Washington, D.C. -Today, Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, the Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, issued the following statement after a briefing with the U.S. Postal Service on the release of the unredacted security clearance application and personnel file of Abigail Spanberger, the Democratic candidate for Virginia’s 7th Congressional District:
“Today, we received a briefing from officials with the U.S. Postal Service, who confirmed that Abigail Spanberger’s entire personnel file was wrongfully disclosed to unauthorized parties.
“Postal Service officials informed us that this was not an isolated incident-this has occurred several additional times in just the last two months. They did not disclose the other individuals who were affected. The officials reported that they believe this was human error.
“In order to remedy this breach, Postal Service officials informed us that it is imperative that anyone currently in possession of these unauthorized records return all copies immediately. If they do not, I believe our Committee should step in to ensure that organizations such as America Rising and the Congressional Leadership Fund comply in order to obtain all copies of these records-original, duplicate, and electronic.
“The right to privacy is sacred, and we must take all appropriate steps to prevent further damage to the individuals whose information was compromised."
