Daniel Ellsberg has called on the U.S. to indict him for having the same unauthorized possession of classified material as Julian Assange. Ellsberg follows the Cryptome.org founder who has also invited prosecution, reports Joe Lauria.
By Joe Lauria, Consortium News
Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg has told the U.S. Justice Department and President Joe Biden that he is as indictable as WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange for having unauthorized possession of classified materials before they were published by WikiLeaks and that he would plead “not guilty” because the Espionage Act is unconstitutional.
Ellsberg revealed this week to the BBC interview program Hard Talk that Assange had given him the files leaked by U.S. Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to keep as a backup before they were published by WikiLeaks in 2010.
Assange has been charged with violating the Espionage Act for possession and dissemination of classified information and faces 175 years in a U.S. prison if he is extradited from Belmarsh Prison in London.
To @POTUS and @TheJusticeDept: Stop the extradition of Assange. I am as indictable as he is on the exact same charges. I will plead "not guilty" on grounds of your blatantly unconstitutional use of the Espionage Act. Let's take this to the Supreme Court. https://t.co/odm2gd6Ci1
— Daniel Ellsberg (@DanielEllsberg) December 6, 2022
Ellsberg is the second figure this month to come forward calling on the U.S. government to indict them for the same reasons Assange has been charged.
Recent Posts
Majid Khan Released from Guantánamo After 16 Years
Take Action Now Mr. Khan is only the sixth man transferred by the Biden administration and the first resettled in a third country. His transfer marks…
“We’re Still Gonna Say No”: Inside UnitedHealthcare’s Effort To Deny Coverage To Chronically Ill Patient
Take Action Now After a college student finally found a treatment that worked, the insurance giant decided it wouldn’t pay for the costly drugs. His…
Uh Oh, Here Comes The Occupying Army
Take Action Now Police in Norway “spend one year studying society and ethics, another shadowing officers, and a final year focusing on investigations…
Palestinians File Objection To US Plan To Build New Embassy On Stolen Land In Jerusalem
Take Action Now The objection has been filed on behalf of descendants of the original Palestinian owners, from whom the land was confiscated soon…