General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Edward Snowden is a man without honor. [View all]sulphurdunn
(6,891 posts)Like you, your father and me, Snowden's allegiance was not to the NSA or any other federal agency or department but to the Constitution. The only oath he took (if private contractors even take one) was to support, protect and defend it from all enemies foreign and domestic. Whether or not the NSA is a domestic enemy of the 4th Amendment is arguable, but the fact is that Snowden violated a security agreement he signed as a condition of employment, the breach of which contained a legal penalty he needs to face unless the NSA was violating the Constitution, in which case he was bound by oath to blow the whistle. He did not, however, break an oath of allegiance. I don't think you can call him an oath breaker unless it can be shown that the NSA was in compliance with its mission statement and constitutional responsibilities, anymore than the government can legally charge him with espionage unless the leak was for his personal benefit and that of a foreign power.
That is my opinion.