Whereas, Edward Snowden did on June 5th, 2013 risk his own life, safety, and security to publicly expose the US Government’s unlawful and unconstitutional domestic and mass surveillance programs;
Whereas, A US federal court held that the US Intelligence’s mass surveillance program exposed by Mr. Snowden was illegal and possibly unconstitutional;
Whereas, Mr. Snowden tried to raise his ethical concerns on the NSA’s mass surveillance program through internal channels but was ignored;
Whereas, Mr. Snowden, the Libertarian Party, and the American people, are aware of the brutal treatment by the US government of whistleblowers;
Whereas, The Espionage Act of 1917, which Mr. Snowden has been charged under, does not account for the illegal and abusive activities conducted by the US Government or its direct correlation to the alleged crimes Mr. Snowden has been charged with;
Whereas, The Libertarian Party has long held and defended the rights of all people to be free from unwarranted and unlawful government surveillance and spying; and
Whereas, The Libertarian Party Platform states “1.3 Privacy: Libertarians advocate individual privacy and government transparency. We support the rights recognized by the Fourth Amendment to be secure in our persons, homes, property, and communications. Protection from unreasonable search and seizure should include records held by third parties, such as email, medical, and library records.”; now therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Libertarian Party calls on President Joseph Biden to grant an immediate and unconditional Presidential pardon to the privacy advocate and political prisoner in exile, Mr. Edward Snowden; and
Resolved, That the Libertarian National Committee directs the Libertarian National Committee Chair to submit and publish a formal letter addressed to the President of the United States and sent to the White House and the US Justice Department calling for the immediate and unconditional Presidential pardon to the privacy advocate and political prisoner in exile, Mr. Edward Snowden.
