Posted on 06/03/2014 4:32:26 PM PDT by don-o
WASHINGTON — On Saturday, President Obama stood with the parents of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl in the White House Rose Garden — a voluntary media event — to announce the deal that exchanged five Taliban detainees for Bergdahl’s release.
Days later, that feel-good event stands in contrast to the deal’s reception, with reports from soldiers he served with that Bergdahl may have been a deserter, and lawmakers demanding to know why the administration did not notify Congress of the deal in advance.
Tommy Vietor, one of Obama’s former top aides, said Tuesday the goal of Saturday’s event was to get in front of the story and take a moment to reflect on Bergdahl’s years in Taliban custody before the issue could be politicized.
“What they were trying to do was tell the story before it devolved into partisan attacks,” said Vietor, Obama’s former National Security Council spokesperson. “To tell a story about who Bowe is, what he’s endured, and what his family’s endured.”
Saturday’s White House event with Bergdahl’s family was about as high-profile as events get. Networks broke into programming and the White House got the time to make its case. Reporters traveling with the president said Tuesday that the White House didn’t expect the immediate criticisms of the Bergdahl swap that began before Obama had left the lectern.
Vietor said administration officials expected the heat to come, but he said the degree of the attacks on Bergdahl and his family before they have had a chance to speak was a surprise.
“I’m positive everyone knew that it was all going to come out,” he said. “But what’s the alternative? Are we going to preemptively sentence this kid to rot in in a Taliban jail?”
(Excerpt) Read more at buzzfeed.com ...
Makes one wonder...
Did Obama know ahead of time that the father so closely resembled and talked like the released terrorists? Not a good event.
Obama does not leave traitors behind, just Ambassadors, Navy Seals, and CIA Patriots.
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