When Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) fumed during a congressional hearing about how FBI whistleblowers have "been determined by the agency that they are not whistleblowers!" and that "[t]hese are not whistleblowers! Are you deciding that they’re whistleblowers?, her line of argument angered a former legal counsel to a whistleblower for Trump's first impeachment, according to Just the News. 

That attorney, Mark Ziad, responded by writing, "I am so tired of partisan hypocrisy by Members of Congress challenging #whistleblower status. Was wrong in 2019 when GOP did it. Wrong when DEM is doing it now...We need bi-partisan support for #WBers & adequate protection."

Mark Ziad clarified that a whistleblower who is deserving of legal protection is one who "made protected disclosure to supervisor in employee’s direct chain of command, an OIG or appropriate congressional committee or its members, they are protected #whistleblowers." He added that just because they did this "[d]oesn't mean they are credible or accurate, but attacking [their] status undermines [the] system." 

He further wrote how "I served as co-counsel to [Intel Community] #whistleblowers whose complaint led to Trump's 1st impeachment (not our objective). Cong. Jordan was hypocritically a key attacker of WBer's lawful & legitimate status. It was wrong then, it is wrong now." He emphasized that "Candidly, I have [represented] #whistleblowers w/good faith reasonable beliefs of wrongdoing & allegations turned out to be incorrect. It happens, often actually. But they properly followed [the] system & that's fine. Just as it is fine to challenge the substantive context of WBer claims."

THAT IS ABSOLUTELY NOT MY ACCOUNT': WATCH WHISTLEBLOWER HUMILIATE DEMOCRAT DURING HEARING, GOP MOCKS LAWMAKER AFTER ATTEMPTED GOTCHA

Mr. Ziad also observed in his long Twitter thread that he has "been in DC for 30 years handling national security cases. It is so strange to see current GOP attack FBI unendlessly as corrupt & 'Deep State' thereby forcing DEMs to support it. I feel like I've entered 'Upside Down World' in #StrangerThings."

Another prominent line of attack used by Democrats, in particular by Representative Daniel Goldman (D-NY) during the hearing, implied that the FBI whistleblowers were purchased by Kash Patel, a Trump advisor, and his organization. One of those whistleblowers, Stephen Friend, was interviewed by Just the News and remarked, "I think you just have to look at the facts in this: I gave up a very lucrative salary, my dream career, a career that I pursued for a long time to get, and I did so...And if you think that I did that, in the hopes that I would receive a small donation several months later from a gentleman who I've never met in my entire life, I think that you're deluding yourself."