Is Obama abusing the Espionage Act?
The Obama administration has charged twice as many people under the Espionage Act as every other president combined
NSA leaker Edward Snowden has officially been charged with three felonies, two of them falling under the 1917 Espionage Act, including "willful communication of classified communications intelligence information to an unauthorized person." If convicted, he could face decades or even life in prison.
The Obama administration has now charged seven people under the Espionage Act. Prior to Obama's inauguration, only three people had ever been charged under that law.
As Glenn Greenwald puts it in The Guardian, "the statute is so broad that even the U.S. government has largely refrained from using it" in the past. It was passed two months after the United States entered World War I with the stated aim of preventing people from sharing classified information about national defense, although, as the Brookings Institution's Benjamin Wittes tells NPR, the wording is much more vague than that:
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Charles Pierce uses harsher words to describe it in Esquire, calling the Espionage Act a "foul relic of a foul time, born of the repressive mind of Woodrow Wilson, American history's most overrated man, employed to quash dissent during World War I, and then repurposed for the Red Scare that followed hard on the Armistice, and it rose again during the subsequent Red Scares after the subsequent world war."
The Espionage Act is often associated with the much-maligned Sedition Act, passed one year later, which more or less made it illegal to criticize the U.S. government. While the Sedition Act was repealed in 1920, the Espionage Act has survived in amended form. Before Obama, it was used to charge Daniel Ellsberg, leaker of the Pentagon Papers, under President Nixon; Samuel Morrison under President Reagan; and Lawrence Franklin under President George W. Bush.
The next seven — Thomas Drake, Shamai Leibowitz, Stephen Kim, Jeffrey Sterling, John Kiriakou, Bradley Manning, and Edward Snowden — were all charged on Obama's watch. And it's mainly political, argues Greenwald:
The Justice Department has defended its actions, claiming that it "does not target whistle-blowers."
It remains unclear if Snowden will even stand trial. He is reportedly seeking asylum in Ecuador.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Keith Wagstaff is a staff writer at TheWeek.com covering politics and current events. He has previously written for such publications as TIME, Details, VICE, and the Village Voice.
-
The de-extinction process to bring woolly mammoths back to life
Under the Radar Biotechnology start-up's stem cell research brings possibility of genetically engineered species a step closer
By Austin Chen, The Week UK Published
-
Today's political cartoons - March 17, 2024
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - history repeating, the Pope's white flag, and more
By The Week US Published
-
The Week Unwrapped: Derelict homes, Welsh mines, and vinyl
Podcast What can we do about abandoned property? Are old mines still doing us harm? And what do LP sales tell us about the economy?
By The Week Staff Published
-
The debate about Biden's age and mental fitness
In Depth Some critics argue Biden is too old to run again. Does the argument have merit?
By Grayson Quay Published
-
How would a second Trump presidency affect Britain?
Today's Big Question Re-election of Republican frontrunner could threaten UK security, warns former head of secret service
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Rwanda plan is less a deterrent and more a bluff'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week UK Published
-
Henry Kissinger dies aged 100: a complicated legacy?
Talking Point Top US diplomat and Nobel Peace Prize winner remembered as both foreign policy genius and war criminal
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Last updated
-
Trump’s rhetoric: a shift to 'straight-up Nazi talk'
Why everyone's talking about Would-be president's sinister language is backed by an incendiary policy agenda, say commentators
By The Week UK Published
-
More covfefe: is the world ready for a second Donald Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question Republican's re-election would be a 'nightmare' scenario for Europe, Ukraine and the West
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Xi-Biden meeting: what's in it for both leaders?
Today's Big Question Two superpowers seek to stabilise relations amid global turmoil but core issues of security, trade and Taiwan remain
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Will North Korea take advantage of Israel-Hamas conflict?
Today's Big Question Pyongyang's ties with Russia are 'growing and dangerous' amid reports it sent weapons to Gaza
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published