Politics & Government

Lindsey Graham: Boycott Russian Olympics for Protecting Snowden

Speaking to the Washington, DC newspaper The Hill on Tuesday, Sen. Lindsey Graham said the United States should consider boycotting next year's Winter Olympics in the Russian resort city of Sochi.

Graham said the U.S. should make the move if Russia grants asylum to Edward Snowden.

Since leaking sensitive data and revealing an extensive domestic surveillance program, Snowden has been in hiding in various countries, including Hong Kong. He applied for asylum in Russia on Tuesday.

"If they grant this guy asylum it's a breach of the rule of law as we know it and is a slap in the face to the United States," Graham told The Hill.

Appearing in Columbia on Monday, Graham called Snowden "a traitor."

The United States boycotted the Summer Olympics in 1980 in Moscow in protest of the then-Soviet Union's occupation and invasion of Afghanistan. Four years later, the Soviets boycotted the olympics in Los Angeles.

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