What this week’s debate did not come any closer to resolving is the status of Mr Snowden. The justice department demands that he return to face criminal charges. The implicit position of the Obama administration, as well as most members of Congress, is that Mr Snowden did the country an important service and that he should pay for it by going to prison for the rest of his life.

Mr Snowden quite reasonably refuses to return on these terms. He says he is willing to stand trial and face the consequences, but wants to be able to present a public interest defence — impossible under an Espionage Act prosecution.

Rather than leaving Mr Snowden’s status as a problem for his successor, Mr Obama should make resolving his case part of his presidential legacy as well. His justice department could offer Mr Snowden a plea bargain, under which he would not serve prison time in exchange for his co-operation. Or the government could charge Mr Snowden under the standard laws covering disclosures of classified information by government officials. This would allow him to return from his Moscow purgatory and make his whistleblower defence.