Posted on 06/02/2014 7:16:09 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
The prisoner exchange which brought back the only known American alive in Taliban custody did not get a ringing endorsement from the men who served with him in Afghanistan. While President Obama celebrated Bowe Bergdahl’s release with Bergdahl’s father in the Rose Garden, other soldiers lifted their voices in outrage over the high cost of the swap and called Bergdahl a deserter. Those protests have grown loud enough to grab the attention of CNN’s Jake Tapper:
The sense of pride expressed by officials of the Obama administration at the release of Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl is not shared by many of those who served with him — veterans and soldiers who call him a deserter whose “selfish act” ended up costing the lives of better men.
“I was pissed off then and I am even more so now with everything going on,” said former Sgt. Matt Vierkant, a member of Bergdahl’s platoon when he went missing on June 30, 2009. “Bowe Bergdahl deserted during a time of war and his fellow Americans lost their lives searching for him.”
Vierkant said Bergdahl needs to not only acknowledge his actions publicly but face a military trial for desertion under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
The Washington Post also reported on the growing controversy and the claims that the US traded five high-profile detainees for a man who may have gone willingly into Taliban custody:
Disappearing from a military post in a war zone without authorization commonly results in one of two criminal charges in the Army: desertion or going absent without leave, or AWOL. Desertion is the more serious one, and usually arises in cases where an individual intends to remain away from the military or to “shirk important duty,” including a combat deployment such as Bergdahl’s.
Javier Ortiz, a former combat medic in the Army, said he is frustrated with Bergdahl’s actions and thinks he should be tried for desertion, even after five years in captivity in Pakistan. Many U.S. troops had misgivings about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan while they were deployed but did not act on them as Bergdahl did, said Ortiz, of Lawton, Okla.
“I had a responsibility while I was there to the guys I was with, and that’s why this hits the hardest,” said Ortiz, who was in Iraq from March 2003 to March 2004 with the 101st Airborne Division. “Regardless of what you learned while being there, we still have a responsibility to the men to our left and right. It’s terrible, what he did.”
After he went missing, the military conducted an extensive search for Bergdahl. The plan was to create a blockade that would prevent his captors from taking him far from Paktika province, especially into Pakistan. The bulk of other operations were halted to focus on finding Bergdahl.
One Afghan special operations commander in eastern Afghanistan remembers being dispatched.
“Along with the American Special Forces, we set up checkpoints everywhere. For 14 days we were outside of our base trying to find him,” he told The Washington Post, speaking on the condition of anonymity because he is a member of a secretive military unit.
But U.S. troops said they were aware of the circumstances of Bergdahl’s disappearance — that he left the base of his own volition — and with that awareness, many grew angry.
The Obama administration seemed caught off guard by the questions about Bergdahl’s disappearance, even though Rolling Stone had raised them two years ago in an article by the recently-deceased Michael Hastings. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel dodged the question yesterday, as did Susan Rice:
A reporter asked Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel Sunday whether Bergdahl had left his post without permission or deserted — and, if so, whether he would be punished. Hagel didn’t answer directly. “Our first priority is assuring his well-being and his health and getting him reunited with his family,” he said. “Other circumstances that may develop and questions, those will be dealt with later.”
The White House appears to have been caught flat-footed about the response of other soldiers to the Bergdahl trade. Perhaps they expected kudos for leaving no man behind. With the strategy to completely withdraw by 2016 in full swing now, they would probably be justified in thinking that leaving Bergdahl behind would get them crucified in 2016 by some of the same people angrily criticizing the trade today.
However, there is a big difference between swapping for a man who’s accused of desertion (and whose disappearance cost at least six soldiers’ lives, and possibly more), and cheering his release in a presidential Rose Garden speech along with his family. That is a return for a hero, not a potential deserter (who, we should stress, has not yet been charged with that crime, let alone convicted). Did no one at the White House bother to check into the details of Bergdahl’s disappearance, or calculate what that might mean politically in this trade? Everyone from Obama on down seems to have been caught flat-footed in a controversy of their own making … again.
CNN noted the controversy in a report this morning, as well as the plan to allow Bergdahl to slowly re-enter American life again. If his fellow soldiers are right, it might be a lot slower than even the Pentagon plans at the moment.
Not all of the questions are about Bergdahl, either:
Separately, some inside the military raised questions about the cost associated with rescuing Bergdahl, who walked off his base and away from his unit five years ago after becoming disillusioned with the war effort.
Most of the immediate concern expressed by military experts, including a former national security adviser to President Obama, centered on the five Taliban prisoners who were released Saturday from the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
“It’s very, very important for the government of Qatar to make sure that these people are kept under control and do not return to the battlefield,” said Gen. James L. Jones, who served as Obama’s national security adviseruntil November 2010. He noted in an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union” that previously released Taliban prisoners had returned to the battlefield.
We’ll see how committed Qatar is to that plan in the days and weeks ahead.
Giving away top terrorists for a deserter, coming on the heels of at least 40 vets dying at the VA so that they could collect bonuses. I hope this cooks Obama’s goose.
After elections bring in a GOP Senate lets impeach this Odumbo.
Wow, I didn't realize that Hastings wrote that article, or if you prefer: the author of the Rolling Stone article was the one that died mysteriously.
The coincidences just keep piling up.
bump
And the troops who died trying to find this traitor
Righting the “wrongs” that the Great Satan has committed against his fellow Muslims, Obama is willing to lose $500M in high tech arms, an Ambassador, multiple operators and the reputation of our fine country. What is his downside? A homosexual, a deserter and some luke-warm press?
Berdahl’s father spoke to his son in fluent Arabic praising Allah. This stinks to high heaven or stinks to the White House.
I would hope these soldiers will speak out even more boldly. Our troops have fought a war and died to protect our country from these thug terrorists. And now we have a president who releases the worst of them in exchange for a deserter. This lawless president must be stopped. But I won’t hold my breath. I mourn for my country.
They had to know. The circumstances were widely known in the military, and anyone knowing about it had to sign an NDA (which is unusual).
I think the White House figured the knee-pad media wouldn't report it. But, since it's gone viral, even the Washington Post and CNN couldn't ignore it.
I was curious if Snopes had addressed it. They haven't touched it (yet), other than to say their current information is "outdated":
http://www.snopes.com/politics/military/bergdahl.asp
The site is run by a couple of leftists. It must really bug them to see this, and are probably burning the midnight oil to figure out how to spin it in favor of Obama.
Spot on I bet the media will have a black out on the VA problem and with this new mistake they will spin it big time.
And everything you mentioned is a badge of honor within the Democrat Party and to Democrat voters. How the morals of the people of this Nation could sink so low as to put a son of a bitch such as this in the White House is a mystery to me. But it is what it is. And if he allows an election in 2016, the voters will put another of his ilk in the White House. To wit: One Hillary Clinton.
Add the death of Andrew Breitbart, and ---whoa!
The Taliban really is in the building!
Bird dog's parents are flown to the white house where we see obammy and bird dog's mom walking arm and arm (as if something had just happened that moochelle would scratch the mom's eyes out over). Also walking out, but unattached, is bird dog's dad. At first glance he looks like he might be one of the duck commanders, but when he speaks in Arabic to his son, we know that beard is more associated with a third world terrorist. Next the white house sends trustworthy Susan Rice to explain that the guy was a hero or something and how fortunate we are to get him back before he dies of semi-natural causes while hanging out with his taliban captor type guys.
I mean, this is a CRAZY story.... that can only get worse for the WH. I really think a 20 something aid came up with this crazy idea to get the war hero back (TNT must have run Wag The Dog the night before).... and Obammy jumped on the idea to get the VA off the news cycle, without getting the facts.
I dunno.
This Hagel is obviously a moron.
I wonder if the administration will give him a bonus on top of his back pay.
Wow that’s a really high bar to measure against.
There’s been SO MANY things.....
I think the White House suddenly decided they had to agree to this to push the VA scandal off the front page. But, I don't think they realized the amount of blow-back, and especially the outrage over the circumstances of his disappearance (and subsequent deaths while looking for him). Either they thought it wouldn't matter (which is idiotic) or they thought it wouldn't be reported by the knee-pad media. But after the information went viral, it can't be ignored.
The DoD made all the participants sign an NDA (which is unusual). Now, some of them are ignoring it. It will be interesting to see if anyone gets prosecuted.
This story is probably what made Carney quit. Imagine watching him try to defend this for the next 6 months....
I heard his father and mother on the radio this morning. It made me want to puke. They are rabid, tree-hugging liberal fanatics in my book. I suspect they are also closet Muslims.
There will be a lot of whistle blowers on this deal...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.