Senate Appropriations Committee Approves Trade Sanctions Against Any Country That Offers Asylum To Snowden

from the is-that-sending-a-good-message? dept

Fri, Jul 26th 2013 6:28am — Mike Masnick

Even as many in Congress seem to recognize just how useful it was for Ed Snowden to reveal how the NSA was misinterpreting the law to collect data on nearly everyone, some still seem to want to go overboard in trying to blame him for telling the truth. The latest is that the Senate Appropriations Committee has supported a plan to instruct Secretary of State John Kerry to work with Congress in issuing sanctions against any country that grants Snowden asylum. Remember now, that this is the very same US Congress that flat out passed a law to give a Swiss bank security guard (and his entire family) asylum after he did almost the exact same thing as Snowden. In that case, some of the very same Senators who are now lining up against Snowden went on and on about how brave and heroic Michel Meili was. And, yet, now they're willing to start an entire trade war because some other country is willing to grant him asylum and protect Snowden against crazy attacks by grandstanding officials? How is that possibly a sane reaction?

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Filed Under: ed snowden, john kerry, senate, senate appropriations committee, trade sanctions

52 Comments

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Nastybutler77 (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 6:33am

History will not look kindly on those who seek to persecute Snowden.
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- Michael, 26 Jul 2013 @ 7:29am
  
  Re:
  History looks kindly on the people that win.
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  - John Fenderson (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 9:00am
    
    Re: Re:
    Not always.
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  - Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 9:15am
    
    Re: Re:
    Stalin?
    /Rhetorical
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    - Wally (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 10:32am
      
      Re: Re: Re:
      Hurler actually....look where it got him.
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      - Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 10:56am
        
        Re: Re: Re: Re:
        Stalin won his war, Hitler lost his, and we were talking about history looking kindly on the victors.
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- velox (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 8:05am
  
  Avoiding responsibility for history
  Its notable that the Senate Appropriations Committee adopted this resolution by consensus, which means that they didn't have to go on record with their individual votes on the matter. The members will be able to squirm toward either direction and claim they were personally against it, or personally for it as they deem necessary as the fallout from the Snowden affair proceeds in the future.
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- Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 8:34am
  
  Re:
  I don't think that you are wrong, but how many centuries will pass before that way of historical interpretation will ensue?
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Wally (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 6:38am

It is time.
It is time to march on Capitol Hill. It's clear that sitting on our assess whining won't help.
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- The Mighty Buzzard (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 7:32am
  
  Re: It is time.
  What makes you think marching will help or even be allowed? They've just finished flatly ignoring the 4th Amendment, why should they pay attention to the 1st?
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  - John Fenderson (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 9:03am
    
    Re: Re: It is time.
    Nothing. The last few times large marches and the like have happened that opposed what the mainstream media is trying to say, they got ignored to the point that most people don't think they even happened or were as large as they were.
    
    Marches and such are useful, but their time as the main weapon for change ended with the '60s.
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    - Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 9:24am
      
      Re: Re: Re: It is time.
      Wide scale sustained internet blackout.
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    - The Mighty Buzzard (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 9:33am
      
      Re: Re: Re: It is time.
      Unless you're willing to take a page from the Army and do your marching with assault weapons, yep.
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      - John Fenderson (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 10:30am
        
        Re: Re: Re: Re: It is time.
        Yeah, but that's more "insurrection" than "protest march."
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        The Mighty Buzzard (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 10:46am
        
        Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: It is time.
        Semantics, really. Like when the Army marches to object to a government policy, it stays the fuck protested.
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- Uriel-238 (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 10:29am
  
  Re: It is time.
  I don't think they're going to be impressed with signs and chants.
  
  We may have to mix stiffer libations.
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- Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 8:25pm
  
  Re: It is time.
  It is time to march on Capitol Hill. It's clear that sitting on our assess whining won't help.
  
  Talk's cheap, Wally. Let us know what time your flight gets to Reagan National.
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out_of_the_blue, 26 Jul 2013 @ 6:40am

"How is that possibly a sane reaction?" -- Depends on goal.
IF, as I firmly believe, the Snowden "leak" is a limited hangout psyop that will result in hardening the surveillance state, then this is perfectly sane, though evil.

