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because he became an active participant in his own recovery. He worked with the doctors and counselors in finding treatment that works, and he complies with all treatment programs. He is, by all accounts, doing well.
Now, the type of drugs he used and the means by which he acquired them became a clearance concern. Going to counselors and psychologists, however, never became a concern. In fact, because he self-referred the facts and documentation supported his good judgment and responsible actions to do the right thing. Seeing the doctors was not a liability. To the contrary: it became the underlying evidence supporting his ability to retain a security clearance. As a consequence, his career will continue to blossom because he did the right thing for himself.
Another category of clients I represent are whistleblowers — that is, individuals who lawfully disclose violations of law, rule, or regulation through authorized channels. The term “whistleblower” has been conflated to include individuals like Edward Snowden or Chelsea Manning. Those individuals are not whistleblowers — they are “leakers,” and they did not engage in protected activity and in compliance with the law. “Whistleblowers," on the other hand, are individuals who disclose wrongdoing through appropriate channels — like to an Office of Inspector General or through lawful means to Congress.
I know this area well because when I worked as a federal official, I developed the legal and investigative framework for protecting whistleblowers with access to classified information. As a byproduct of working within that field, I have seen individuals who have experienced multiple tours of combat, return to an assignment within the Continental United States, see something wrong, disclose the wrongdoing lawfully, and
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