In emotional testimony to House lawmakers, former FBI staff specialist and whistleblower Marcus Allen on Wednesday called out a senior FBI official who is leading the investigation into the second attempted assassination of Donald Trump, saying he retaliated against Mr. Allen over political bias and ridiculed him for his religious beliefs.
Mr. Allen testified that Jeffrey Veltri, now special agent in charge of the Miami field office, has suggested that Mr. Allen was “delusional for believing in and seeking guidance from the Holy Spirit.”
“To Mr. Veltri, I say you can insult me, but you should not mock God,” Mr. Allen told lawmakers. “It is an insult to the infinite dignity of God, who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is bad for the health of your soul. This isn’t about me. It’s bigger. I am hopeful that the truth of what happened will be fully revealed and deter the FBI from doing the same injustice to others.”
Mr. Allen made his remarks before the House Judiciary Committee’s Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government.
He was joined on the witness panel by his attorney, Tristan Leavitt, President of Empower Oversight; Justice Department Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz and former Justice Department prosecutor Glenn Kirschner.
Mr. Veltri, whom The Washington Times exclusively reported that FBI whistleblowers claimed held a rabid hatred of Mr. Trump and retaliated against FBI personnel who supported the former president, was previously the deputy assistant director of the FBI’s security division. The FBI has disputed the whistleblower claims.
In his post in Florida, Mr. Veltri is overseeing the probe of a suspect who brought a rifle to a golf course where Mr. Trump was playing and left a note that he intended to kill the GOP nominee.
In late 2021, Mr. Allen raised concerns about FBI Director Christopher A. Wray’s previous testimony related to the pro-Trump Capitol riot on Jan. 6.
“Not out of political motivation, but out of a duty to truth and integrity,” he said. “This act, which I believe to be in the spirit of transparency and accountability, led to unexpected and severe consequences.”
Mr. Allen said one of his top duties was to keep his colleagues informed about open-source intelligence related to their cases, but as a result of doing so that day, he was accused of “promoting conspiratorial views and unreliable information.” He was referencing a New York Times article that reported confidential informants were at the Capitol that day, which contradicted Mr. Wray’s testimony.
“The FBI questioned my allegiance to the United States, suspended my security clearance, suspended my pay, and refused to allow me to obtain outside employment or even accept charity,” he said.
“During that time, the FBI held my family and me in indefinite limbo awaiting a final decision, determined to not lose our home,” he said.
He and his wife were forced to withdraw from retirement accounts to survive.
“It became clear that the FBI, with endless resources, the American people’s money, was trying to destroy me financially, so that I would give up,” he testified.
On May 13, Mr. Horowitz released a memo finding that the Justice Department and the FBI failed to comply with statutory and regulatory whistleblower clearance protections. The bureau reinstated Mr. Allen’s clearance on May 31, stating that the original security concerns had been investigated and were mitigated.
Mr. Horowitz testified that most employees in Mr. Allen’s situation would find it “unrealistic financially” to keep their government job for over two years without pay.
“You don’t need to put someone on unpaid leave while you review an allegation against the person. You can find other opportunities for them, other positions,” Mr. Horowitz said. “They can continue to work even if you think they shouldn’t have this clearance.”
Republicans championed Mr. Allen at the hearing as an example of how the FBI mistreats its whistleblowers, specifically those who are Christian. Although he is owed back pay from the FBI, he has yet to receive a check since being notified about the change in security clearance four months ago.
Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, Ohio Republican, reminded his Democratic colleagues on the panel that Mr. Allen’s last visit to the committee on May 18, 2023, included attacks against him.
“The night before the hearing, the FBI sent this committee a letter filled with lies about the whistleblowers that were going to testify that next day, the FBI questioned Mr. Allen’s allegiance to the United States — a decorated Marine veteran,” said Mr. Jordan. He listed other attacks by Democratic lawmakers, including claiming Mr. Allen was not a whistleblower and that he was just airing grievances.
“But that’s not what the IG concluded. Not at all. Mr. Allen was simply doing his job, doing it well, and for that, because he questioned the leadership at the FBI, he was harassed, lost his security clearance for 27 months, only to have it reinstated,” Mr. Jordan said.
Democrats on the committee used the hearing to go after Mr. Trump and claimed if he wins the election in November, he would use the policies from the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 to politicize the Justice Department in his favor. Mr. Trump has disavowed the conservative blueprint for reforming the federal government.
The top Democrat on the committee, Delegate Stacey Plaskett of the Virgin Islands, said Mr. Trump would use these policies to fill the department with “as many political appointees, as opposed to career civil servants, as possible, especially in the Civil Rights Division the FBI and the executive office of immigration review.” She also said he would initiate legal action against local officials, including district attorneys who refuse to prosecute criminal offenses in their jurisdiction — specifically liberal jurisdictions.
“This is the true weaponization of the federal government, and this is what we should be addressing today,” she said.
• Kerry Picket can be reached at kpicket@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.