Travel Ban on 5 Taliban Freed for Bergdahl Will Soon End

Lawmakers warn travel ban on Taliban freed for Bergdahl will soon end

House Republicans are warning that five former Guantánamo Bay detainees exchanged a year ago for Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl will soon have their travel ban lifted and could return to the battlefield. 

Obama ILLEGALLY traded Bergdahl.......

"One year ago, President Obama transferred five senior Taliban terrorists from Guantanamo Bay (GTMO) to Qatar. Unless something changes, those terrorists will be free to return to the fight on Sunday," said Reps. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas), chairman of the Armed Services Committee, and Vicky Hartzler (R-Mo.), chairwoman of the panel's Oversight and Investigation subcommittee, in a statement.

The administration released the five senior Taliban commanders from Guantánamo almost one year ago in exchange for Bergdahl, who was being held captive.
The detainees were sent to Qatar, to be monitored by the government and banned from traveling for a year. The travel restrictions expire on Sunday, one year after the swap was conducted.

"On Sunday, the Administration's flimsy restrictions on these terrorists will expire. This will endanger our troops abroad and our families at home," Thornberry and Hartzler warned.
"Congress and the American people are right to be concerned about the increased risk to our Nation’s safety now that these five dangerous men are no longer securely held at GTMO."
Earlier this year, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said one or more of the detainees had met with members of the al Qaeda-affiliated Haqqani network while they were in Qatar, and that he expected them to return to the fight. 

Barack Obama traded 5 top Taliban  for an Army DESERTER...........

Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee earlier this month wrote a letter to President Obama urging him to work with the Qataris to maintain travel restrictions on the former detainees.

"If, as scheduled, Qatar permits these five former detainees to possess passports and travel to Afghanistan and Pakistan when the [memorandum of understanding] expires on June 1, they will be at liberty to play an even more direct role in attacks against the men and women of our military," the May 13 letter said.

The administration is reportedly negotiating with Qatar to extend the travel restrictions, but on Wednesday, the White House said it had no changes to announce.

The Obama administration defends Bergdahl, the DESERTER.....


The Obama administration has failed the country nearly at every turn.

Barack Obama Hides Behind Signing Statements to Justify #Bergdahl / Taliban Swap

So, it turns out that the Obama administration was legally required to at least notify Congress before it actually traded Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl for five Taliban terrorist commanders*: 

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. 

And remember all that nonsense that the Democrats used to spout off about how awful signing statements were? Yeah, you already knew that it was nonsense: but watch, and marvel, as the Left continues to studiously ignore their past rhetoric on the subject. Because that all was apparently just pillow talk, baby: 

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. 

Read more at Red State

Previous blog on the Bergdahl / Taliban swap.
Barack Obama Frees Top Taliban Commanders in Trade for Army Deserter

My blog on Obama and signing statements
Obama Uses A Signing Statement to Ignore Another Bill Passed by Congress

Barack Obama Frees Top Taliban Commanders in Trade for Army Deserter

At the peak of the Veterans Affairs scandal and after a cool reception at West Point for Barack Obama's commencement speech  comes news of the release of Bowe Bergdahl in a prisoner exchange for 5 top leaders of the Taliban from Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba.  Despite the legal requirement that Congress be notified of Gitmo transfers and a no-negotiations with terrorist policy, Barack Obama and his administration went ahead with the prisoner swap anyway. A trade for 5 top terrorists for a deserter  raises a few questions.  Some background on Bowe Bergdahl can be found in the following article, with the excerpt taken to establish Bergdahl's state of mind before leaving his base.....

From Michael Hasting's  Rollingstone Article: America's Last Prisoner of War

On June 27th, he sent what would be his final e-mai­l to his parents. It was a lengthy message documenting his complete disillusionment with the war effort. He opened it by addressing it simply to "mom, dad." 

"The future is too good to waste on lies," Bowe wrote. "And life is way too short to care for the damnation of others, as well as to spend it helping fools with their ideas that are wrong. I have seen their ideas and I am ashamed to even be american. The horror of the self-righteous arrogance that they thrive in. It is all revolting." 

The e-mail went on to list a series of complaints: Three good sergeants, Bowe said, had been forced to move to another company, and "one of the biggest shit bags is being put in charge of the team." His battalion commander was a "conceited old fool." The military system itself was broken: "In the US army you are cut down for being honest... but if you are a conceited brown nosing shit bag you will be allowed to do what ever you want, and you will be handed your higher rank... The system is wrong. I am ashamed to be an american. And the title of US soldier is just the lie of fools." The soldiers he actually admired were planning on leaving: "The US army is the biggest joke the world has to laugh at. It is the army of liars, backstabbers, fools, and bullies......

- Bowe Bergdahl then walked away from base without his military gear and was 'captured' by the Taliban or their allies. Bowe Bergdahl has been gone for 5 years and has been a propaganda coup for the Taliban. His release on Saturday was great news for his family and has thrown the spotlight on Bowe's father Bob and his conduct, some of which can be found on Twitter.

Now check out the father Bob Bergdahl.....

 Barack Obama promised to close Guantanamo Bay prison in his first year of office and has failed because of heavy opposition. By not placing any more enemy combatants in Gitmo and slowly releasing all the prisoners under many guises, Barack Obama and the leftists may get their wish, all by bypassing Congress, again. It would appear that Barack Obama and the Bergdahl's conduct are placing the country in even greater danger.