Froomkin writes: "The White House on Tuesday
ended two years of ignoring a hugely popular whitehouse.gov petition calling
for NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden to be 'immediately issued a full, free,
and absolute pardon,' saying thanks for signing, but no."
Edward Snowden. (photo: Carsten Rehder/AFP/Getty Images)
After 2 Years, White House Finally Responds to Snowden
Pardon Petition - With a No
By
Dan Froomkin, The Intercept
28 July 15
The White House on Tuesday ended two years of ignoring
a hugely popular whitehouse.gov petition calling for NSA
whistleblower Edward Snowden to be “immediately issued a full, free, and
absolute pardon,” saying thanks for signing, but no.
“We live in a dangerous world,” Lisa Monaco, President
Obama’s adviser on homeland security and terrorism, said in a statement.
More than 167,000 people signed the petition, which
surpassed the 100,000 signatures that the White House’s
“We the People” website said would garner a guaranteed response on June 24, 2013.
In Tuesday’s response, the White House acknowledged
that “This is an issue that many Americans feel strongly about.”
Monaco then explained her position: “Instead of
constructively addressing these issues, Mr. Snowden’s dangerous decision to
steal and disclose classified information had severe consequences for the
security of our country and the people who work day in and day out to protect
it.”
Snowden didn’t actually disclose any classified
information — news organizations including the Guardian, Washington Post,
New York Times and The Intercept did the disclosing. And the Obama
administration has yet to specify any “severe consequences” that can be
independently confirmed.
Echoing the views of the most hardline Snowden
critics, Monaco continued: “If he felt his actions were consistent with civil
disobedience, then he should do what those who have taken issue with their own
government do: Challenge it, speak out, engage in a constructive act of
protest, and — importantly — accept the consequences of his actions. He should
come home to the United States, and be judged by a jury of his peers — not hide
behind the cover of an authoritarian regime. Right now, he’s running away from
the consequences of his actions.”
Intercept founding
editor Glenn Greenwald, one of the journalists to whom Snowden entrusted his
archive, has frequently responded to that argument, noting that Snowden is
willing to accept the legal consequences of his acts — but, were he to come
home under the current circumstances, would be barred under the draconian
Espionage Act from publicly arguing that his leaks were justified.
The Snowden response was one of 20 responses to what
the White House called “our We the People backlog.”
The White House had been criticized for avoiding uncomfortable topics despite
their popular support.
On Twitter, the responses to the Snowden response,
some from signers of the petition, were highly critical:
Donations can be sent
to the Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th St., Baltimore, MD
21218. Ph: 410-366-1637; Email: mobuszewski [at] verizon.net. Go to http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/
"The master class
has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles.
The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject
class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially their
lives." Eugene Victor Debs
No comments:
Post a Comment