How long does it take to say “no?”

In the case of White House officials charged with responding to the “Pardon Edward Snowden” petition on whitehouse.gov, the answer is longer than nine months.

The petition, which seeks a full pardon for the exiled whistle-blower, crossed the 100,000-signature threshold supposedly earning it an official response June 24.

The Obama administration’s disinclination toward pardoning the former government contractor who exposed massive phone and Internet surveillance programs is already clear.

“Mr. Snowden has been accused of leaking classified information, and he faces felony charges," White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said Dec. 16. "He should be returned to the United States as soon as possible, where he will be accorded full due process in our system."

It’s unclear why officials did not post a similar response to the petition site.

Caitlin Hayden, a spokeswoman for the White House's National Security Council, tells U.S. News the petition will ultimately receive a response.

“Yes, same answer,” Hayden said in an email, referring to her Nov. 25 assurance that “we'll be responding.” That means the White House does not plan to invoke a special exception to avoid answering the plea.

“Response times vary,” Hayden said Aug. 23, explaining the then-two-month delay.

[RELATED: Snowden Says 'Many Other' Spy Programs Remain Secret]



Some U.S. officials, including NSA Deputy Director Rick Ledgett, have hinted at an openness to dealing with Snowden, who was granted asylum by Russia on Aug. 1, 2013, after a dramatic 39-day stay in Moscow’s international airport.

“There is a strong tradition in American jurisprudence of having discussions with people who have been charged with crimes if it benefits the government,” Ledgett said in a video broadcast Thursday at the TED 2014 conference in Vancouver, Canada. “There’s always room for that kind of discussion.”

Ben Wizner, director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s Speech, Privacy and Technology Project, is representing Snowden in the U.S.

“I have no developments to report,” Wizner tells U.S. News.

Snowden, charged with violating the Espionage Act of 1917 and stealing documents, is willing to consider government offers that do not include time behind bars, Wizner says.

The White House petition-hosting service – called “We the People” – was launched in 2011 by the Obama administration, ostensibly to facilitate the involvement of ordinary citizens in policymaking. To its critics, it's a propaganda tool that allows officials to respond to softball questions or ones that attract maximum positive press – while ignoring more critical demands.

“There are a few ways we can look at this. At the trivial level this petition site is just a gimmick,” says Jeff Jarvis, a professor at the City University of New York’s Graduate School of Journalism. “At the more serious level, the White House with or without the petition has to grapple with the value Edward Snowden brought to the debate and it has to grapple with true protection of whistle-blowers.”

The editorial boards of The New York Times and The Guardian urged clemency for Snowden on Jan. 2 and the whitehouse.gov petition gains new signatures every day.

Jarvis says Snowden may be gaining public sympathy as the debate about surveillance continues.