Assange: Snowden Was 'Marooned' by the U.S.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said it was a "disgrace" that the U.S. revoked Edward Snowden's passport, and effectively "marooned" him in Russia, after he leaked confidential information from the National Security Agency during an interview on ABC's This Week. "The United States, by cancelling his passport, has left him for the moment marooned in Russia," Assange said. "I think that every citizen has the right to their citizenship, to take someone's principle form of citizenship, their passport, is a disgrace." Assange didn't have any new information about Snowden's whereabouts or situation. He said the Wikileaks legal team was still in contact with Snowden, but that's as much as he would disclose. Assange has a "personal sympathy" for Snowden's situation, which he feels resembles his own. (Assange is still stuck in the Ecuador's embassy in Russia.) "We did what we could and will continue to try to help him through."
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Texas state Sen. Wendy Davis promised not to back down in her fight against Gov. Rick Perry and the abortion bill she fought to filibuster during her appearance on NBC's Meet the Press. "We will fight as we begin the session again on Monday," Davis said. "I don't think that we will concede that the battle is over." The Democratic lawmaker with potential aspirations to take Perry's job some day stressed the abortion bill would close down nearly all of Texas's abortion clinics, which is just as hurtful as the ban on abortions after 20 weeks. "It's a huge omnibus bill that includes many many other aspects to it that are setting Texas back," Davis said. During her appearance on CBS's Face the Nation, Davis accused Texas Gov. Rick Perry and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst of using the abortion bill to advance their political careers. "I think really what’s happening here, Bob, is politicians are using this issue to boost their own political aspirations, their own political ambitions," she said. "Gov. Perry and Lt. Gov. Dewhurst are willing to... put women in harm’s way in order to step up on the political ladder."
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House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi was hopeful gay marriage could be legal across the U.S. within the next five years when asked on NBC's Meet the Press. "Well, I would certainly hope so," Pelosi said. "Course I've been in this - shall we say - crusade for a long time. And to see the pace with which it has accelerated in the past few years is very encouraging. Let's hope it's even sooner than that." Pelosi tried to stress that changing the laws wouldn't affect any religious affiliations. "We're not talking about saying that religions have to perform wedding ceremonies," she said. "We're talking about the state-- what the state does and what the state recognizes. People have a right to believe what they believe. But we are a country that professes not to discriminate and this is a discrimination."
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During a joint appearance on Fox News Sunday with Sen. John McCain, Sen. Chuck Schumer predicted the House would eventually pass the Senate's bipartisan immigration bill by the end of this year. "In fact, I believe that by the end of this year, the House will pass the Senate bill," Schumer said. Speaker of the House John Boehner said the House wouldn't vote on the Senate's bill earlier this week. But Schumer thinks the pressure will be too much for Boehner and he'll eventually have to relent. "The national Republican leadership will tell John Boehner, if you don't pass a bill, we're going to be a minority party for a decade," Schumer said. McCain hedged when it was his opportunity to criticize Boehner. "It's not going to be easy, but I really hesitate to tell Speaker Boehner how he should do this," McCain said. The two men did bond over their mutual criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin for his handing of fugitive NSA leaker Edward Snowden. "We should deal realistically, not a return of the Cold War, but realistically with Vladimir Putin," McCain said. "I think we pushed the reset back down to about 1955. We have to deal realistically with an autocratic ruler in Russia." Both men think Russia is constantly disrespecting the U.S. and deserve some type of punishment. "They thumb our nose at us no matter what the issue," McCain said. "They should pay a price," Schumer added. "They're always are putting their finger in our eye."
