Politico reports:

As President Donald Trump and his allies attack the whistleblower that kicked off the House’s impeachment inquiry, the still unidentified person gained a powerful ally on Tuesday: Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley.

The most senior GOP senator has fashioned a career on protecting whistleblowers during presidencies of both parties. And in the middle of one of the most tempestuous political storms in two decades, the seventh-term Iowan is sticking to his position even if it’s at odds with the president himself.

In a Tuesday statement, Grassley moved to stave off attacks and the unmasking of the federal whistleblower who first divulged Trump’s call with Ukraine’s president. Trump and many of his allies in Congress and outside have been working to chip away at the whisleblower’s credibility, calling his complaint “hearsay” and playing down its validity. [Continue reading…]

The effort being made by Trump and his allies to mischaracterize the whistleblower’s complaint as “hearsay,” has been flatly rejected by the Office of the Inspector General of the Intelligence Community (ICIG) in a statement that reiterates the Director of National Intelligence’s assertion that both the ICIG and the whistleblower (“Complainant”) precisely followed the letter of the law, and that the whistleblower had “personal and/or direct knowledge of events or records involved,” in addition to what other employees have told the individual about events or records involved.

The whistleblower stated on the form that he or she possessed both first-hand and other information. The ICIG reviewed the information provided as well as other information gathered and determined that the complaint was both urgent and that it appeared credible. From the moment the ICIG received the whistleblower’s filing, the ICIG has worked to effectuate Congress’s intent, and the whistleblower’s intent, within the rule of law. The ICIG will continue in those efforts on behalf of all whistleblowers in the Intelligence Community.