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Russia Considers Sending Snowden Back To US As a 'Gift' To Trump (nbcnews.com)
An anonymous reader quotes a report from NBC News: U.S. intelligence has collected information that Russia is considering turning over Edward Snowden as a "gift" to President Donald Trump -- who has called the NSA leaker a "spy" and a "traitor" who deserves to be executed. That's according to a senior U.S. official who has analyzed a series of highly sensitive intelligence reports detailing Russian deliberations and who says a Snowden handover is one of various ploys to "curry favor" with Trump. A second source in the intelligence community confirms the intelligence about the Russian conversations and notes it has been gathered since the inauguration. Snowden's ACLU lawyer, Ben Wizner, told NBC News they are unaware of any plans that would send him back to the United States. "Team Snowden has received no such signals and has no new reason for concern," Wizner said. Former deputy national security adviser Juan Zarate urged the Trump administration to be cautious in accepting any Snowden offer from Russian President Vladimir Putin. The White House had no comment, but the Justice Department told NBC News it would welcome the return of Snowden, who currently faces federal charges that carry a minimum of 30 years in prison. Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said talk about returning Snowden is "nonsense." If he were returned to American soil, Snowden -- a divisive figure in America who is seen by some as a hero and others as treasonous -- would face an administration that has condemned him in the strongest terms.
But at least your tech jobs will be protected by Trump's H-1B visa clampdown, right? Hope you can sleep well at night.
This doesn't pass the smell test.
One thing that the Russians (and, for that matter, the Americans) understand well is protecting people who turn to their side. If the Russians send Snowden back, it will be a long time before they get another actual defector* to come out of the cold.
* Snowden is not a defector.
You realise those same security services protected your country
It's fine to have a national intelligence service.
It's not fine to turn it inward on its own population, Stasi style.
It's not fine to use "parallel construction" and have the government lie about the nature of evidence it presents against people.
The NSA violated the highest law of the land on a vast scale, as a matter of policy, and thus has lost its legitimacy as a public institution. That fact needed to be made clear to the people.
Dude sealed his own fate when he let himself be seduced by Putin. You know - the guy that murders journalists and political opponents.
Hmmmm.
Seduced by Putin? or...
Here's a place that'll have me with no extradition treaty with the US.
Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know.
Ernest Hemingway
you have to understand, russia is not yet as wealthy as the US.
Snowden and Manning are heroes.
Where in that linked to article does it "confirm" that this is fake news? Why would Russian spokesmen validate something Russia is only considering?
I ignore Anonymous Coward posts. If you want to discuss something, that's awesome. Log in.
If they do this, it wouldn't be to "curry favor" with Trump, it would be a move to further destabilize the US. As a result of multiple factors (including Russian interference) we have a the most unpopular president in a century who is extremely divisive. Returning Snowden would be a move to stoke those flames and cause more unrest. There are many reasons for doing this but ultimately, a less stable US is better for their own nation.
Anons need not reply. Questions end with a question mark.
You're looking at Snowden, but there will be a quid-pro-quo deal, in exchange Trump will lift sanctions against Russia as fake reward for sending over Snowden. The real purpose here is to have an excuse to lift sanctions for Trump to sell to the GOP, not for Snowden.
Once again, please be clear here, Trump did a deal with Putin and it's worth more to Putin that Trump blocking Cyber security bills, attacking NATO, and removing the military from the National Security Council. Putin will get trade sanctions lifted and everything else besides in exchange Trump will get hacking help in the next election.
Can I remind you of some of my other predictions.... namely 6 eyes, Russia added to 5 eyes on excuse of fighting ISIS? Or Iran attacked to force them over to Russia, giving Russia effective control of the region.... that one is also in progress.
He wasn't trying to go to Russia, he got stuck there. It was an accident.
More to the point, we stuck him there. After his travel documents were revoked, he couldn't go anywhere else. He is precisely where we apparently wanted him.
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
and the games they play.
Let's put this story out there and see if we can get him to panic and / or introduce some suspicion to his relationship with the Russian government.
If I were Team Snowden, I would respond with dusting off another, yet to be released, bombshell about what potentially illegal activities the NSA has been up to.
Edward being handed over to the US authorities. I think it would cause the third Russian revolution, a kind of Storming of the Bastille.
Russian society gave to the world such great [real] freedom thinkers as Mikhail Bakunin, who has got quite a few followers nowadays.