WASHINGTON — The legal team for the whistle-blower alarmed by President Trump’s dealings with Ukraine is now representing a second whistle-blower, an intelligence official with firsthand knowledge of the president’s interactions, the ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos reported Sunday.
The new whistle-blower has already been interviewed by the intelligence community’s inspector general’s office, but has not yet communicated with any congressional committees, Mr. Stephanapoulos said on his show, “This Week.” The new whistle-blower has the full legal protection for those who raise alarms about wrongdoing in the executive branch, he said.
A member of the legal team confirmed on Twitter that the firm was now representing a second whistle-blower.
The New York Times reported on Friday that an intelligence official with more direct knowledge of Mr. Trump’s dealing with Ukraine than the first whistle-blower, and who had grown alarmed by the president’s behavior, was weighing whether to come forward. The second official was among those interviewed by the intelligence community inspector general to corroborate the allegations of the original whistle-blower, one of the people briefed on the matter said.
The new whistle-blower matches the description of the official that The Times reported on last week. But Mr. Stephanapoulos said that Mark Zaid, one of the lawyers representing the whistle-blower, did not know whether the individual was the same person.
The first whistle-blower, a C.I.A. officer who was detailed to the White House, filed a complaint last month outlining how Mr. Trump used his power to push Ukraine to investigate his domestic political rivals, setting off an impeachment inquiry. Mr. Trump has tried to undermine the credibility of the first whistle-blower, whose identity is not publicly known, by saying that the individual was trading on secondhand information.
“The first so-called second hand information ‘Whistleblower’ got my phone conversation almost completely wrong, so now word is they are going to the bench and another ‘Whistleblower’ is coming in from the Deep State, also with second hand info,” Mr. Trump wrote on Twitter on Saturday night, referring to his now-infamous July 25 phone call with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine. “Keep them coming!”
Mr. Zaid works for Compass Rose Legal Group, a law firm that specializes in representing whistle-blowers. He is part of the legal team that is now representing both individuals who have come forward. The team also includes Andrew P. Bakaj, the lead lawyer, and Charles McCullough III.
“I can confirm that my firm and my team represent multiple whistleblowers in connection to the underlying August 12, 2019, disclosure to the Intelligence Community Inspector General,” Mr. Bakaj said on Twitter. “No further comment at this time.”
Mr. Zaid did not immediately respond to a request for comment.