Dick Cheney has thrown out the t-word to describe Edward Snowden, the man at the center of a controversy involving the leaking of classified National Security Agency information.
The former vice president made his remarks on Fox News Sunday, the news talk show that’s a favorite venue for Republican politicians to vent their anger.
Snowden “is a traitor,” Cheney said, alluding to the secrets the man has released that in Cheney’s view have put Americans at risk.
I am struck immediately by something about Cheney’s accusation. It simply is this: due process.
No one has accused Snowden officially of treason. No one has filed charges. If convicted of treason, a traitor faces the death penalty. It’s arguably the most serious crime imaginable short of murdering someone.
The Constitution — which Cheney has sworn to uphold and defend as a member of Congress, defense secretary and then vice president — lays out the requirement for every criminal defendant to be given the right of due process.
I have no earthly idea whether Edward Snowden is guilty of any crime, let alone treason. He well might be a traitor. However, doesn’t the Constitution provide a mechanism to prove such a thing beyond a reasonable doubt?
Dick Cheney has gotten way ahead of that process.