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HOUSTON — Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl is scheduled to appear Thursday at a military preliminary hearing that could provide the first revealing glimpse into his capture six years ago by Afghan Taliban forces and his return to the United States in a controversial prisoner swap that linked his fate with President Barack Obama's legacy. Bergdahl, 29, of Hailey, Idaho, was charged with desertion and "misbehavior before the enemy" after disappearing from his post in eastern Afghanistan. If Bergdahl's case goes to court-martial and he is convicted of the more serious misbehavior charge, he faces a potential life sentence. At Thursday's...

Five senior Taliban leaders released last year from the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in exchange for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl could move freely around the world next week as their one-year travel ban expires. He recently was charged with desertion. U.S. officials have discussed with the Qataris the possibility of extending the travel ban after it expires on June 1. But so far, the White House has not publicly announced any new agreement with Qatar, meaning the five could leave the tiny nation on the Arabian Peninsula at the end of the month. The State Department insists that U.S....

When Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl was traded for five high risk Taliban commanders last summer, his platoon mates quickly hit the airwaves to expose him as a deserter. They said it was known he was a deserter for years. The Obama administration, however, gave the appearance to the American people that officials were unaware of the circumstances surrounding his capture. In fact, last year State Department Deputy Spokeswoman Marie Harf said allegations Bergdahl deserted were simply "rumors." Not only did President Obama hold a Rose Garden ceremony to honor Bergdahl, but administration officials Jay Carney and Susan Rice said he...

Contrary to some media speculation, top military leadership knew as early as late 2009 that Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl had deserted. During an open-book question and answer session in Afghanistan, members of Bergdahl’s platoon directly asked then-Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Admiral Mike Mullen whether he was aware of Bergdahl’s desertion. Mullen “told me that he knew of the circumstances surrounding his walking off,” former Sgt. Matt Vierkant, one of the platoon members, told Fox News, and “that they were developing leads and following leads, trying to do everything they could to get him back.” Evan Buetow and Cody Full,...

Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl walked away from his base in Afghanistan June 30, 2009, and by December of that same year, the president's principal military adviser, then-Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Admiral Mike Mullen, knew those details, according to three of Bergdahl's platoon mates who spoke to Fox News. "I asked him (Mullen) if he knew about Bergdahl and that he deserted and he (Mullen) told me that he knew of the circumstances surrounding his walking off," former Sgt. Matt Vierkant told Fox,"(and) that they were developing leads and following leads, trying to do everything they could to get him...

A 2009 NCIS investigation into Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl’s activities while in Afghanistan reveal that there is clear evidence Bergdahl was “going over to the other side with a deliberate plan,” Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer said on Fox News' "The O'Reilly Factor" Monday night. Shaffer, a former military intelligence officer and Fox News contributor, said two senior sources told him that the Naval Criminal Investigative Service investigation included a forensic review of his computer, which show Bergdahl’s apparent intent to travel to Uzbekistan. “He was going to go off to Uzbekistan,” Shaffer told Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly. “He had made contact...

President Barack Obama has certainly staked a lot on the fate of likely deserter Bowe Bergdahl. He sacrificed the lives of several of our men in uniform in a vain attempt to rescue him, then traded five Taliban terrorists from Guantanamo Bay for his release. Now, it appears the president is even willing to obstruct justice for Bergdahl. Recent reports indicate that senior Department of Defense officials are doing their best to poison the well for those prosecuting Bergdahl.

The sudden announcement of the charges Bergdahl faces, reinvigorated the sometimes fierce political debate that took place last year after the alleged deserter was secretly traded for five high-level Taliban prisoners from the military detention center at the Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, Marine base. Equally controversial was a legal watchdog group’s announcement that it had already filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) in order to have a federal judge force the Obama-appointed commanders to release records regarding the U.S. Army’s review of the disappearance of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl while he was assigned...

It could be possible to read the final tweet, from CNN's Barbara Starr, as implying that the two defense officials are only confirming for her why Bergdahl “says” he left base. But the three tweets from CNN’s National Security desk reference two defense officials who say Bergdahl walked off his post to “report what he believed to be problems with ‘order and discipline’ in his unit.” The direct quote from the “second official” reinforces the impression that he and his colleague are speaking to Starr on background, and that rather than merely reporting what Bergdahl “says,” they are endorsing a...

Nope. Bergdahl was planning to report what he believed to be problems with “order and discipline” in his unit, a senior Defense official tells CNN. A second official says Bergdahl had “concerns about leadership issues at his base.”… Both officials declined to be identified because of the legal proceedings against Berghahl, but both have direct knowledge of the information outlined in the report. “This was a kid who had leadership concerns on his mind,” the second official said. “He wasn’t fed up, he wasn’t planning to desert.”… Both officials said Bergdahl believed he could make it to the next base...

Yep, the same Marie Harf who thinks ISIS won’t attack us if we give them jobs is at it again. But this time she is denigrating the reputations of American soldiers.

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl says he was tortured in the five years he was held captive by the Taliban, beaten with a copper cable as he spent months blindfolded and chained spread-eagle to a bed. The 28-year-old soldier described his harsh treatment in Afghanistan in a letter released Thursday by his defense lawyer.

Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, the U.S. soldier who was recovered in Afghanistan last spring after five years in captivity, faces charges of desertion and misbehavior before the enemy, according to his lawyer.

Problematic, in a very big way even if the offer was made.Qatar’s ties to Al Qaeda and ISIS aren’t news. They’ve effectively served as intermediaries in everything from ransom exchanges for hostages to Taliban negotiations. But actually trying to secure terrorist swaps for prisoners on their own behalf would have been a new frontier. Before he was released from a U.S. maximum-security prison last week, a confessed al Qaeda sleeper agent was offered up in a potential prisoner swap that would have freed two Americans held abroad.According to two individuals with direct knowledge of the case, the proposition was...

White House Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes was dealt two major political blows, each on the same day. On one front, Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer (Ret.) appeared on the O’Reilly Factor and broke some shocking news about the case of Bowe Bergdahl. On another front, legal watchdog Judicial Watch has reported that it has obtained documents as a result of its FOIA lawsuit against the State Department. Last April, Rhodes was revealed as the author of the infamous ‘smoking gun’ Benghazi email that instructed then U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice to claim a demonstration took place in Benghazi before the...

Whatever happened to the investigation of Bowe Bergdahl and his capture by the Taliban? Last year, the Obama administration traded five high-ranking Taliban commanders to get Bergdahl back, but men in his former unit immediately objected to the trade, accusing Bergdahl of having deserted before his capture. Months later, there still has been no final determination of Bergdahl’s status — at least none made public. Last night, retired Lt. Col. Tony Schaffer told Bill O’Reilly that the Army has charged Bergdahl with desertion, but that the White House — and specifically Ben Rhodes, the national-security adviser/speechwriter to Barack Obama —...

Vid at link

On Monday’s broadcast of “The O’Reilly Factor” on the Fox News Channel, retired Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer of the London Center for Policy Research revealed to host Bill O’Reilly that sources tell him U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl will face charges for desertion. Bergdahl was held captive by the Taliban-aligned Haqqani network in Afghanistan from June 2009 until his release in May 2014, which was part of a prisoner exchange for five Taliban members who were being held at the detention center at Guantanamo Bay.

Ben Rhodes looking to suppress information per analyst.