Former CIA analyst praises Edward Snowden

JOPLIN, Mo. Edward Snowden isnt a traitor, said Ray McGovern, former CIA intelligence analyst, during a Friday talk in Webster Halls Corley Auditorium at Missouri Southern State University.

Nor is Snowden a hero, McGovern said, something that most people think is unachievable for themselves.

Hes a patriot, McGovern said. He took his oath seriously. He took the Constitution seriously.

The oath to which McGovern referred, he said was the same one he took when joining the CIA to support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

Snowden leaked to reporters details about the National Security Agencys bulk data-collection programs and surveillance. He has been granted temporary political asylum in Russia.

They want to shoot the messenger so bad, McGovern said of the Obama administration and others.

McGovern said Snowden had a cushy job with a government contractor, but he was troubled by the NSA data-collection programs, which he saw as a clear violation of the 4th Amendment to the Constitution. The amendment protects Americans from unreasonable searches and seizures without a search warrant established by probable cause of a crime.

McGovern said Snowden, armed with a copy of the Constitution, brought his concerns up with co-workers. They told him to forget about it.

Thats what makes Ed Snowden different, McGovern said. He wouldnt forget about it.

McGovern said Snowden was motivated to contact reporters by National Intelligence Director James Clappers statement to a congressional committee when asked if the NSA was collecting any type of data on millions or hundreds of millions of Americans.

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Former CIA analyst praises Edward Snowden