A little Obamafreude on the Bergdahl Debacle "I did the right thing and called for decorum and an investigation before we hang young Mr. Bergdahl. But I can no longer contain the enjoyment I am getting watching the sh*tstorm envelop the Obama team. Not only are these folks the world's worst negotiators (if you don't know who the sucker is at the table...well), but how could they not have at least anticipated that trading terrorists for traitors might ruffle a few feathers."
...
"This cunning plan to wag the dog combined with a stalking horse for emptying Gitmo by declaring the war "ended" crashed and burned into a self-inflicted, own goal."
A Matter of Honor: Why So Many Soldiers Are Angry at the Bergdahl Deal
"And of course, the predictable happened. The military initiated a massive search, and men died. American heroes died. Have their parents had a presidential photo-op like Sergeant Bergdahl’s parents enjoyed? In the moral calculus have we even considered or mentioned the Americans who may have died in the combat operations that led to the capture of the Taliban leadership?"
...
"Let’s state this as plainly as possible: While we may attempt to end our combat operations against the Taliban, the Taliban have made no claim of ending their hostilities against us. We will be under zero obligation to hand over soldiers to an entity in an ongoing belligerent status against the United States."
After Bergdahl disappeared, “IEDs started going off directly under the trucks. They were getting perfect hits every time.” ..."Within days of his disappearance, says [Bergdahl's team leader] Buetow, teams monitoring radio chatter and cell phone communications intercepted an alarming message: The American is in Yahya Khel (a village two miles away). He’s looking for someone who speaks English so he can talk to the Taliban.
...
"This cunning plan to wag the dog combined with a stalking horse for emptying Gitmo by declaring the war "ended" crashed and burned into a self-inflicted, own goal."
A Matter of Honor: Why So Many Soldiers Are Angry at the Bergdahl Deal
"And of course, the predictable happened. The military initiated a massive search, and men died. American heroes died. Have their parents had a presidential photo-op like Sergeant Bergdahl’s parents enjoyed? In the moral calculus have we even considered or mentioned the Americans who may have died in the combat operations that led to the capture of the Taliban leadership?"
...
"Let’s state this as plainly as possible: While we may attempt to end our combat operations against the Taliban, the Taliban have made no claim of ending their hostilities against us. We will be under zero obligation to hand over soldiers to an entity in an ongoing belligerent status against the United States."
After Bergdahl disappeared, “IEDs started going off directly under the trucks. They were getting perfect hits every time.” ..."Within days of his disappearance, says [Bergdahl's team leader] Buetow, teams monitoring radio chatter and cell phone communications intercepted an alarming message: The American is in Yahya Khel (a village two miles away). He’s looking for someone who speaks English so he can talk to the Taliban.
...
"It was “very suspicious,” says Buetow, noting that Bergdahl knew sensitive information about the movement of U.S. trucks, the weaponry on those trucks, and how soldiers would react to attacks.
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, defending against critics of the prisoner swap, said Bergdahl's "safety and health were both in jeopardy" at the time of his rescue. ..."Hagel, visiting troops in Afghanistan, was met with silence when he told a group of them in a Bagram Air Field hangar: "This is a happy day. We got one of our own back." It was unclear whether the absence of cheers and applause came from a reluctance to display emotion in front of the Pentagon chief or from any doubts among the troops about Bergdahl."
"If you trust the president—if you buy his assurances about the U.S. capacity to monitor the terrorists and his resolve to take swift action—you're likely to give him the benefit of the doubt on the swap. In your mind's eye, you see a drone emblazoned with the names of five nasty Afghans.
"If you don't trust much of what Obama says or does, you're likely to hate this deal because it depends so heavily on the president's judgment."
