Slashdot Mirror
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.
i sleep like a baby.
That is, I wake up every couple of hours screaming.
Would Snowden have fared any better with the Obama administration? Obama was somewhat more sympathetic towards Snowden, at least in public, but he weaseled out of granting him a pardon (saying he "can't") while he did commute Manning's sentence.
If construction was anything like programming, an incorrectly fitted lock would bring down the entire building...
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.
Correct, you don't just burn an asset* for no reason. You do it because it gains you an advantage, such as to protect a much bigger asset - such as the suggestions that this is meant to distract from scandals about pro-Russian influence in Trump's advisors. It becomes a cost-benefit analysis of whether they think what they get out of it is worth the questions it raises in the minds of future defectors/spies/etc.
http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/10/...
http://www.vox.com/world/2017/...
*Regardless of what we think of Snowden or his motives or his actions, this is how Putin/Russian intelligence will look at him.
Meanwhile, Julian Assage sits ignored in the Ecuadorian Embassy pouting: "What about me? What about MEEEEEEEEEE!"
If you want news from today, you have to come back tomorrow.
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 did not plan to enter Russia at all and was stuck in international territory for quite a while as a result. Russia (unlike the US) accepts international law, so you can change planes at an international airport in Russia without entering the country.
Most ACs are not even worth the keystrokes to insult them. Be generically insulted by this and ignored otherwise.
The argument is that he's a whistleblower who exposed rampant systemic violation of the law. Not that you want to engage a real argument.
Reality is a slackware box running on a 386 tucked away in god's sock drawer.
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.