FBI whistleblower's mom calls out her own Democrat congresswoman for smearing son: 'Devastated'

Sandra Lavigne is a military veteran, teacher and Houston-area resident who long admired her Democrat congresswoman, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee. But this week Lavigne's role as mother of FBI whistleblower Marcus Allen left her disheartened when her favored lawmaker refused to help her son in his dispute with the bureau and instead lobbed false allegations against him. 

"I was devastated, and I was sad," Lavigne told Just the News in an exclusive interview aired Thursday on the John Solomon Reports podcast. 

Marcus Allen, a decorated Marine and former FBI employee of the year in Charlotte, N.C,, has found himself in the middle of a political maelstrom after he blew the whistle on what he believed was an inaccurate narrative the FBI was espousing in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot probe.

An intelligence analyst by training, Allen has had his security clearance suspended and his pay as an FBI operations chief in Charlotte stopped after becoming a whistleblower. He testified last month in Congress, embraced by Republicans and vilified by Democrats, as he told his story of suffering what he described as reprisal.

"It has been more than a year since the FBI took my paycheck from me. My family and I have been surviving on early withdrawals from our retirement accounts while the FBI has ignored my request for approval to obtain outside employment during the review of my security clearance," he testified. "We have lost our federal health insurance coverage. There is apparently no end in sight.

The vilification started anew this week during a House Judiciary Committee hearing with FBI Director Christopher Wray when Jackson Lee and other Democrats alleged – without evidence – that Allen and another whistleblower took charitable money as payment for their testimony to Congress, a claim Allen's lawyer immediately refuted.

The episode was enough to compel the whistleblower's mom, Lavigne, to break her silence. She told Just the News she not only was offended that Jackson Lee smeared her son, but that the congresswoman never responded when she went to her as a constituent seeking help for her son in his battles with the FBI.

"I sent her an email, with the concerns and just asked for dialogue, because we didn't know what to do," Lavigne said on the John Solomon Reports podcast. "And, you know, we wanted to support him, and the very first person that we thought of was our congresswoman, because she has done such a fabulous job for the city of Houston and this country. So, you know, I have no malice toward that."

"The thing that has really upset me is that we live in your district, we've reached out to your office, and we never heard back from you," she added.

Lavigne directly disputed Jackson Lee's claim Wednesday that Allen was given money in exchange for his testimonies about corruption in the bureau.

"It's absolutely false," Lavigne said. "I will say, 'Congresswoman, come home to the district. Come get to know Marcus.'"

The congresswoman's allegation was also refuted by attorneys representing Allen. 

Jason Foster, the founder of Empower Oversight, a nonprofit that represents Allen, told Just the News that Allen never cashed the check that was offered to him by fellow whistleblower Kyle Seraphin and is currently in the process of seeking legal advice on whether or not he can accept donations while being a whistleblower.  

Lavigne added that she was devastated over the false accusation against her son by Rep. Jackson Lee.

"There's a common bond that our family feels for her because of all of the work she has produced, and the results and you know, that fight and spirit that she has for justice, and all of that stuff," Lavigne explained. "Well, that was the first person that I thought about and I'm like, 'Well, I'm gonna have to, you know, reach out to her.' And then after a while, there was no response."

Tristan Leavitt, the president of Empower Oversight, also blasted Jackson Lee.

"Ironic that long before @JacksonLeeTX18 used the term “so-called whistleblower” to describe our client in a hearing yesterday, her office didn’t even respond when his parents (registered Democrats in her district) tried to blow the whistle to her," he wrote on Twitter. 

Lavigne said if she could talk to the Texas congresswoman, she would ask her to work to help find the truth. 

"I would just ask her as a parent, as an honorable citizen, let's get to the bottom of this. Let's find the truth," she said. "And let's do it in a way that is going to be uplifting for all parties involved. If my son is guilty of something that is wrong, well, let's lay it on a table."

Jackson Lee's office has not responded for comment at this time.