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June 01, 2014
Obama Broke U.S. Law, Did Not Inform Congress Before Transferring Prisoners Off Gitmo In Bergdahl Trade
Blatant distraction from Benghazi, and VA scandal.
BareNakedIslam blog.....reminds readers:
Don’t forget, Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl was NOT captured on the battlefield. He left the U.S. base camp in Afghanistan in 2009 of his own free will and turned up with the Taliban a short time later.
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Bergdahl release arrangement could threaten the safety of Americans, Republicans say
Amid jubilation Saturday over the release of U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl from captivity by the Taliban, senior Republicans on Capitol Hill said they were troubled by the means by which it was accomplished, which was a deal to release five Afghan detainees from the military prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
Top Republicans on the Senate and House armed services committees went so far as to accuse President Obama of having broken the law, which requires the administration to notify Congress before any transfers from Guantanamo are carried out.
“Trading five senior Taliban leaders from detention in Guantanamo Bay for Bergdahl’s release may have consequences for the rest of our forces and all Americans. Our terrorist adversaries now have a strong incentive to capture Americans. That incentive will put our forces in Afghanistan and around the world at even greater risk,” House Armed Services Committee Chairman Howard P. McKeon (R-Calif.) and the ranking Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, James M. Inhofe (Okla.), said in a joint statement.
Lawmakers were not notified of the Guantanamo detainees’ transfer until after it occurred.
The law requires the defense secretary to notify relevant congressional committees at least 30 days before making any transfers of prisoners, to explain the reason and to provide assurances that those released would not be in a position to reengage in activities that could threaten the United States or its interests.
Before the current law was enacted at the end of last year, the conditions were even more stringent. However, the administration and some Democrats had pressed for them to be loosened, in part to give them more flexibility to negotiate for Bergdahl’s release.
A senior administration official, agreeing to speak on the condition of anonymity to explain the timing of the congressional notification, acknowledged that the law was not followed. When he signed the law last year, Obama issued a signing statement contending that the notification requirement was an unconstitutional infringement on his powers as commander in chief and that he therefore could override it.
“Due to a near-term opportunity to save Sergeant Bergdahl’s life, we moved as quickly as possible,” the official said. “The administration determined that given these unique and exigent circumstances, such a transfer should go forward notwithstanding the notice requirement.”
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said that the detainees transferred from Guantanamo to Qatar, where they are to stay for at least a year, “are hardened terrorists who have the blood of Americans and countless Afghans on their hands. I am eager to learn what precise steps are being taken to ensure that these vicious and violent Taliban extremists never return to the fight against the United States and our partners or engage in any activities that can threaten the prospects for peace and security in Afghanistan.”
Beyond this individual instance, some raised the larger question of whether it is sound policy for the United States to have, in the words of House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-Mich.), “negotiated with terrorists.”
Rogers said the action marked a “fundamental shift in U.S. policy.”
Wild Thing's comment.............
I agree with my friend that has the Bare Naked Islam blog as I noted at the top of this post.
I am also glad that some Republican leaders are making comments about what Obama did was illegal.
Bergdahl’s dad twitter is @bobbergdahl
He is a terrorist sympathizer. And “ameen” is seen in his timeline, which is a word included in muslim prayer.
Posted by Wild Thing at June 1, 2014 12:55 AM
Comments
And it appears that Bergdahl probably deserted.
Posted by: TomR,armed in Texas at June 1, 2014 01:56 PM
Caesar does what CAESAR wants too, eh Caligula & Nero? Remember during the Vietnam war a sailor FELL off his ship and was picked up by the North Vietnamese? When they heard what he did they RELEASED him? Operation Gilligan? WE take back the US Senate in less than 155 days...
Posted by: darthcrUSAderworldtour07 at June 1, 2014 06:36 PM
