Republicans join Tulsi Gabbard and call on the US to stop the leak cases against Assange and Snowden
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, Hawaii Democrat, received support from fellow Republicans when he called on the US government to end its criminal cases against Julian Assange and Edward J. Snowden.
Together with Rep. Thomas Massie, Republican from Kentucky, she tabled a resolution on Friday calling on the US to drop all charges and efforts to extradite Mr. Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks.
Florida Republican MP Matt Gaetz joined the Democrats days earlier by endorsing a similar resolution calling on the US to shut down its case against Mr Snowden, who is also being searched for leaks.
Mr. Assange, who launched the WikiLeaks website in 2006, and Mr. Snowden, a former intelligence official, are each charged with classified disclosure in separate cases.
Both men have been charged with violating the US Espionage Act in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, and face long prison terms if tried and convicted.
Ms. Gabbard, who unsuccessfully sought the 2020 Democratic President nomination, argued that Mr. Assange and Mr. Snowden each played a role in exposing government wrongdoing and should be spared.
WikiLeaks “released information that exposed lies and abuse of power at the highest levels,” said Ms. Gabbard; Mr. Snowden “courageously exhibit”[ed] massive illegal government surveillance, ”she said.
Mr. Massie and Mr. Gaetz agreed with the Democrat to drop the cases against Mr. Assange and Mr. Snowden, respectively, and gave bipartisan support to each of the Congressman’s resolutions.
“The ongoing attempts to prosecute Julian Assange threatens our First Amendment rights and should be opposed by anyone who wishes to protect our constitutional rights now and for years to come,” said Mr Massie. “I join with my colleague, Congressman Tulsi Gabbard, in calling for an immediate end to all charges against Mr. Assange.”
“Edward Snowden has been wrongly berated and persecuted for exposing the true extent of illegal government surveillance. That is unjust, “said Gaetz in a statement. “The charges against Snowden should be dropped.”
Mr. Assange, a 49-year-old Australian, is charged with soliciting, receiving and publishing classified US military and diplomatic material through WikiLeaks until 2010. He was arrested last year in the UK, where a UK court is expected to decide early next year whether he should be extradited to the US. Until this decision he is imprisoned in London.
Mr Snowden, 37, admittedly leaked classified material about the US National Security Agency in 2013 that he received while working as a government contractor. Since then he has lived in Russia.
