Snowden : Didn't get his pardon

The point of this movie was to portray Snowden sympathetically so that Obama would pardon him. That didn't happen. Hope he enjoys borscht.

I strongly doubt that "the whole point" of the movie was to get Snowden a pardon. That was never a likely prospect, as Obama has been exponentially the most aggressive president ever against whistleblowers of all kinds. Of course, if by some 1-in-ten-trillion chance Obama *had* pardoned Snowden, I'm sure Oliver Stone would have been happy. But it was never remotely probable, nor expected.

Unlike Trump, I doubt Obama gets his information or is influenced by movies or third party golf course rumors.

Hate to even say it, but if he got pardoned and he returned to the U.S., chances are that certain parties who regard him as a traitor - both inside and outside the government - would assassinate him. At least he seems fairly safe in Mother Russia.

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At least he seems fairly safe in Mother Russia.

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Yes, paradoxically, Snowden is much safer in Russia than he would have been in South America or the USA, both of which have active CIA assassination squads operating. CIA however does not have that kind of network inside Russia.

Julian Assange pointed out that the US government shot itself in the foot when it stranded Snowden in Russia by canceling his passport while he was in the air. Had they waited until he reached South America, they could have taken him out by now.

You've gotta be kidding about Stone doing this movie angling for a pardon.

By the president he embarrassed?

You're high. Was never going to happen.

I think he should be a free man but Obama did make a good argument about how Snowden wasn't pardoned: He didn't come back to face the consequences, like Chelsea Manning did. Can you even pardon someone who hasn't been sentenced?

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Can you even pardon someone who hasn't been sentenced?

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Of course the president can pardon someone who "hasn't been sentenced." He can pardon someone even before any charges are laid. That's what Ford did in the case of Nixon. He pardoned Nixon before he was charged.

But Nixon was a president. So an exception had to be made