In March, after a Justice Department employee wrote an op-ed criticizing the Biden administration over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, her supervisors accused her of violating federal law. Last week, the Office of Special Counsel squarely rejected that allegation, but the investigation sent a chilling message to other federal employees organizing around Israel and Gaza.

Emma West Rasmus, a longtime Justice Department employee, wrote an op-ed in early March for The Hill about a recent visit to Palestine with her church. “I decided in November, and am surer than ever in March: Unless the Democratic Party and its leaders call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza and a lasting end to the Israeli occupation of Palestine, I will not vote for Biden or any Democrat,” she wrote.

The article, which published on a Friday, initially included a note stating West Rasmus “works at the Department of Justice and is a member of the Israel/Palestine Mission Network of the Presbyterian Church.”

The following Monday, West Rasmus was accused by senior Justice Department attorneys and........

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