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Currently, the whistleblower report is at the center of American politics as the catalyst for the current impeachment inquiry.

Has this ever happened before? By this I mean - has there ever been a whistleblower about something going on involving the sitting president? This time it has become a very big deal, but has anything similar ever happened that simply did not become known to the general American public at the time?

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    Do you mean officially a whistleblower or would Linda Tripp count? On then Pres. Clinton.
    – Damila
    Nov 5 '19 at 4:27
  • How close proximity with sitting president do you expect? I mean some whistleblowers that hit in last year painfully Pinterest, Google, CNN and ABC, were touching issues directly affecting sitting president. Does it count for purpose of your question?
    – Shadow1024
    Nov 14 '19 at 17:32
  • @Shadow1024 I am not sure I understand
    – Burt
    Nov 14 '19 at 23:07
  • @Burt For example Google whistleblower leaked a video in which Google middle manager said that their job is to prevent another "Trump situation" in 2020 or in CNN whistleblower recorded that even journalists working there consider being pushed to produce extra amount of Trump bashing material or trying to nudge Democratic primates towards their preferred candidate.
    – Shadow1024
    Nov 15 '19 at 4:01
  • I see - those were more about things going on in Google or CNN than things going on with the president.
    – Burt
    Nov 15 '19 at 6:08
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has there ever been a whistleblower about something going on involving the acting president?

I think US presidents, for the most part, try to insulate themselves from directly illegal activity. For instance, Ulysses S Grant doesn't seem to be involved with the Whiskey Ring, though his long time friend and secretary was at the heart of the matter.

But there are exceptions to this in more modern times.

Arthur S. Moreau Jr. (probably) orchestrated leaks to raise awareness of Iran-Contra. Reagan was almost certainly aware of trading arms for hostages.

William Mark Felt, Sr worked with investigative journalists to expose Nixon's involvement with illegal activities.

This time it has become a very big deal, but has anything similar ever happened that simply did not become known to the general American public at the time?

Not quite whistle-blowing, but Nixon prolonged the Vietnam war at the cost of 22,000 American lives in order to win the election. President Johnson was aware of this at the time but didn't publicize it. This story is quite old, but new tape evidence came up a few years ago, making this effectively buried for ~ 45 years.

honorable mention

Benjamin Franklin was a whistleblower

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  • Don’t forget the Pentagon Papers
    – divibisan
    Nov 5 '19 at 14:52
  • Probably worth mentioning that Felt was pseudonymously known as “Deep Throat” for 30+ years before his actual name was revealed. (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep_Throat_(Watergate)). So anonymous whistleblowers are also something that happens.
    – Bobson
    Nov 6 '19 at 13:01

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