While America debates whether or not Edward Snowden was justified in leaking National Security Agency information to the press, former Vice President Dick Cheney has his mind made up, calling him a “traitor.”
Cheney appeared on ‘Fox News Sunday‘ with Chris Wallace this week to discuss the NSA’s secret surveillance program, PRISM. The host began by asking the former Vice President’s opinion on Snowden.
“I think he’s a traitor,” Cheney responded. “I think he has committed crimes, in effect, by violating agreements given the position he had.”
He added that this was “one of the worst occasions in my memory” of someone using classified information to do damage to America’s national security.
Wallace also asked the former VP if he thought Snowden was possibly a Chinese spy, since he is presumed to be hiding out in Hong Kong. Cheney responded that he was wary of Snowden.
“I’m suspicious because he went to China,” Cheney said. “That’s not a place where you would ordinarily want to go if you are interested in freedom, liberty and so forth.”
The former Vice President also worried that Snowden wasn’t working alone and that he could have more information about U.S. national security interests — information he might try to sell to the Chinese for sanctuary.
Wallace also asked about the position of people like Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who condemned the NSA for collecting the phone records of ordinary Americans. Cheney said the Senator was wrong. He defended the program, saying it only collects phone numbers, but doesn’t collect the personal information of Americans.
