Just days ahead of the release of feature film “Snowden”, the real life Snowden sat down for an interview with the Guardian from his hideout in Moscow.
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“[The pardon power exists] for the exceptions, for the things that may seem unlawful in letters on a page but when we look at them morally, when we look at them ethically, when we look at the results, it seems these were necessary things, these were vital things”, Snowden said.
Edward Snowden, living in exile in Russian Federation, is seeking a pardon from President Barack Obama, before he leaves office in January.
Snowden, a former contractor for the Central Intelligence Agency, left the United States in May, 2013 after leaking to the media details about internet and phone surveillance activities, exposing how the NSA kept telephone data on “tens of millions” of Americans, BBC News reported.
Snowden now lives in Russian Federation, where he fled after sharing with MacAskill and other journalists a vast database of documents that revealed the scope of the NSA’s surveillance efforts in the United States and overseas.
“It is clear that in the wake of 2013 the laws of our nation changed”.
‘At the same time there has never been any public evidence that any individual came to harm as a result, ‘ he told the Guardian.
USA anti-establishment director Oliver Stone called for Obama to pardon Snowden while unveiling his espionage thriller biopic about the whistle blower at the Toronto film festival earlier this month.
Prominent advocacy groups Amnesty International and the ACLU are also poised to launch a campaign asking for Obama to grant Snowden a pardon.
Gordon-Levitt said Snowden “would like to come home”.
The White House says Mr Obama still believes Mr Snowden must face the charges against him in court.
Snowden’s leak indeed led to legislative change, according to CNN, limiting the NSA’s ability to collect private data on millions of innocent Americans.
Richard Clarke, former White House counterterrorism advisor and current ABC News consultant, was on the White House panel.
Earnest said that the way Snowden chose to act “harmed our national security and put the American people at greater risk”.
Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has been on the record saying that Snowden performed a “public service” by leaking the classified information and sparked important discussions regarding U.S. surveillance.
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Snowden, whose residency permit in Russian Federation runs out next year, explained he was prepared to spend time in jail in the USA, adding he was “willing to make a lot of sacrifices for my country”. Snowden said, “I really don’t know” whether the film will help his case for a pardon, but does know that he is proud to fill the role of getting people to engage with surveillance issues.