Not incidentally, one can read your first line, "recognize just how useful it was", in that light.
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Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 6:42am

this goes to show the measure of the people that are in charge of the USA! anyone and everyone that voted for this should be ashamed. anyone that just sits and let this injustice go unquestioned should be equally ashamed. what sort of country has the USA become? it's disgraceful! and, more than anything, it is because in bringing the spying out into the open, it has embarrassed the US government. it has shown how little the government thinks of the citizens of the USA. how pitiful is that??
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Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 6:45am

And soon the "Arab Spring" will become a worldwide phenomenon.

http://www.metrolyrics.com/give-it-revolution-lyrics-suicidal-tendencies.html

http ://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q68AmOSsz4A
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- Anonymous bleed, 26 Jul 2013 @ 7:49am
  
  And it is unfortunately what is meant!
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Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 7:00am

It would be hilarious if Snowden proceeds to land asylum with China. Trade Sanctions wouldn't work all that well in that case.
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- Mike-2 Alpha (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 7:05am
  
  Re:
  I kinda wish Canada would give him asylum now. I doubt we'd have done it before the threat, and we almost definitely won't after the sanction threats. Still, I'd like to see if Obama has the stones to put sanctions on his biggest trading partner. On the straight numbers, we'd lose more than the 'States would, but exports to Canada are worth almost 2% of the US GDP.
  
  And then there's the fact that the US bought almost three quarters as much oil from Canada last year as it did from all the countries in OPEC combined. Almost half again as much as it did from the entire Middle East.
  
  It's never going to happen... but I kinda wish it would.
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- Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 7:48am
  
  Re:
  This is such a dickheaded move that it would put the entire US economy in a precarious situation, if a country like China offers Snowden asylum. But I guess, its better to double down than admit your mistake.
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- Bergman (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 12:03pm
  
  Re:
  I thought of that immediately myself.
  
  Trade sanctions against China would probably get us into a shooting war with them though.
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  - Anonymous, 26 Jul 2013 @ 2:32pm
    
    Re: Re:
    And the US is too chicken**** for that.
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Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 7:06am

In other news, China offers Snowdenn Asylum
In other news, China offers Snowdenn Asylum, and tells the US to 'bring it on' if they want to start a trade war.
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- Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 7:06am
  
  Re: In other news, China offers Snowdenn Asylum
  OMG, of all the things to misspell I misspell Snowden, TWICE.
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Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 7:12am

Keep on Digging
While Edward Snowden may have marked the outline, the US government seems determined to dig themselves into a deep hole. An isolated and powerless US is what the terrorist want, and the US government is now working hard to achieve this end.
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- Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 7:19am
  
  Re: Keep on Digging
  It's high time the rest of the world gave the US government the middle finger. It would make the world a better place.
  
  What happened to Putin's balls? Even he's starting to sound like a US lapdog.
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- Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 8:40am
  
  Re: Keep on Digging
  He didn't even mark the outline. He just handed the US a shovel.
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  - beech, 26 Jul 2013 @ 9:10am
    
    Re: Re: Keep on Digging
    He didn't even hand them a shovel, he just leaked the fact that the government had a shovel.
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Anonymous Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 7:13am

Culture Comin'
I had a bad/strange dream last night. I was wondering who would be the next 'anarchistic' songwriters, in the ilk of Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, CSNY, etc. from the anti war movement in the '60's? For some reason Creedence Clearwater Revival's Who'll Stop the Rain is in my head, and won't leave.

Songwriters: JOHN C. FOGERTY
Long as I remember the rain been comin' down
Clouds of mystery pourin' confusion on the ground.
Good men through the ages tryin' to find the sun.
And I wonder still I wonder who'll stop the rain.

I went down Virginia seekin' shelter from the storm
Caught up in the fable I watched the tower grow
Five year plans and new deals wrapped in golden chains.
And I wonder still I wonder who'll stop the rain.

Heard the singers playin', how we cheered for more.
The crowd had rushed together tryin' to keep warm.
Still the rain kept pourin', fallin' on my ears
And I wonder, still I wonder who'll stop the rain.

I take 'rain' as a metaphor for war.
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- Alt0, 26 Jul 2013 @ 7:31am
  
  Re: Culture Comin'
  Now see.. This guys medication is working...
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  - Gwiz (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 8:32am
    
    Re: Re: Culture Comin'
    This guys medication is working...
    
