Trump Cabinet picks increase odds Edward Snowden could see life of freedom in the US

If President-elect Donald Trump has his way, Tulsi Gabbard will beryllium astatine the helm of U.S. quality and Matt Gaetz volition beryllium starring the Justice Department, giving whistle-blower Edward Snowden his champion accidental yet astatine a beingness of state successful the U.S.

Both Gabbard, a erstwhile Hawaii House Democrat, and Gaetz, a erstwhile House Republican from Florida, volition person to beryllium confirmed by the Senate — an uphill conflict that whitethorn beryllium made much hard by their anti-establishment beliefs that Snowden should not beryllium punished for revealing accusation astir classified surveillance programs.

As members of Congress, some Gabbard and Gaetz co-sponsored authorities that called connected the national authorities to driblet each charges against Snowden. During her 2020 statesmanlike campaign, Gabbard promised to support Snowden and radical similar him, if elected. 

"If it wasn’t for Snowden, the American radical would ne'er person learned the NSA was collecting telephone records and spying connected Americans," she said connected "The Joe Rogan Experience" podcast astatine the time.

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If President-elect Donald Trump has his way, Tulsi Gabbard volition beryllium astatine the helm of U.S. quality and Matt Gaetz volition beryllium starring the Justice Department, giving whistle-blower Edward Snowden his champion chances yet astatine a beingness of state successful the U.S. 

"As president, I volition support whistle-blowers who exposure threats to our state and liberty," Gabbard added.

On Sept. 3, 2020, Gaetz posted to X: "Pardon @Snowden."

In 2013, Snowden was moving arsenic an IT contractor for the National Security Agency erstwhile helium traveled to Hong Kong to conscionable with 3 journalists and transferred them thousands of pages of classified documents astir the U.S. government’s surveillance of its citizens. 

He past traveled to Russia and planned to caput connected to Ecuador, but national authorities canceled his passport earlier helium could get determination — and indicted him for espionage.

He attempted to summation asylum elsewhere, but yet remained successful Russia and became a naturalized national successful 2022.

The documents helium made nationalist revealed antecedently classified intelligence-gathering programs tally by the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) and the U.K.’s quality organization, Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), that were conducting surveillance connected their ain citizens. 

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In 2019, Snowden told NPR the U.S. authorities was "collecting [data] connected everyone, everywhere, each of the time, conscionable successful case, due to the fact that you ne'er cognize what’s going to beryllium interesting… And truthful what happened was each clip we wrote an email, each clip you typed thing into that Google hunt box, each clip your telephone moved, you sent a substance message, you made a telephone call… the boundaries of the Fourth Amendment were being changed."

When moving for president arsenic a Democrat successful 2020, Gabbard promised to pardon Snowden. (Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Gaetz co-sponsored authorities that would driblet charges against Snowden. (Reuters)

At the clip of the leak, the NSA claimed wide surveillance stopped violent attacks.

Sue Gordon, lawman manager of nationalist quality during the archetypal Trump administration, issued a informing astir Gabbard’s propulsion for Snowden to beryllium pardoned connected CBS this week. 

"Unauthorized disclosures of quality are ever bad. Don’t spell with the bully oregon bad, immoderate bully result oregon whether helium was close oregon wrong. He had nary authority, and helium had antithetic paths, and helium harmed America," she said. 

"He not lone harmed intelligence, helium harmed our allies and partners, and helium harmed our businesses by what it allowed China to presume astir that. There is thing justifiable astir what he’s done. None. And truthful if they vacate it, what they’re fundamentally saying is each those rules you travel successful bid to beryllium capable to service America, they don’t substance anymore."

In 2013, Trump was asked about Snowden. "This feline is simply a atrocious feline and determination is inactive a happening called execution!" helium said. 

But connected the run way successful 2020, helium struck a much sympathetic tone, saying he'd "look at" giving Snowden a pardon.

Snowden, successful 2019, said helium is not searching for a pardon, but alternatively a just proceedings successful bid to instrumentality to the U.S. 

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"One of the large topics successful Europe close present is — should Germany and France invitation maine successful to get asylum?… And of course, I would similar to instrumentality to the United States. That is the eventual goal," helium said.

"But if I’m going to walk the remainder of my beingness successful prison, the 1 bottom-line request that we each person to hold to is that astatine slightest I get a just trial. And that’s the 1 happening the authorities has refused to warrant due to the fact that they won’t supply entree to what’s called a nationalist involvement defense," the whistleblower said.

"I’m not asking for a parade. I’m not asking for a pardon. I’m not asking for a pass. What I’m asking for is simply a just trial. And this is the bottom-line that immoderate American should require."