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| N.S.A. Leaker Denies Giving Secrets to China | N.S.A. Leaker Denies Giving Secrets to China |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| WASHINGTON — Edward J. Snowden, the former National Security Agency contractor who has confessed to disclosing troves of highly classified documents detailing American surveillance at home and abroad, said Monday that he had not given any classified materials to the government of China. | |
| “This is a predictable smear that I anticipated before going public,” Mr. Snowden, who is believed to be in hiding in Hong Kong, said in an online question-and-answer session on the Web site of The Guardian, the British newspaper that has published most of the secret information to date. He said that such speculation was “intended to distract from the issue of U.S. government misconduct.” | “This is a predictable smear that I anticipated before going public,” Mr. Snowden, who is believed to be in hiding in Hong Kong, said in an online question-and-answer session on the Web site of The Guardian, the British newspaper that has published most of the secret information to date. He said that such speculation was “intended to distract from the issue of U.S. government misconduct.” |
| “Ask yourself: If I were a Chinese spy, why wouldn’t I have flown directly into Beijing? I could be living in a palace petting a phoenix by now,” he said. | |
| President Obama, meanwhile, defended the legality of the N.S.A. programs disclosed by Mr. Snowden, as well as their importance in preventing terrorism, in his most extensive comments to date on the programs. | President Obama, meanwhile, defended the legality of the N.S.A. programs disclosed by Mr. Snowden, as well as their importance in preventing terrorism, in his most extensive comments to date on the programs. |
| “The one thing people should understand about all these programs, though, is they have disrupted plots, not just here in the United States but overseas as well,” Mr. Obama said on the “Charlie Rose” show on PBS in an interview recorded Sunday and broadcast Monday night. He added that many other factors were at work in stopping attacks, saying “at the margins we are increasing our chances of preventing a catastrophe like that through these programs.” | |
| But Mr. Obama said he wanted to prompt “a national conversation” about the programs and the broader trade-offs between the use of “big data” by government and companies and possible intrusions on privacy. He said he had urged intelligence officials to see what more information they could make public about the surveillance programs without jeopardizing security. | But Mr. Obama said he wanted to prompt “a national conversation” about the programs and the broader trade-offs between the use of “big data” by government and companies and possible intrusions on privacy. He said he had urged intelligence officials to see what more information they could make public about the surveillance programs without jeopardizing security. |
| “We’re going to have to find ways where the public has an assurance that there are checks and balances in place, that they have enough information about how we operate that they know their phone calls aren’t being listened to, their text messages aren’t being monitored, their e-mails are not being read by some Big Brother somewhere,” the president said. | “We’re going to have to find ways where the public has an assurance that there are checks and balances in place, that they have enough information about how we operate that they know their phone calls aren’t being listened to, their text messages aren’t being monitored, their e-mails are not being read by some Big Brother somewhere,” the president said. |
| A new CNN/ORC International poll showed that Americans were divided over the domestic surveillance programs and that in the wake of several recent controversies, Mr. Obama’s approval rating had slipped to 45 percent from 53 percent in mid-May. | A new CNN/ORC International poll showed that Americans were divided over the domestic surveillance programs and that in the wake of several recent controversies, Mr. Obama’s approval rating had slipped to 45 percent from 53 percent in mid-May. |
| Even as Mr. Obama tried to calm public fears about the N.S.A. programs, Mr. Snowden defended his claim to be a whistle-blower alerting the world to intelligence excesses, and he denied accusations that he had betrayed the United States. | Even as Mr. Obama tried to calm public fears about the N.S.A. programs, Mr. Snowden defended his claim to be a whistle-blower alerting the world to intelligence excesses, and he denied accusations that he had betrayed the United States. |
| Mr. Snowden’s choice to go to Hong Kong to denounce oppressive government surveillance, and his decision to tell the South China Morning Post about N.S.A. hacking into computers in mainland China and Hong Kong last week, has fueled accusations of disloyalty to the United States. On Sunday, former Vice President Dick Cheney called Mr. Snowden a “traitor” and hinted he might be spying for China. | |
| But Mr. Snowden denied any contact with the Chinese government and said it was “the highest honor you can give an American” to be called a traitor by Mr. Cheney, whom he denounced as “a man who gave us the warrantless wiretapping scheme as a kind of atrocity warm-up on the way to deceitfully engineering a conflict that has killed over 4,400 and maimed nearly 32,000 Americans, as well as leaving over 100,000 Iraqis dead.” | |
| Asked why he did not go directly to Iceland, where he has said he would like to obtain asylum, Mr. Snowden said he sought a place where he was less likely to be immediately arrested. | |