    And it's legal now in a couple of states too!
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Transmitte (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 7:25am

It's all well and good until the shoe is forced onto the other foot, eh? I'm sure the arm twisting by the white house must be epic at this point if they are truly running with this.
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Cory of PC (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 7:39am

There's that part of me that's thinking why hasn't these countries stop their trading with the US? After all the NSA has been spying on these countries, so why haven't they stop trading with someone holding every little secret about them?

Well there are reasons, but really I'm thinking anyone with some sense might've gone with cutting relationships with the one holding all of their secrets.
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Pixelation, 26 Jul 2013 @ 8:04am

Guess he better go to Cuba.
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Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 9:19am

Snowden was not a government employee when he gathered the information he revealed. He has free speech rights just like anyone else. I don't see what he has done wrong that can lead to anything other than losing his job. Private companies can sue you but not jail you for violating a nondisclosure agreement.
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Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 9:27am

All the countries affected by US Spying should just trade sanction the shit out of the US. The bully needs a dick punch.
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Spaceman Spiff (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 9:36am

Sanity and government officials
These are two terms that just don't work together...
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He who must not be named, 26 Jul 2013 @ 9:44am

Was reading Harry Potter and it's amazing how much our Government sounds like the Ministry of Magic.
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limbodog (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 10:04am

I think it is time to finally admit it.
We've become the bad guys. We may be good people by and large, but our leadership no longer is. We are bullies. We are aggressive. And we are deceitful.
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- That One Guy (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 10:22am
  
  Re: I think it is time to finally admit it.
  'Finally'? The US has been that way for years, they've just been a bit more blatant about it recently.
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  - John Fenderson (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 10:32am
    
    Re: Re: I think it is time to finally admit it.
    See? Obama (and Bush, although he never claimed it) have increased government transparency!
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Ninja (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 10:51am

Now I HOPE Brazil gives Snowden asylum. You know, a country that has a very good international relations and is well known everywhere. It would make things VERY interesting.

When they violated Bolivian sovereignty nobody paid much attention because Bolivia is not that known and stuff. But I'm very sure things would be very different if it was Brazil, India or maybe Russia.

Yeah, let shit hit the fan. Hard.
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- G Thompson (profile), 26 Jul 2013 @ 11:26am
  
  Re:
  Brazil might be the best (and worse for the USA) Country, it then might tip the balance in favour of a new monetary standard that is NOT based on the US dollar.. Like what Brazil and other countries have been pushing ever since America's economy hit the skids affecting the other 95% of the worlds economic ability.
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  - davnel, 26 Jul 2013 @ 3:57pm
    
    Re: Re:
    South Africa has designed and distributes the best monetary standard around. It's called a Krugerand and contains one exact ounce of pure gold mixed with a bit of copper for mechanical strength. We need to get back to some hard standard (gold or platinum or palladium), and that one is as good or better than most. So we make the dollar to be 1/1000 of a Krugerand - forever. Yes, that drops the value of an ounce of gold somewhat(or rather raises the value of the dollar), but it's way too variable and way too high right now.
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Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 2:19pm

The time has REALLY come
Mike:
Sanity has no part in any Congressional act. Congress has no ethics, only avarice. Congress has no morals, only greed. Congress has no sense of responsibility, only an overwhelming lust for power. Why do you expect anything else from them.

We all know that when (not if) our illustrious government alphabet soup agencies get their grubby hands on Snowden, he's gonna disappear (maybe literally) in a puff of smoke. IMHO, I fully expect a covert snatch-and-grab operation to occur very soon, Russia or no Russia. As for the trade sanctions, a good way to start a real war with those folks.

We've all heard, from The Guardian at least, that Snowden has already released all of the documents to them and the Washington Post. The news organizations themselves are limiting the publication of them. With the way the US government is acting, it seems an excellent time for Snowden to release the passwords and get the documents out in the open - the sooner the better.
.
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Anonymous, 26 Jul 2013 @ 2:31pm

Hoo boy, the world's scared NOW! Ooooh...
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Anonymous Coward, 26 Jul 2013 @ 8:30pm

China, Russia and almost every other country is more worried about their economy than protecting Snowden. While Assange lives out the remainder of his miserable existence in the relative comfort of the Ecuadorian embassy. Snowden will wile away his days in the mens room of the Moscow airport.
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toyotabedzrock (profile), 29 Jul 2013 @ 1:42pm

Torture and murder still ok
So I guess torture of gay people is ok still.
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