Showing posts with label Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. Show all posts

Saturday, April 4, 2015

'Benghazi, Bergdahl, And The Bomb'

By Daniel Halper, Apr. 3, 2015, WeeklyStandard.com

President Obama strode to the lectern in the Rose Garden Thursday to announce a “historic” agreement between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran. The preliminary deal made in Lausanne, Switzerland, the president said, “cuts off every pathway Iran could take to develop a nuclear weapon.” I hope he’s right.

But I’m not counting on it. The president has a terrible record of initial public pronouncements on national security. He has a habit of confidently stating things that turn out not to be true. Three times in the last four years he has appeared in the Rose Garden and made assertions that were later proven to be false. He and his national security team have again and again described a world that does not correspond to reality. No reason to assume these concessions to Iran will be any different.


Read the full story:  www.weeklystandard.com

Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Tuesday, March 31, 2015

‘You’re Desperately Wrong on This!’ O’Reilly, Krauthammer Clash Over Bergdahl

Mar. 30, 2015




Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Sunday, March 29, 2015

Comrade al-Bergdahl Being 'Swiftboated'

By Ivan the Stakhanovets, Mar. 27, 2015, ThePeoplescube.com


Comrades, injustice is afoot! Comrade Bowe al-Bergdhal (who served the Taliban honorably for five years) faces imprisonment in facilities unfit for soldiers of the Religion of Peace.

Comrade al-Bergdhal faces imprisonment not in the proper luxury accommodations of his peers in Guantanamo, but Kansas. American military captured him from his duty station in Afghanistan, and released five Taliban senior leaders in celebration.


Read the full story:  www.thepeoplescube.com

Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Friday, March 27, 2015

Military: Bergdahl May Face Life In Prison If Convicted

By Allen G. Breed and Lolita C. Balor, Mar. 25, 2015, ABCNews.go.com

Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who abandoned his post in Afghanistan and was held captive for five years by the Taliban, was charged Wednesday by the U.S. military with desertion and misbehavior before the enemy and could get life in prison if convicted.

The charges are the latest development in a long and bitter debate over Bergdahl's case. They also underscore the military and political ramifications of his decision on June 30, 2009, to leave his post after expressing misgivings about the U.S. military's role, as well as his own, in the Afghanistan war.

Bergdahl, 28, was captured by the Taliban and held by members of the Haqqani network, an insurgent group tied to the Taliban that operates both in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Last May 31, Bergdahl was handed over to U.S. special forces in Afghanistan as part of an exchange for five Taliban commanders who were imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.


Read the full story:  www.abcnews.go.com

Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Thursday, March 26, 2015

Gen. Hayden: Bergdahl Charges Reinforce Military Conduct Standards

By Todd Beamon, 25 Mar. 2015, Newsmax.com

The Army's decision Wednesday to charge Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl with desertion and misbehavior over his capture by the Taliban "reinforces the reality and the belief that the standards of behavior that we expect of our military members are still the standards we expect," retired Air Force Gen. Michael Hayden tells Newsmax.

"You've got tens of thousands of other young men and women who go there and don't do what he did," said Hayden, who directed both the CIA and the National Security Agency.

"You can think on a human level about a troubled young man and all of those thoughts — but it's a betrayal of those people who went there and did their duty if this kind of action did not have consequences."

Former House Intelligence Chairman Pete Hoekstra said the charges were "all about maintaining the discipline, the morale and the integrity of the forces."

"You're always disappointed that a U.S. military person would engage in those activities — and you're glad that the process is working," Hoekstra told Newsmax. "A lot of people have been frustrated that it has taken so long, but the process appears to be working."

Read the full story:  www.newsmax.com


Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Freed Al Qaeda Agent Was Part Of Proposed Swap For Jailed Americans

Shane Harris and James Kirchick, Jan. 25, 2015, Daily Beast

The proposed swap involving the al Qaeda agent, Ali Saleh Al-Marri, raises troubling questions about whether the Bergdahl trade opened a kind of Pandora’s box, signaling to foreign governments that they can pressure the United States to make concessions on terrorism by trading American prisoners abroad for dangerous extremists held in the United States.

Read more: www.thedailybeast.com


Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Thursday, December 4, 2014

Answers Needed On Bergdahl Ransom Payment

Investor's Business Daily, Dec. 2, 2014

It has now been over six months since Bergdahl's May 14 release in exchange for five top Taliban commanders and a month since the administration's electoral thumping. Yet the report has still not been made public.

It presumably contains a conclusion on whether Bergdahl officially deserted and recommended punishment for any offense. It might also deal with reports of a botched cash ransom attempt.

Read more: news.investors.com


Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Sunday, October 12, 2014

Army Refuses To Release Findings Of Bergdahl Investigation

Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl after the hostage exchange
Credit:  NBC News
By Thomas Rose, Oct. 12, 2014, Breitbart.com

According to a report in the San Antonio News Express the US Army has completed but is refusing to release its investigation into the suspected desertion of Army PFC Bowe Bergdahl who walked off his base in Afghanistan in 2009. He subsequently fell into the hands of Taliban forces who held him captive for five years. His release, which was orchestrated and executed by the Obama Administration without the consent of Congress, swapped Bergdahl for the five most senior Taliban commanders held in captivity has arguably become the most controversial prisoner exchange in the history of the country.

Bergdahl, who was released in May of this year, is currently stationed at Fort Sam Houston U.S. Army North in San Antonio, TX. The army report was authored by Brigadier General Kenneth Dahl and, according to a US army spokesman, is now being “reviewed by commanders." There are no plans, said Army Spokesman Wayne Hall, to make public the findings of the investigation.

Fox News is reporting however that the findings will be released to the public, but onlyafter the November 4 midterm elections.

The Bergdahl-Taliban exchange unleashed a firestorm of criticism that continues to this day. Never before had the United States military knowingly released a senior commander of an active enemy force in war time. Even senior Defense Department officials were forced to concede that the “Taliban Five," as they subsequently became known, were all expected to resume direct command of enemy forces at war with the United States.


Read the full story:  www.breitbart.com

Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Sunday, August 24, 2014

NBC, ABC Ignore Obama WH Broke Law With Bergdahl Exchange; CBS Gives It 24 Seconds

By Kyle Drennen, Aug. 22, 2014, Newsbusters.org



Read the full story:  www.newsbusters.org

Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook
Feds: Obama Broke Law With Bergdahl Swap

Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl hostage exchange
Source:  www.usatoday.com / AP 
By Joel Gehrke, Aug. 21, 2014, Nationalreview.com

President Obama violated a “clear and unambiguous” law when he released five Guantanamo Bay detainees in exchange for Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl, the Government Accountability Office reported Thursday.

“[The Department of Defense] violated section 8111 because it did not notify the relevant congressional committees at least 30 days in advance of the transfer,” the GAO report said. “In addition, because DOD used appropriated funds to carry out the transfer when no money was available for that purpose, DOD violated the Antideficiency Act. The Antideficiency Act prohibits federal agencies from incurring obligations exceeding an amount available in an appropriation.”

The GAO rejected the idea that the action was legal and sidestepped the Obama team’s suggestion that the law is unconstitutional.

“It is not our role or our practice to determine the constitutionality of duly enacted statutes,” the report says. “In our view, where legislation has been passed by Congress and signed by the President, thereby satisfying the bicameralism and presentment requirements in the Constitution, that legislation is entitled to a heavy presumption in favor of constitutionality.”



Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Sunday, August 17, 2014

Bergdahl Investigation In Final Stage

By Dan Lamothe, Aug. 15, 2014, Washingtonpost.com

The Army’s investigation into the 2009 disappearance of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl has entered the final stage, Army officials said Friday, but they cautioned that it will take at least three more weeks for a final draft to be completed and even longer for it to be presented to top Army leaders.

The investigating officer, Army Maj. Gen. Kenneth Dahl, questioned Bergdahl last week over two days, said his civilian lawyer, Eugene R. Fidell. Dahl is working to establish what happened to the soldier who went missing from his patrol base in Afghanistan’s Paktika province on June 30, 2009, and was imprisoned by militants for five years, some of that time in a locked cage. He was recovered by the United States on May 31 in a controversial exchange for five Taliban detainees held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Dahl is in the process of completing his draft report, but “it is possible that he will have to follow up on outstanding issues,” said Wayne Hall, an Army spokesman. The general’s report will undergo a separate legal review before it is presented to top Army officials, and it isn’t clear how long that could take.

The results of the investigation could significantly affect Bergdahl’s future. At stake: An Army determination of whether it should bring criminal charges against him for deserting his post or going absent without leave, both of which are illegal under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Some fellow soldiers in his platoon have insisted that is the case, but Bergdahl’s mental status at the time is also likely to be examined and could be a factor in any determination.


Read the full story:  www.washingtonpost.com

Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Simon & Schuster Imprint Rejected Book About Bergdahl Because It Might Hurt Obama 

By Allahpundit, Aug. 13, 2014, Hotair.com

Via the Daily Caller, you would think an eyewitness account of the disappearance of the last American POW in Afghanistan would be easy money for a publisher.

But sometimes there are higher considerations.

While the U.S. Army weighs whether to bring charges against Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who was freed earlier this year after spending nearly five years as a Taliban captive in Afghanistan, six of his former platoon mates are shopping proposals for a book and movie that would render their own harsh verdicts… 
“I’m not sure we can publish this book without the Right using it to their ends,” Sarah Durand, a senior editor at Atria Books, a division of Simon & Schuster, wrote in an email to one of the soldiers’ agents. 
“[T]he Conservatives are all over Bergdahl and using it against Obama,” Durand wrote, “and my concern is that this book will have to become a kind of ‘Swift Boat Veterans for Truth’” — a reference to the group behind a controversial book that raised questions about John Kerry’s Vietnam War record in the midst of his 2004 presidential campaign. (Durand did not respond to requests for comment. “We do not comment about our editorial process,” said Paul Olsewski, vice president and director of publicity at Atria.)
That “Swift Boat” talking point comes straight from the White House itself. Imagine how upset Durand will be when she finds out Obama can’t be swiftboated because — sob — he can’t run again.

Read the full story:  www.hotair.com

Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Bergdahl to Face Interrogation at Ft. Sam This Week

By Woai.com, Aug. 4, 2014

Six weeks after arriving at Ft. Sam Houston for 'reintegration' following his five years as a POW of the Taliban in Afghanistan, Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl this week will be grilled by an Army General who is investigating the circumstances that led to his capture, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.

Bergdahl, 28, was captured by the Taliban while stationed at a forward operating post in Afghanistan. After five years, he was traded for five high ranking Taliban captives and was released May 31st. He arrived in San Antonio June 13.

Eugene Fidell, Bergdahl's attorney, tells Newsradio 1200 WOAI's Michael Board that his client will be questioned by Maj. Gen. Kenneth Dahl, who has been appointed to conduct the inquiry into the case, at Ft. Sam Houston on Wednesday.

"He is looking forward to having this all over and done with, and ready to get on with the latest chapter of his life," Fidell says.

Read the full story:  www.woai.com


Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Monday, July 14, 2014

Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl
By David S. Cloud, Jul. 14, 2014, Latimes.com

Six weeks after Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl was freed from Taliban captivity, he has completed treatment at a military hospital in Texas and is being returned to active duty, Army officials said Monday.

In a brief statement, officials said Bergdahl had “completed the final phase of the reintegration process” and would “now return to regular duty” at Ft. Sam Houston in San Antonio, the same base where he has been receiving medical treatment and counseling.

But Bergdahl’s future remains in limbo until the Army completes an investigation into his disappearance in eastern Afghanistan in June 2009, when he was taken captive after apparently leaving his post without permission.

He is expected to be interviewed soon by Brig Gen. Kenneth Dahl, who was appointed last month to lead the investigation.

Berghdahl will work at headquarters of U.S. Army North, a command that oversees domestic defense.

Bergdahl, who was promoted to sergeant during his time as a captive, will live in noncommissioned officer quarters and work with other soldiers “who are providing leadership and guidance,” according to Donald E. Manuszewski, a spokesman for U.S. Army North.

When off duty, Bergdahl will be free to leave the base unescorted and go where he wants, according to an Army official. The official spoke anonymously because he was not authorized to discuss details of Bergdahl’s treatment.

Bergdahl, 28, was in good physical condition when he was released by the Taliban May 31 after nearly five years as a prisoner of war, but he has struggled with psychological issues, according to military officials.


Read the full story:  www.latimes.com

Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook
Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl
By Dominic Di-Natale, Jul. 14, 2014, Foxnews.com

Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl could have a tax-free $350,000 dropped into his bank account if the current investigation into his disappearance from his base in Afghanistan was not desertion, and if he is deemed to have been a prisoner of war for the five years he was held by Islamic militants, Fox News has learned.

The 28-year-old soldier, for whom the U.S. traded five senior Taliban operatives held at Guantanamo Bay, was set to return to active duty Monday after spending six weeks in medical rehab at Fort Sam Houston, in San Antonio.

“Essentially he’ll be working a desk job,” Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren told reporters at the Pentagon Monday.

"They’re pulling his clearance so I’m not sure what he’s supposed to do.”
- Army official speaking under condition of anonymity
Bergdahl is due approximately $200,000 in back pay for the time he was in Taliban hands. He would be eligible for another $150,000 if an ongoing probe determines he was a prisoner of war. Both sums could be tax free for Bergdahl, who was promoted from private first class to sergeant during the time he was held.

Bergdahl was moved to the U.S. Army North command on Saturday, shifting from the U.S. Army South command, which had overseen his arrival in the U.S. and reintegration. Under Army North, he will return to work and live in standard military barracks. He is being assigned to the protocol office, which assists soldiers in military procedures and etiquette.

“That’s the worst place to put him. They’re pulling his clearance so I’m not sure what he’s supposed to do,” said one Army official, speaking on the condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to publicly discuss the sergeant’s case.

Bergdahl is now able to leave the base and is escorted by his care team when he does. He recently visited a shopping mall to buy items for his computer and the group was seen at a local restaurant, say people with knowledge of his movements.


Read the full story:  www.foxnews.com

Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Thursday, July 10, 2014

By Foxnews.com, Jul. 9, 2014

The Middle East Research Institute (MEMRI) has identified a photo tweeted out by the Taliban that shows Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl posing with a senior member of the Haqqani network in Afghanistan.

MEMRI, a think tank, said the Twitter account @khorasan3, which is associated with the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, showed an undated photo Wednesday of an apparently happy Bergdahl posing with Taliban Commander Badruddin Haqqani.


Read the full story:  www.foxnews.com

Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Thursday, July 3, 2014


By Martin Savidge, Jul. 2, 2014, CNN

(CNN) -- Bowe Bergdahl, the U.S. soldier held captive for five years by militants before his release a month ago, has ventured several times off an Army base in Texas as part of the effort to get him used to everyday life in America, a military spokeswoman said.

His release on May 31 in exchange for five Taliban being held by the U.S. military has rankled some, including former members of his unit, who said he was a deserter who endangered colleagues searching for him. Yet while investigating circumstances surrounding his departure, the military has also said it's focused on making sure Bergdahl gets better mentally and physically, so he can gradually readjust to normal life.

Since being freed, Bergdahl has been carefully monitored at a military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany, and his home since June 13, Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston.

He recently transitioned from inpatient care at Brooke Army Medical Center in Texas to outpatient care, the Army said on June 22.

Still, Bergdahl has hardly left the care of military health professionals.

Members of his reintegration team escort him whenever he leaves base and interacts with the public, the Army spokeswoman said. His stops have included a library, a supermarket and several stores of his choosing.

Bergdahl has also eaten at fast-food and sit-down restaurants. The Army sergeant is encouraged to pick the places, but because he's not from San Antonio, he is offered some advice.

"Sometimes they sit at the table with him," the Army spokeswoman said of those on Bergdahl's reintegration team who accompany him. "... Other times, they hang in the background."


Read the full story:  www.cnn.com

Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Monday, June 23, 2014

By Vipp Jaswal, Jun. 22, 2014, Radio.foxnews.com

Larry Elder shares his bold and fearless style with Vipp. He discusses the Iraq crisis, US foreign policy (or the lack thereof), Bowe Bergdahl, Obama’s legacy, his controversial opinion on the Donald Sterling issue, the growing situation of fatherless America and most importantly, his missing mustache!

Larry makes for a great guest. Listen here:  www.radio.foxnews.com


Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl
By Thomas Gibbons-Neff, Jun. 18, 2014, Washingtonpost.com

An Army veteran who served alongside Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl in Afghanistan said Wednesday that the long-captive soldier was deeply frustrated with the mission and had lodged false allegations that their unit had carried out atrocities.

Bergdahl “didn’t understand why we were doing more humanitarian aid drops, setting up clinics, and helping the populous instead of hunting the Taliban,” former Spec. Cody Full told lawmakers during a hearing on the exchange of Bergdahl for five Taliban detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. “He wanted to hunt and kill.”

The Taliban released Bergdahl to U.S. Special Operations forces May 31 after he had spent nearly five years in captivity. Bergdahl, the last American service member to be held captive in Afghanistan, went missing from his remote outpost in June 2009 and was seized shortly thereafter.

In exchange for his release, the Taliban officials were transferred to Qatar, where they will be held for a year before being sent back to Afghanistan.

Both the terms of the prisoner swap and the Obama administration’s failure to notify Congress in advance have been the subject of persistent criticism. Bergdahl has also been criticized by some former members of his unit who believe he sought to desert the Army.

Read the full story:  www.washingtonpost.com

Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook

Monday, June 16, 2014

Robert Bergdahl
By Eric Owens, Jun. 14, 2014, Dailycaller.com

The father of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl creepily harassed a pair of twin sisters in Hailey, Idaho, for several months, according to police reports obtained by the Daily Mail.

In 2011, long before Robert “Bob” Bergdahl began learning Pashto and Arabic or tweeted a Taliban spokesman, the bizarro bearded dad stalked Lacey and Allie Hillman, police documents say. He allegedly tried to steal a peek at one of the twins in the shower and even stole a little gnome from their garden.

For anyone who has a daughter – or is a daughter – the allegations are frightening.

The Hillman sisters told police that Bergdahl, a UPS deliveryman, harassed them for over four months. Bergdahl’s son was about two years into his Taliban captivity during this period. The elder Bergdahl was – and remains – married to Jani Bergdahl, the mother of Bowe Bergdahl.

The twins said Bergdahl, 51, drove by their residence – apparently they lived together – several times each day.

On one occasion, the sisters claimed, he left an angry note charging that one of the then-twentysomething sisters was “two-timing” him.

Later, he allegedly left a note saying, “I am sorry for whatever I did.”

A few weeks later, the sisters told police, Bergdahl confronted Allie Hillman at her front door after her boyfriend had left her house. She told police Bergdahl knocked on the door and said, while laughing, “What are you two-timing me, bitch?” according to the Mail.

Another time, Bergdahl allegedly sneaked around the outside of the home for a few hours and approached the house as Lacey Hillman was taking a shower.

Lacey told local cops that she heard a noise and stepped out of the shower wearing just a towel. She walked to a glass door. There, she told police, she saw a “shadowed person.” It was Bergdahl, she said. He tried to get her to come closer to the door.

Read the full story:  www.dailycaller.com


Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook