United States Department of State Washington, D.C. 2 June 8, 2020 Peter H. White Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP 901 134 Street, NW ‘Washington, D.C. 2000S Dear Mr. White: Lam writing to confira in writing the instructions that the Department provided to your cient, Mr. Steve Linick, on May 15, 2020, witen he was informed by phone thatthe President decided toremove him from office and place him on administrative leave for 30 days. ‘When Mr. Linick was removed from his position on May 15 and placed on administrative leave, his physical access was terminated, and he was clearly instructed by Department officials not to contact O1G staff members about official matters or return to his former office, without authorization by Department officials, who would facilitate any such contacts, However, it has ‘come tothe Department's attention that he may have violated these instructions on multiple ‘occasions wale on administrative leave. For example, we understand tha, in the days before his Congressional testimony, he senta text ‘message tothe Deputy Inspector General, Diana Shaw, requesting a copy of the DOD IG report on the origins ofa leak ofa draft State OIG report tothe media last fll. Without forming her ‘own chain of command, we understand that Ms, Shaw then contacted the DOD Office of | Inspector General to request a copy of the report on Mr. Linick’s behalf. Its not clear what Mr. Linick’s motivation was, but it was inappropriate for him to seek the DOD IG repor through the State O1G, given that he was, atthe time, on administrative leave pursuant toa decision by the President with a new Acting Inspector General in place. His apparent urgency is ll the more ‘unusual given that Mr. Linick had repeatedly refused to share the DOD IG report with anyone in the State Department itself (We note that, upon leaming of Mr. Linick's inappropriate request to the Deputy Inspector General, the Acting Inspector General authorized the relesse of the report both fo relevant congressional committees and to the Department.) Moreover, we ‘understand that Mr. Linik has repeatedly retumed to his former office without seeking authorization from his Department reporting chain, also contrary tothe clear instructions he received, Given the apparent confusion on this matter, I request that you confirm in writing that your client now clearly understands these instructions and to clarify the nature and intended parpose of any such contacts that were made contrary tothe instructions received.Moreover, we requsst that you remind your client as well of the importance of ensuring tht all applicable requirements under the Federal Records Act are met. Specifically, itis important in conjunction with Ms. Linick’s out-processing, that all federal records he generated during his tenure asthe Department's Inspector General ae archived onto U.S. Department of State systems. This includes federal records that Mr. Linick may have originated or received on. personal devices or accounts, including text messages or daft OIG reports that he reportedly sent tohis personal email account, 1 understand that our legal office is coordinating with the Office of Inspector General regarding these Federal Records Act requirements. The Department's Record Office would be happy to provide any assistance or further guidance Mr. Linick needs to meet these obligations. Please ‘confirm in writing when your client has completed all necessary steps under the Federal Records ‘Act. | look forward to hearing from you soon on these important issues. since, yuan uketap Brin Butts Under Secretary for Management US, Department of Sate