Six service members died looking for him, five of the most dangerous Taliban commanders in U.S. custody were illegally exchanged for his release, $1 million in taxpayer dollars were spent on his retrieval, and the Obama administration insisted he "served with honor and distinction." Yet the entire time, the White House knew that Robert Bergdahl was a traitor who willingly deserted his post in Afghanistan, risking the lives of his fellow service members.
The Army announced Wednesday that Bergdahl was charged with two counts under the Uniform Code of Military Justice: one count of desertion and one count of "misbehavior before the enemy by endangering the safety of a command, unit or place," which if convicted, carry a maximum sentence of life in prison, ABC News reported. Bergdahl was released from Taliban captivity last year after being held as a prisoner of war for five years.
Three days before deserting his post in the eastern Afghanistan province of Paktika on June 30, 2009, Bergdahl emailed his parents to express his disillusionment with the war. He then left a note in his tent saying that he was abandoning his unit to begin a new life with the intentions of renouncing citizenship, Fox News reported.
All of this was known by the White House as it prepared the prisoner swap, noted Bergdahl's former roommate, retired Army Spc. Cody Full.
"The have all the documentation on it," Full said, reported Newsmax. "They knew that he wasn't captured on a battlefield on a patrol. They knew he went out and deserted on his own."
"Deserting is not serving with honor and distinction and it's a spit in the face to every U.S. service member who has served with honor and distinction, who has fulfilled his oath. It's disgusting," Full said, referring to National Security Advisor Susan Rice's declaration that Bergdahl had served his country with "honor and distinction." A number of other service members agreed with Full's assessment, noted CNN.
Despite knowing full well that Bergdahl intentionally deserted and planned on renouncing his citizenship, the White House still sent the military to look for him, an operation which resulted in the death of six service members, reported Time. To top it off, after finding Bergdahl, the Obama administration released five of the most dangerous Taliban captors being held in Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba in exchange for the man who wanted nothing to do with the United States. Bergdahl's return home was a "good day," President Obama said.
Congressional Republicans are now revisiting their dissatisfaction with how the administration handled the case, exchanging five of the Taliban's best for one of the worst U.S. servicemen without first consulting Congress, as required by law. All the while, the White House refuses to negotiate with terrorists when they hold patriotic Americans like journalist James Foley captive, noted Judge Jeanine Pirro.
House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, said in a statement Wednesday that the charges "prove once again that the president's political motivations for closing Guantanamo Bay are causing him to make reckless decisions and will put more American lives at risk," reported Fox News.
Former marine veteran Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., said in a written statement that there "were other options on the table."
"We're aware of those option and frankly, the White House made a big mistake."
The Government Accountability Office previously said the swap was illegal since the Obama administration failed to notify the appropriate congressional committees at least 30 days in advance, adding that a total of $988,400 was spent on the transfer. But the White House reportedly chose to ignore the law because it believed that notifying Congress could compromise the transfer, a decision Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, called "completely disingenuous," according to Stars and Stripes.
"The president's decision is part of a disturbing pattern where he unilaterally decides that he does not have to comply with provisions of laws with which he disagrees," she said in a statement after the transfer.
Rep. Randy Forbes, R-Va, who sits on the House Armed Services Committee, said Wednesday that the five Taliban prisoners who were exchanged for Bergdahl are likely to return to fighting against U.S. forces.
"I find it unconscionable that this administration was willing to release five sworn enemies of this country and potentially place more American lives at risk when these terrorists inevitably resume their war against the United States," Forbes said in a statement, Stars and Stripes reported. "That more American military personnel will likely be in jeopardy because of this prisoner exchange is simply a tragedy."
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., holds the belief that the swap was a politically calculated move to empty the Guantanamo Bay detention facility in Cuba.
"No military member, up to and including a Medal of Honor recipient, should expect our country to release hardened terrorists to secure their release," Graham said. "There is a general understanding that the mission and national interest come ahead of any individual."
The Obama administration defended its prisoner swap decision Wednesday night on Fox News' "The Kelly File."
"Was it worth it? Absolutely," State Department Spokeswoman Jen Psaki said as she denied the swap was related to Guantanamo Bay. "We have a commitment to our men and women serving in our military, defending our national security everyday that we're going to do everything we can to bring them home if we can and that's what we did in this case."
She added, "We look at Sgt. Bergdahl as someone who served his country as many men and women have."
