Could he be charged? Currently there is only one minor charge against him.
FN: Of course this is before the indictment against him in a Virginia court for computer crimes in the hack of the Iraq documents. Subsequently espionage charges were added while Sweden reopened its rape allegation-Chapter A.
The only criminal charge Assange currently faces is a pending 2012 arrest warrant for “failure to surrender” (a minor bail violation that arose when he obtained asylum from Ecuador, thereby breaching his bail). “Failure to surrender” carries a prison term of three months and/or a level 5 fine (approximately £5000). It officially stands even though Sweden has stopped its rape investigation. While it’s possible that the time Assange has already spent in prison in the U.K., (10 days in Wandsworth Prison in 2010 and 550 days at the home of a supporter while on bail) might count against that sentence. It’s also possible that British prosecutors could argue Assange’s evading of legal process in the U.K. raises to the level of “contempt of court,” which carries a prison term of up to two years.
In 2013, the Obama administration concluded that it couldn’t prosecute Assange without also prosecuting newspapers such as the New York Times and the Guardian which have also published classified materials. Jack Goldsmith wrote a 2010 piece forLawfare making a related point, while emphasizing the arbitrary distinctions often drawn between publications.
No charges have yet been brought by the Trump administration, but CNN reported in April 2017 that the Justice Department was “close” to bringing criminal charges against Julian Assange. (No charges have been brought since that report.) Around the same time, then-CIA director Mike Pompeo, attacked WikiLeaks: WikiLeaks is “a non-state hostile intelligence service often abetted by state actors like Russia,” Pompeo said.
Of course, this was only after a Trump WH proposal for a limited immunity deal in exchange for Assange not releasing his trove of CIA classified information-and somehow proving Russia wasn’t behind the hacks-fell through.
Then there’s the question of will Sweden extradite Assange?
It’s highly unlikely that Sweden will extradite Assange
Will the U.K. extradite Assange?
Maybe.”
Nice and to the point…
In any case another possibility is Assange take up a new Senate Intelligence Committee to testify. The Senate Intel Dems have been working on getting Assange out of the embassy in Britain:
On July 27, 2018, ten Democratic Senators published an open letter to Vice-President Mike Pence urging him to raise concerns with President Moreno on his upcoming trip to Ecuador, regarding Ecuador’s support for Assange. The letter states, “the United States is still seeking clarity about the full extent of Russian intervention in our elections and Russian interference in elections across the world, it is imperative that you raise U.S. concerns with President Moreno about Ecuador’s continued support for Mr. Assange at a time when WikiLeaks continues its efforts to undermine democratic processes globally.”
Now the Committee has invited Assange for an interview:
“WikiLeaks has published a letter, apparently from the US senate committee investigating Russian election interference, asking Julian Assange to give evidence.”
“The letter, which could be a fabrication, is marked 1 August and was addressed to the Ecuadorian embassy, where Assange has been a resident since 2012.”
“WikiLeaks claimed on Twitter that the letter was delivered via the US embassy in London, although both the embassy and the senate select committee on intelligence declined to comment when contacted by Sky News.”
The letter to Julian Assange states: “As you are aware, the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence is conducting a bipartisan inquiry into Russian interference in the 2016 US elections.
“As part of that inquiry, the committee staff requests that you make yourself available for a closed interview with bipartisan committee staff at a mutually agreeable time and location.”
“Assange was granted political asylum by Ecuador for the purpose of avoiding extradition to the US, where he is believed to be wanted for leaking government secrets.”
“However the letter does not seem to offer him the opportunity to communicate via video link.”
“The letter also states that the interview would take place in a closed session and would not be available to the public, something which the leaking organisation is unlikely to agree to.”
I myself would much prefer it be an open session. It’s the Republicans who always want these hearings private so as not to embarrass ‘President Trump.’
The organisation’s Twitter account stated: “WikiLeaks’ legal team say they are ‘considering the offer but testimony must conform to a high ethical standard’.”
If Ecuador does eject Assange from the embassy, it won’t be an easy, simple process.
“The recent replacement of Ecuadorian president Rafael Correa with Lenin Moreno, who has expressed concerns about the WikiLeaks founder, has suggested Assange’s future in the embassy could be imperilled.”
“However, it is understood the Ecuadorian government would need to complete a lengthy legal process before stripping Assange of his legal status.”
Randy Credico was on Ari Melber last night.
BREAKING: Randy Credico says Mueller's agents confronted him in New York and asked him for an interview pic.twitter.com/Zgeax42K3Q
— The Beat with Ari Melber 📺 (@TheBeatWithAri) August 8, 2018
He kept categorically insisting that Assange didn’t get the emails from the Russians. How he knows this beyond a shadow of a doubt he doesn’t say. He totally glosses over the evidence of Wikileaks telling Guccifer 2.0 when to drop the DNC emails and all the evidence Assange was in the tank for Trump-and the GOP.
Credico’s only premise behind insisting it wasn’t the Russians seems to be because you have to believe anything Assange says. You wonder if Credico is aware of when Assange claimed to have Clinton’s deleted emails.
Is Credico more a useful idiot or fellow traveller in this mess?
UPDATE: With the charges against Assange one possibility-assuming he’s actually extradited to the US which is currently up to a British judge-is he could testify to Congress as part of a deal-how likely such a scenario is, that’s another question-Chapter A for more.
