(WatchDogReport.org) – In a significant move, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has vowed to pardon National Security Agency (NSA) whistleblower Edward Snowden on his first day of office if he emerges victorious in the 2024 presidential election. This commitment, if fulfilled, could have far-reaching implications for the future of civil liberties and government transparency in the United States.
The independent candidate released a petition on April 1st calling on President Joe Biden to pardon Snowden. The whistleblower visited Hong Kong in 2013, where he exposed classified documents and revealed the extent to which the U.S. government spied on China’s citizens. This resulted in Snowden being charged with theft of government property and espionage.
As diplomatic tensions rose in response between the two superpowers, further developments raised concerns that the actions of the U.S. government may have pushed the former CIA technician closer toward China.
In a video linked to the petition, Kennedy argued that Snowden carried out a vital public service by showing Americans the level of state surveillance carried out by the U.S. government on millions of law-abiding citizens. Former president Barack Obama was in the White House when Snowden released the bombshell in Hong Kong. Kennedy slated the White House for violating multiple laws and the rights of American citizens to privacy.
Snowden was granted Russian citizenship by Vladimir Putin in September 2022, prompting further questions about his loyalty towards the U.S., but the whistleblower had previously dismissed claims he was a Kremlin patsy. Snowden defended his decision to interview Vladimir Putin on live Russian TV in 2014, arguing that critics were misinterpreting his motives. Kennedy’s video featured comments by previous presidents, including George W. Bush, Obama, and Trump, all of whom referred to Snowden as a “traitor.”
Snowden has not left Russia since the U.S. revoked his passport when he was attempting to travel to his intended destination of Latin America. He intended to stay there to escape prosecution for leaking classified documents.
Kennedy, who has been heavily critical of censorship under President Joe Biden’s administration, called Snowden an “American hero.” He said that rather than imprisoning Snowden, he would erect a statue of him, and possibly another of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, as a “civics lesson” to the Republic. Kennedy also said it was time for the government to return to “democratic and humanitarian ideals” and called on it to “celebrate truth-tellers” who sacrifice their own freedoms to protect those of the American public.
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