Liz Cheney Is Not OK With Trump Pardoning Edward Snowden

Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) on Sunday blasted President Donald Trump’s suggestion he might pardon fugitive National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden as “unconscionable.” 

A day after Trump said he’s “going to look at” the possibility of pardoning Snowden, Cheney ― the third-ranking House Republican ― lashed back on Twitter. She called Snowden “a traitor” and added: “Pardoning him would be unconscionable.”

Snowden, a former NSA contractor, fled the U.S. in 2013 after leaking troves of secret documents revealing the agency has been spying on the communications of ordinary Americans and foreign leaders. He was granted asylum in Russia and has said he won’t return to the U.S. as long as he’s facing an espionage charge.

Though Trump in 2013 branded Snowden a “terrible traitor” and hinted he deserved execution, he showed in an interview last week with the New York Post that his view has softened.

“There are a lot of people that think that [Edward Snowden] is not being treated fairly,” the president said.

On Saturday, a reporter asked Trump whether he would consider pardoning Snowden.

“I’m going to look at it,” Trump said. “I’m not that aware of the Snowden situation, but I’m going to start looking at it. There are many, many people ― it seems to be a split decision ― many people think that he should somehow be treated differently and other people think he did very bad things, and I’m going to take a very good look at it.”

Cheney on Sunday made clear that her view is closer to that of the 2013 Trump:

Cheney has been increasingly at odds with Trump during the COVID-19 pandemic, criticizing his readiness to ignore medical experts in favor of reopening the economy. She has also disagreed with Trump’s order removing troops from Afghanistan.

“Liz Cheney is only upset because I have been actively getting our great and beautiful Country out of the ridiculous and costly Endless Wars,” Trump tweeted in July.

Snowden didn’t appear to react to the comments of either Trump or Cheney.

He did, however, retweet a Twitter post by British journalist Medhi Hasan, which commented that “everyone from Human Rights Watch and Amnesty to The New York Times and Guardian editorial boards have called for some form of clemency or pardon for Snowden.”