Edward Snowden Ponders How He of All People Has Fewer Classified Docs Than Current and Prior Administrations
Edward SnowdenThe most divisive person in politics in the past decade has been a 2013 leaker of highly classified information from National Security Agency. Ask a libertarian, and they’ll tell you he’s a hero for exposing a range of government surveillance programs, some of which pushed or violated constitutional boundaries. Ask someone of a more hawkish leaning and they’ll tell you he got Americans killed and is a traitor to his former country.
I am a squishe who tends to fall somewhere in the middle. I think calling him a whistleblower is a stretch given there were existent protocols he didn’t follow, instead choosing to criminally leak the information he had obtained, handing it to America’s enemies in the process. However, the important things he exposed could not have been seen if he hadn’t chosen the path he took. So yeah, I’m not really any closer to having a black-and-white, definitive opinion on the man as many others do. There are many gray areas in life.
What I do know, though, is that his response to Joe Biden’s (and now Mike Pence’s) classified documents scandal is pretty hilarious. It is also correct regarding the law.
How is it possible that my house contains fewer classified documents than those of the White House admins before me?
The Espionage Act can be found here “strict liability” Crime: Good intentions are not defense. These guys are all criminals under the (dumb!) law.https://t.co/KNIRJz2M0X
— Edward Snowden (@Snowden) January 24, 2023
There’s certainly a double standard, isn’t there? Snowden points out that it is not necessary to have intent for the possession of classified documents to be illegal. Anyone who was paying attention to the Hillary Clinton email scandal knows that the statute clearly states. “gross negligence” It is the decisive factor. James Comey then changed intent to the law right away in an effort to save Clinton.
Unfortunately for other Americans, including military members, the rules aren’t applied equally to mere normals. You may recall the case of Kristian Saucier, a Navy sailor who took pictures of his tour on a nuclear submarine, not realizing he was breaking the law because the sub’s systems were classified. He was sentenced to one year imprisonment for his crimes, even though it was obvious that he made an innocent mistake. I guess he’s a sucker for not breaking the law while being a former vice president.
I’m pretty much where Snowden is on this, whatever one may think of him personally. I’m sick of the two-tiered justice system, and I’d like to see the law enforced no matter who ends up in the crosshairs. Biden would be proud if that were the case. If they lack declassification authority, Pence should be thrown out. So, can I really trust the current DOJ in its ability to adhere to such impartial standards? You can probably guess the answer.
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