So Very Transparent

(Political cartoon by Yaakov Kirschen and published 6/21/13 at Dry Bones.  Click on image to enlarge and then hasten back.)

Now this is interesting:  the mainstream media has discovered that portion of the White House web site that allows citizens to petition their government to address issues of concern to them.  What provoked the discovery was the petition which demands Edward Snowden be pardoned for any crime(s) he may have committed while blowing the whistle on the federal government's massive domestic spying.

That petition is located here, and will be up for another 15 days.  It has already passed the threshold of garnering 100,000 signatures and those signatures continue to mount up now that Snowden has been charged with espionage.  If you noodle around on that page you will find the rationale for this web site:

The right to petition your government is guaranteed by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. We the People provides a new way to petition the Obama Administration to take action on a range of important issues facing our country. We created We the People because we want to hear from you. If a petition gets enough support, White House staff will review it, ensure it’s sent to the appropriate policy experts, and issue an official response.

Well, that's the part that the media noticed and they did a little checking, which revealed something we all kind of anticipated.  From the Minneapolis Star-Tribune:

WASHINGTON — A petition asking President Barack Obama to pardon admitted state secret leaker Edward Snowden has passed 100,000 signatures.

The petition posted on Whitehouse.gov calls the former National Security Agency contractor a "national hero." It says he should immediately be pardoned for any crimes in "blowing the whistle" on classified government programs to collect phone records and online data.

White House policy is to respond to any petition that gets 100,000 signatures within 30 days. The Snowden petition crossed the threshold in two weeks.

The White House wouldn't say when its response will come. But it routinely declines to comment on petitions regarding law enforcement matters, including pardon requests. And the ultimate answer is the administration's pursuit of Snowden on espionage charges.   [Emphasis added]

I think we have our answer.