| “There was a distinct possibility I would be interdicted en route, so I had to travel with no advance booking to a country with the cultural and legal framework to allow me to work without being immediately detained,” he said. “Hong Kong provided that. Iceland could be pushed harder, quicker, before the public could have a chance to make their feelings known, and I would not put that past the current U.S. administration.” | “There was a distinct possibility I would be interdicted en route, so I had to travel with no advance booking to a country with the cultural and legal framework to allow me to work without being immediately detained,” he said. “Hong Kong provided that. Iceland could be pushed harder, quicker, before the public could have a chance to make their feelings known, and I would not put that past the current U.S. administration.” |
| In answering questions for about 90 minutes, Mr. Snowden said there was “no single moment” in which he decided to act, but denounced “a continuing litany of lies” both from senior government officials to Congress and Congressional leaders. In particular, he accused James R. Clapper Jr., the director of national intelligence, of “baldly lying to the public without repercussion,” saying that such actions subverted democratic accountability. | |
| Since the disclosure that the N.S.A. has been keeping records of nearly all domestic calls, Mr. Clapper has come under particular scrutiny. In March, asked at a Senate hearing whether the security agency collected “any type of data at all on millions or hundreds of millions of Americans,” he replied, “No, sir. Not wittingly.” He later explained that was the “least untruthful” answer he could give in a public setting about a classified program. | Since the disclosure that the N.S.A. has been keeping records of nearly all domestic calls, Mr. Clapper has come under particular scrutiny. In March, asked at a Senate hearing whether the security agency collected “any type of data at all on millions or hundreds of millions of Americans,” he replied, “No, sir. Not wittingly.” He later explained that was the “least untruthful” answer he could give in a public setting about a classified program. |
| Mr. Snowden also suggested that his decision to leak the information about United States government surveillance was influenced in part by the Obama administration’s harsh crackdown on leakers; the administration has filed charges in six cases, so far, compared with three under all previous presidents combined, and several of those charged have been portrayed as heroes and martyrs by supporters. | Mr. Snowden also suggested that his decision to leak the information about United States government surveillance was influenced in part by the Obama administration’s harsh crackdown on leakers; the administration has filed charges in six cases, so far, compared with three under all previous presidents combined, and several of those charged have been portrayed as heroes and martyrs by supporters. |
| Mr. Snowden mentioned by name two former N.S.A. officials — Thomas A. Drake and William E. Binney — who were investigated for leaking. Mr. Binney was not prosecuted, while the prosecution of Mr. Drake, in connection with the disclosure of information about wasteful spending at the agency, collapsed. | Mr. Snowden mentioned by name two former N.S.A. officials — Thomas A. Drake and William E. Binney — who were investigated for leaking. Mr. Binney was not prosecuted, while the prosecution of Mr. Drake, in connection with the disclosure of information about wasteful spending at the agency, collapsed. |
| He also mentioned John Kiriakou, a former C.I.A. operative who spoke openly about waterboarding and later pleaded guilty to disclosing classified information about a fellow C.I.A. officer; and Pfc. Bradley Manning, the Army private who confessed to being the source for archives of materials published by WikiLeaks. | |
| “Binney, Drake, Kiriakou and Manning are all examples of how overly harsh responses to public-interest whistle-blowing only escalate the scale, scope and skill involved in future disclosures,” he wrote. “Citizens with a conscience are not going to ignore wrongdoing simply because they’ll be destroyed for it: the conscience forbids it. Instead, these draconian responses simply build better whistle-blowers.” | “Binney, Drake, Kiriakou and Manning are all examples of how overly harsh responses to public-interest whistle-blowing only escalate the scale, scope and skill involved in future disclosures,” he wrote. “Citizens with a conscience are not going to ignore wrongdoing simply because they’ll be destroyed for it: the conscience forbids it. Instead, these draconian responses simply build better whistle-blowers.” |
| Mr. Snowden disputed officials’ assertions that surveillance programs pose no danger to civil liberties, saying that only “limited policy protections” are in effect rather than technology designed to restrict the N.S.A.’s access to Americans’ communications. | Mr. Snowden disputed officials’ assertions that surveillance programs pose no danger to civil liberties, saying that only “limited policy protections” are in effect rather than technology designed to restrict the N.S.A.’s access to Americans’ communications. |
| But Mr. Snowden, who also did computer work for the C.I.A., made clear that he objected not only to surveillance targeting Americans, like the call-log program, but also to some American spying on foreigners abroad. Asked how many sets of the documents he has made and how dispersed they are now, Mr. Snowden hinted that he had some kind of backup file in case something happened to him. | But Mr. Snowden, who also did computer work for the C.I.A., made clear that he objected not only to surveillance targeting Americans, like the call-log program, but also to some American spying on foreigners abroad. Asked how many sets of the documents he has made and how dispersed they are now, Mr. Snowden hinted that he had some kind of backup file in case something happened to him. |
| “All I can say right now is the U.S. government is not going to be able to cover this up by jailing or murdering me,” he said. “Truth is coming, and it cannot be stopped.” | “All I can say right now is the U.S. government is not going to be able to cover this up by jailing or murdering me,” he said. “Truth is coming, and it cannot be stopped.” |
Peter Baker contributed reporting. | Peter Baker contributed reporting. |