Were The New York Times or Daniel Ellsberg tried for treason? In my experience, treason has been narrowly construed, or Jane Fonda would have been shot. We are a mighty tolerant country, and afford citizens a very broad latitude to engage in civil disobedience, investigative reporting, and political theater. The offense has to be pretty severe to be equated with treason, and even espionage is a separate, though related, category......
Once separating out a lot of activity which is not strictly treasonous, actually making war upon the United States government, as did Tim MacVeigh, pretty well qualifies, if anyone wanted to charge him. From that standpoint, as long as the United States remains a liberal democracy, with well- protected rights of speech, assembly, and petition, there is no such thing as "good treason"........ |
