Napolitano Says No Clemency for Edward Snowden

The former head of the Department of Homeland Security said Edward Snowden doesnt deserve clemency for exposing the broad reach of U.S. surveillance programs.

Janet Napolitano, who left the post in August to become president of the University of California system, said on NBCs Meet the Press that Snowdens leaks had hurt the U.S. She rejected calls made in editorials by the New York Times and Londons Guardian newspapers that Snowden, now living under temporary asylum in Russia, be granted clemency.

The U.S. has charged Snowden with theft and espionage for leaking documents to various publications last year that unveiled the breadth of the spying managed by the National Security Agency, where he worked as a contractor.

I think Snowden has exacted quite a bit of damage and did it in a way that violated the law, Napolitano said. I think hes committed crimes and I think that the damage well see now and well see it for years to come.

The New York Times wrote in a Jan. 1 editorial that Snowden deserved some form of clemency or sharply reduced charges because he had essentially served as a whistle-blower to government abuse of its anti-terrorism surveillance powers.

Senator Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican who has been critical of the NSAs activities, said today that Snowden should return to the U.S. to face trial for his actions.

I think personally, he probably would come home for some penalty of a few years in prison, Paul said on ABCs This Week program. In the end, history is going to judge that he revealed great abuses of our government and great abuses of our intelligence community.

Napolitano will lead a U.S. delegation to Russia for the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi. Two bomb attacks last month in Russia raised fears that terrorists will target the games.

Russian authorities have said they are deploying 30,000 police officers in and around the Olympic site. Some analysts have suggested that could leave other areas vulnerable.

Napolitano said she shared that concern, and that the U.S. would work with Russia and the International Olympic Committee as closely as we can to ensure the safety of the games.

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Napolitano Says No Clemency for Edward Snowden