Pompeo: Snowden leak not a ‘public service’

Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder thinks Edward Snowden’s release of classified documents was “inappropriate and illegal” and it “harmed American interests.” But Holder also said in a recent interview that Snowden “performed a public service” in raising a debate about U.S. surveillance techniques. That didn’t sit well with Rep. Mike Pompeo, R-Wichita, who serves on the House Intelligence Committee. “Snowden stole more than a million documents – a minuscule number of which pertained to the metadata program Holder finds so disturbing,” Pompeo said in a statement, adding that the remaining documents Snowden stole were military secrets that put U.S. lives at risk. “This was not a public service,” Pompeo said. “It was traitorous.” – Phillip Brownlee