Edward Snowden continues to run, fearing that he’s to be imprisoned upon return to U.S. soil.  He’s gone from living in Hong Kong to Russia, but has requested asylum in Ecuador.  Though we have requested that Snowden be returned to the U.S., Russian President Putin refuses to cooperate to see that he is returned.  With a rocky relationship with both Russia and China, we shouldn’t be too surprised that they haven’t willingly given Snowden to us yet.  He has valuable information that he has already openly given up to everyone on the Internet; they have no incentive to give him back to us.  Frankly, with the information that he has they would be fools to just hand him over.

The bottom line is that we have an administration that is not taken seriously on an international stage.  There is no longer a fear of the White House in leaders across the globe.  It’s seen just an occupant who is trying to lead this nation but with no backbone to do what is necessary.  Secretary of State John Kerry stated, “We’re not looking for a confrontation, we’re not ordering anybody. We’re simply requesting under a very normal procedure, for the transfer of somebody”. That is a statement that has absolutely no substance to it whatsoever. This is a man who has committed treason, and our government is doing nothing to get him back other than saying the equivalent to “Hey, can we get that guy with the glasses back please? …It’s ok if you don’t though. We’ll be here in case you change your mind.”  We are not respected; we’re not feared; and we don’t have anything to back up what our president says other than an ever-growing debt and rapidly falling approval rating.

Relations with Russia aren’t improving. They’re stagnant.  The fact that President Putin refuses to willingly give up Snowden as an act of good will towards the nation shows that relations haven’t changed.  This is the time where if President Obama wants to show our nation, as well as the world, that he has the means to back up his initiative, then he needs to do it! Show them that we mean business when it comes to catching a traitor.  Have a backbone! East Berlin didn’t fall because we asked them to stop being communist; President Reagan told him “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!!”