Don’t Beg Her Pardon

UC Prez Janet Napolitano still seems to be carrying out a role for her former employer, the Obama administration. [Is it time to cut the cord?] As an earlier post noted, she is representing the administration at the Winter Olympics in Russia.  See:

http://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2013/12/napolitanos-mission-to-russia.html

Now, after the New York Times called for some kind of pardon or clemency for NSA leaker Edward Snowden – currently in exile in Moscow – she is commenting negatively on the Times‘ suggestion.  From The Hill:

Former Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said Friday that she “would not put clemency on the table” for NSA leaker Edward Snowden. “I think Snowden has exacted quite a bit of damage and did it in a way that violated the law,” Napolitano said in an interview airing on “Meet the Press” this Sunday.  She said damage from Snowden’s actions will be seen for years to come. Asked if the administration should consider a deal that would allow Snowden to avoid jail time in return for unreleased documents, Napolitano said she couldn’t judge without knowing what information the former defense contractor still had. “But from where I sit today, I would not put clemency on the table at all,” she said…

Full story at http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/194393-napolitano-no-clemency-for-snowden

So maybe her mission to Russia will be to convey the no-pardon message to Snowden.  Thanks to truly secret access to NSA hypercomputers, we are able to preview that dialog in Moscow: