, Columnist
Edward Snowden Doesn't Deserve a Pardon
On balance, the NSA leaker's disclosures didn't serve the public interest.
He can still speak.
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If the most famous U.S. government secret revealed by Edward Snowden had been the only one he divulged, deciding whether he deserves a pardon from President Barack Obama would be a tougher call.
Snowden famously disclosed in 2013 that the National Security Agency had been collecting Americans’ electronic metadata in bulk. The program was authorized only by a dubious reading of existing law, and when Congress debated the issue it insisted on changes to the program. So even though Snowden broke the law, he contributed to a worthwhile democratic debate.