Judge Rules Snowden Book Profits Must Be Handed to the Government

www.thedailybeast.com...

Any money former National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden makes from his recent memoir and paid speeches must be handed to the U.S. government, a federal judge ruled Tuesday. In a brief opinion in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, Judge Liam O’Grady said the federal government was entitled to the money because Snowden disclosed classified information without approval. “The contractual language of the Secrecy Agreements is unambiguous,” wrote the judge. “Snowden accepted employment and benefits conditioned upon prepublication review obligations.” Snowden has been charged with espionage since 2013, when he exposed surveillance documents in one of the biggest security breaches in U.S. history. The Justice Department, unable to put Snowden on trial while he’s in exile in Russia, instead moved to cut off his earnings from his book, Permanent Record, and from his paid speaking engagements.

The government is playing hardball. How can they prevent him from making a living?

He should use a Russian publisher maybe.

Can they get his money? I doubt it.

And how can they get the money from his speeches?

He shouldn't use western banks. Just Russian banks or Chinese.

link

a reply to: Willtell

Snowden's attorney will shunt revenue to a non-US trust. Problem solved. It's legal too.

a reply to: carewemust


That would have to be the publisher. Usually, the royalties of a book are handled by a publisher or book agent.


Maybe his speeches he can do that

"You knew information that was vital to our secret plans and agenda's and now released it to the public, knowing full well that we are committing illegal activities and using your information for our own personal gain and now you have to pay us too"

Lol ok. I would shove a rainbow of happy expressions way up that judges a%$ (There, it is less terrorist-y for you softies)

No more freedom.

You may want to tone down the terroristic guff. It could land you in some trouble

a reply to: IrateCanadian

a reply to: hombero

The way many see it, Federal judges and many politicians are terrorists

Why can't things be like they were back in the days when someone was deemed a terrorist or traitor by their actions and then hung or decapitated? Why do they get away with such acts now a days? Because no one really stands up for it.

Is it odd that this is the same judge that was assigned the kim.com issue or is that just luck of the draw?


From wikipedia:

"O'Grady is the presiding judge in the current extradition proceedings against Kim Dotcom relating to the Megaupload file storage service. During April 2012 he stated: "I frankly don't know that we are ever going to have a trial in this matter," when he found that the company had never been formally served with criminal papers by the US.[1]"

He was appointed by GW.

It is sad that in this clown world we live in Snowden is considered a traitor while real traitors like Adam Schiff are allowed to be free.

originally posted by: Metallicus
It is sad that in this clown world we live in Snowden is considered a traitor while real traitors like Adam Schiff are allowed to be free.

Your mixing politics with the free speech issue which is kind of outside of politics

Indeed, many Americans would consider Adam Schiff a hero and Trump the traitor.

But of course, we know, that determination depends on one's politics.

Trump will pardon Snowden. Trump only pardons heroes, who fight enemies on battlefields, sheriffs who obey the law etc..

so Snowden is gonna get a pardon for sure. and let's not forget how much Trump lives WikiLeaks.

Trump can do something about these two, but his base knows he doesn't have the testicular audacity to even mention it as a threat in a speech. 😁

a reply to: odzeandennz

I guess you're being facetious...

Trump will never pardon Snowden or Assange. Trump doesn't give a damn about privacy rights, human rights or civil rights.

It interests me in how people view both Snowden and Assange. That’s one reason why I did the OP.

It seems Assange tried to get Trump’s favor and was rejected.
He should have known better

Snowden, as far as I know, hasn’t tried to suck up to Trump.