I wasl kind of "on the fence" when it comes to him.  From what we know so far, he exposed some things that I'm not really comfortable about.  Government in some ways is over-stepping the bounds when it comes to freedom and privacy in our country.

 

However, it's more about how it was exposed and how he did it.

 

First of all, coming from somebody that has served in the military and has still worked for the government in some aspects, we all take an oath.  We all play by certain "rules" that the average citizen does not play by.  Getting a Clearance from the government means something, and you agree to certain terms regarding that clearance.  He broke those rules and terms, so he must suffer the consequences of his actions.  As a civilian employee, he may not have raised his hand and taken an oath, but he did sign the paperwork that outlines what his clearance was all about, and the consequences if he broke that "contract".

 

Also, I question his actions after the initial exposure.  He first goes to China then to Russia?  Something doesn't add up when it comes to that.  My bet is that he gave away more information to "the enemy", and is therefore guilty of treason.  If a person doesn't think that Chinese or Russian authorities have not interrogated him and looked at any data that he had in his possession, then they don't really know how this "game" really works.

 

Another thing to think about, he gained access to this data, and pretty much STOLE it.  Anyone that knows anything about holding a clearance knows about "need to know".  In his position, he did not have a "need to know" about any of the data that he took.  He was an IT guy and his job was to maintain the network, not actually read any of the data.

 

The bottom line is, the guy needs to face the charges.  He is a traitor.

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