Opinion: Ellsberg and Snowden: Not the example Kerry likely intended

My colleague Robin Abcarian has already taken Secretary of State John Kerry to task for his “man up” challenge to Edward Snowden, telling the fugitive he should return to the United States to face the espionage and other charges leveled against him over the infamous National Security Agency leaks. Abcarian’s right; Kerry sounded more like a frat boy than a diplomat. And his tone felt more like schoolyard taunts -- “A patriot would…” -- than what one expects from a top government official.

Another part of Kerry’s comments, though, caught my ear. Kerry cited Daniel Ellsberg as the proper role model for Snowden to follow.

“You can go back to the Pentagon Papers and Dan Ellsberg and others who stood and went to the courts system of America and made their case,” Kerry said Wednesday on NBC Nightly News.

Sort of. Ellsberg acted on his conscience by leaking the Pentagon Papers more than 40 years ago and stayed in the country to face the legal fallout. But it wasn’t as simple as putting his “case” before the courts. Yes, Ellsberg made a courageous choice in following his conscience, an act that laid bare some of the government’s lies over the war in Vietnam. And Ellsberg, with co-defendant Anthony Russo, faced the charges in court.

What did the government do? It wiretapped them, overhearing a protected conversation with a defense attorney. And the White House “plumbers” unit of future felons broke into Ellsberg’s psychiatrist’s office to try to find material to smear his reputation.

In fact, the government’s deplorable and illegal maneuvers led Judge Matthew Byrne to dismiss the charges. So yes, Ellsberg went to court, and the court did the right thing in freeing Ellsberg in the face of inexcusable misconduct by the government that sought to send him to prison.

But the lesson Snowden should take away from Kerry’s invocation of the Pentagon Papers? You’re probably right: You likely would be unable to receive a fair trial should you return to the United States.

I doubt that’s the lesson Kerry intended.