Rep. Will Hurd (R-TX), a member of the House Intelligence Committee, told Fox News host Chris Wallace Sunday that he believes the whistleblower’s name should be protected. However, the alleged name of the whistleblower has already been reported.

RealClearInvestigation’s Paul Sperry was the first to report the whistleblower’s alleged identity late last month. In his report, Sperry said that the term whistleblower ‘complicates’ the situation because the account of a call between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was based on hearsay. Lawmakers are still hesitant.

House Intel member Rep Will Hurd (R-TX) joined FOX News Sunday exclusively to react to President Trump's recent comments on the whistleblower. Rep Hurd says: "I think we should be protecting the identity of the whistleblower" #FNS #FoxNews #Politics pic.twitter.com/g8YMRPxjtz — FoxNewsSunday (@FoxNewsSunday) November 10, 2019

“I think we should be protecting the identity of the whistleblower. I’ve said that from the very beginning because how we treat this whistleblower will impact whistleblowers in the future. Having this whistleblower law on the books is important. It’s an important checks and balance not only in the Intelligence Committee, but in our government,” Rep. Hurd said.

The Committee will begin public hearings this week after conducting the impeachment probe behind closed-doors for weeks. On Wednesday, the Committee will hear testimonies from acting Ambassador to Ukraine William Taylor and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State George Kent. On Friday, the committee will hear from former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch.

Shifty Adam Schiff will only release doctored transcripts. We haven’t even seen the documents and are restricted from (get this) having a lawyer. Republicans should put out their own transcripts! Schiff must testify as to why he MADE UP a statement from me, and read it to all! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 11, 2019

“But what I do would like to see happen is for Chairman Schiff, Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, to answer questions about what was his engagement with the whistleblower before the whistleblower’s allegations were transmitted to congress,” said Hurd. “He has misled the American public earlier in the year on the contact that he had with the whistleblower. So if you want to protect the identity of the whistleblower, I think it’s important for Chairman Schiff to answer questions about his interaction.”