AN EDITED VERSION OF THIS POST APPEARS IN THE LETTERS SECTION OF THE NEW YORK TIMES ON JUNE 5, 2014
The
story of the apparent desertion of Bowe Bergdahl, his capture by the
Taliban, and his ultimate return to this country is a tale replete with
unanswered questions. Which is not a good thing for President Obama.
If the President could have chosen a person to be the prisoner
of war involved in the exchange for five Taliban detainees, it would
not have been this soldier. If he could have chosen a war in which he
would go to such lengths to save one of our own, it would not have been
this one. If he could have chosen a Congress to seek counsel on the
dilemma of dealing with an enemy, it would not have been comprised of so
many whose vitriol directed at him is unrelenting. If he could have had
this situation handed to him in a neat, well constructed package, it
would have been most welcome.
But war is far from tidy, Sgt. Bergdahl was far from the ideal
soldier, the detainees in Guantanamo Bay were far too soiled and every
Republican who could find a tv camera or newspaper was far too willing
to excoriate.
The life and times of Barack Obama are never easy and it seems
every decision he makes is ripe for criticism, justified or not. The
Bergdahl story, like that of Benghazi, will undoubtedly have a very long
and troubling shelf life. President Obama, in bringing Bergdahl home,
also brought home an endless sea of problems directly to his doorstep.
5 comments:
They should give you a column
T
Very true words. Glad to see your name in print again!
R
Good letter....why is our president surrounded by incompetents? Didn't anybody look into this guy , this soldier? If he wanted to send home five Taliban why did he hook it onto the return of Bergdahl? Just send them back, and then let the Taliban release Bergdahl next week or so.
Obama is a disappointment.
D
well said!
M
I received the following letter in today's mail:
"As a self-declared chairman of the Nussbaum Marching and Chowder Society of Bergen County let me again congratulate you on your letter to the New York Times commenting on prisoner swap involving Sergeant Bergdahl. It encapsulated accurately the dilemmas faced by a President whose opponents were intent on destroying him since his initial swearing-in.
Keep at it; invariably you are right on target."
AB
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