda outlets and falsely claimed “some” who illegally entered the Capitol on Jan. 6 were “innocent.” Since his suspension, Friend has continued to spread blatant disinformation about the events of January 6, 2021, claiming that “there were no police officers killed on January 6, 2021” — despite five officers’ deaths being attributed to the violence that day.
- Trump Loyalists Have Paid, Advised, and Employed Stephen Friend Since His Suspension. Friend has a record of collaborating with Trump’s closest allies. He received payments and legal counsel, and even received a job, from a MAGA group affiliated with Mark Meadows. Kash Patel sent Friend $5,000 almost immediately after they connected in November 2022, and gave Friend a job at a far-right think tank. Friend has been celebrated in right-wing circles, especially among MAGA pundits, and is poised to release a book with an introduction and forward by two right-wing figures.
- Friend Aligns Himself With QAnon Sympathizers and Far-Right Conspiracy Theories. Friend has a long record of supporting and uplifting right-wing conspiracy theories ranging from QAnon to the COVID-19 pandemic. He is a regular contributor to an exposé-style blog run by “an early and prominent promoter” of the QAnon conspiracy theory. Friend has also actively pursued other right-wing lies about school board meetings and suggested that COVID-19 vaccines were ineffective and supposedly designed to engineer “societal changes.”
Garret O’Boyle is a former FBI special analyst with ties to Trump and far-right beliefs. After alleging misconduct at the FBI during his testimony to Jim Jordan’s MAGA subcommittee, he refused to elaborate on his claims and did not provide a suspension notice. As the New York Times reported, “nothing in Mr. O’Boyle’s testimony suggests misconduct at the F.B.I.”
- Garret O’Boyle’s Allegations About the FBI Are Based on Right-Wing Conspiracy Theories. In September 2022, O’Boyle filed a complaint alleging that the FBI was exaggerating the threat of domestic terrorism. Shortly after, he alleged that the FBI suspended him, claiming, “the FBI retaliated against me for being a whistleblower.” O’Boyle has long spread conspiracy theories about the FBI conspiring against conservatives. He alleged that the FBI instructed him to inflate the number of domestic terrorism cases and falsely claimed that the FBI did not investigate attacks against crisis pregnancy centers.
- O’Boyle Is A COVID Anti-Vaxxer Who Spread Lies About the Pandemic Response. O’Boyle is a prolific COVID vaccine conspiracy theorist, and once compared COVID-19 vaccine mandates to the Nazi regime. He signed onto a major federal lawsuit against the Biden administration’s vaccine mandate for federal employees and once referred to a subset of vaccinated individuals involved in an FBI investigation as “blind sheep.”
- Garret O’Boyle Supports QAnon Influencers and Marjorie Taylor Greene’s Far-Right Agenda. O’Boyle has supported and publicly engaged with an “early and prominent” QAnon influencer known as Tracy Diaz, who has been banned from Patreon, Facebook, and Twitter and is labeled as an extremist by the Southern Poverty Law Center. In February 2023, O’Boyle responded to a tweet praising fellow QAnon sympathizer Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), writing, “She’s got something planned all right…”
- Garret O’Boyle Is An Election Denier and Insurrectionist Sympathizer. O’Boyle is a fervent election denier who has liked tweets claiming “two blatantly stolen elections.” He claims the FBI has retaliated against him for resisting investigations into the January 6 insurrection, writing: “the government has an obsession with ‘Insurrectionists.’ They hate them. They [want to] round them up, hold them in perpetuity.” O’Boyle labeled U.S. senators and representatives concerned about foreign election interference, “disinformation bots.” He has also mocked the significance of the insurrection, and disputed whether January 6 participants were domestic terrorists. O’Boyle also testified that he received financial support from Trump loyalist Kash Patel.