We have "only the word" of everyone with security clearance that they are not leaking secrets to foreign agents.

You don't have to be physically present in Russia to provide the Russians with intelligence.

I don't know why it makes any sense to assume that Snowden is leaking any more than what he gave to the journalists. His entire mission was out of loyalty to the American public, he did not intend to end up in Russia, and he wants to return to the US. America is keeping him out because they will not guarantee him a trial that meets his criteria of fairness/openness.

>We have "only the word" of everyone with security clearance that they are not leaking secrets to foreign agents.

Don't be dense. Those other agents didn't make off with 1.7 million highly classified files, flee to China and then arrange a defection to Russia with Russian officials.

>I don't know why it makes any sense to assume that Snowden is leaking any more than what he gave to the journalists.

Because he has stolen much much more than he gave to the journalists and the stolen data was much more extensive than domestic surveillance programs.

>America is keeping him out because they will not guarantee him a trial that meets his criteria of fairness/openness.

I'm sorry the law doesn't meet his criteria.

He went to Hong Kong. In parent we can see you conveniently call that China, but that isn't the same.

Besides, we have his word, and two (or three) witnesses who saw him destroy the content of the SD card.

> In parent we can see you conveniently call that China, but that isn't the same.

Diplomatic relations are handled by China's foreign ministry. There is no way Snowden's status would not be handled by the Chinese government.

There is still only one reason to say he went to China instead of simply mentioning he went to Hong Kong: to deliberately inaccurately describe and deceive what happened ie. a political reason. Don't resort to such lame rhetoric. It won't fly here.

Oh brother. Neither Hong Kong, nor China is the principal actor in this story. Their role consist of letting him leave despite a passport revocation and an arrest warrant.

Who is trying to muddle the point with irrelevant detail? It won't fly here!!

//

Also, I'm glad there were witnesses of some SD card being destroyed. Good thing we can trust the word of someone who at that point has already stolen deep operational intelligence in the first place (we're not even talking about information on mass domestic intelligence - just typical intelligence data), that this was the only copy he held or wasn't already compromised. A person who then fled to Russia by way of China. Unbelievable.

You have no proof for any of your conspiracy claims.

Which part? That he stole a massive amount of Intelligence .. not just pertaining to any domestic surveillance program, but deep organizational and operational intelligence? That he defected to Russia? That he met Russian officials in Honk Kong before leaving? That his passport was revoked and arrest warrant was issued before he left Hong Kong, completly invalidating his claim that he ended up in Russia by happenstance? That his defection was sanctioned by Putin and orchestrated by WikiLeaks, both actors now embroiled in an attempt to corrupt American elections?? Those publicaly acknowledged'conspiracy' claims?

Or is it that I just refuse to take his unsubstantiated claims at face value, and that makes me a conspiracy nut?

The guy is the definition of a traitor to his country.