Severest type of court-martial ordered for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl.

Severest type of court-martial ordered for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. (NaPo).

Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl will face general court-martial in connection with his 2009 disappearance from his base in Afghanistan, the service announced on Monday, raising the possibility that the soldier could face life in prison after being held captive for five years.

Bergdahl, 29, is charged with desertion and misbehavior before the enemy. He has been a political lightning rod since he was exchanged in May 2014 in a prisoner swap approved by the White House in which five Taliban officials were released from the military prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and kept under supervised watch in Qatar.

The decision was made by Gen. Robert Abrams, the four-star commander of U.S. Army Forces Command at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. It came after Bergdahl broke his silence last week by participating in the popular podcast “Serial.” The weekly podcast obtained 25 hours of recorded conversations between Bergdahl and film producer Mark Boal with Bergdahl’s approval.

General court-martial is the highest level of trial in the military justice system. If convicted, Bergdahl could face anywhere from life in prison to no confinement. Desertion can carry a death penalty, but Army officials have said that will not occur in Bergdahl’s case. No U.S. service member has been executed for desertion since World War II.

Bergdahl’s attorney, Eugene Fidell, said Monday that Abrams “did not follow the advice of the preliminary hearing officer.” Bergdahl’s defense team “had hoped the case would not go in this direction,” Fidell said. Read the full story here.

U.S. Army: Bergdahl shifted to outpatient care.

U.S. Army: Bergdahl shifted to outpatient care.HT: CNSNews.

Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who had been a prisoner of war in Afghanistan for five years, has been shifted to outpatient care at a Texas military base, the U.S. Army said in a statement Sunday.

Bergdahl, 28, had been receiving inpatient treatment at Brooke Army Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston. He is now receiving outpatient care on the base in San Antonio, according to the statement. The Army said his "reintegration process" is proceeding with exposure to more people and a gradual increase in social interaction.

He arrived at the Texas medical center on June 13 after nearly two weeks recuperating at a U.S. military hospital in Germany. Army officials said then that Bergdahl was in stable condition and was working daily with health care providers to regain a sense of normalcy and move forward with his life.

The Army statement Sunday said Bergdahl is receiving counseling from "Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape" psychologists" to "continue to ensure he progresses to the point where he can return to duty." Hmmmm...........Can join ISIS now?

Video - JUDGE JEANINE: VA 'CRIMES' ARE 'IMPEACHABLE'

“Mr. President, it’s called an abrogation of duty,” Pirro said. “You have not taken your oath to honestly and faithfully execute the duties of your office. As commander in chief, you have NOT protected us. This dereliction of duty as commander in chief demands your impeachment.”

Surrender without honor - Pres Obama betrayed the highest obligation of his office — safeguarding national security.

Surrender without honor - Pres Obama betrayed the highest obligation of his office — safeguarding national security. HT: NYDaily.

President Obama betrayed the highest obligation of his office — safeguarding national security — in trading five hard-core Taliban for the American serviceman who appears to have deserted in Afghanistan.

The five sworn enemies of the United States are now in the Gulf state of Qatar, where they are free to come and go as they like, beyond the watch of American agents. In just one year, they will be free to return to Afghanistan to fight there and stage terror attacks far beyond that country’s borders.

These facts were known to Obama when he made the deal, and yet he went ahead in irresponsible disregard for lives he has endangered.

As the facts have emerged — and more surely will — it has become ever clearer that he lost his presidential compass in the Taliban swap.

In retrospect, his Rose Garden announcement that he was bringing home an American POW appears to have been a cynical act of theater.Read the full story here.

Video - Taliban Video Shows Bergdahl’s Transfer

According to the Wall Street Journal:

An Afghan insurgent, his face hidden by a scarf, tells Sgt. Bergdahl menacingly in Pashto moments before the release: “Don’t come back to Afghanistan. Next time we catch you, you won’t leave here alive.” Armed insurgents surrounding the pickup truck laugh as Sgt. Bergdahl bows his head, looking confused and scared.

“Long live the holy warriors of Afghanistan! Long live the great holy warrior and the leader of the believers, Mullah Mohammad Omar!” the insurgents chant, referring to the Taliban leader who has eluded U.S. capture since 2001.

White House steamrollered Taliban prisoners' release in exchange for 'Deserted' soldier and ignored top secret intell showing they were too dangerous to be set free.

White House steamrollered Taliban prisoners' release in exchange for kidnapped soldier and ignored top secret intelligence showing they were too dangerous to be set free. DailyMail.

Obama administration viewed release of five militants as first step toward peace deal with Taliban

Justice Department review from 2009 found the Taliban leaders were too high-risk to be released Fate of five enemy combatants has been subject of disputes within intelligence community over the years

Gulf official said Taliban fighters won't be treated as prisoners while living in Qatar, and no U.S. officials will be tracking them

It's 'absolutely' possible the prisoners the U.S. released form Guantanamo Bay could rejoin terrorist cells, President Barack Obama said today

Obama suggested that he did not violate federal law by making the trade without congressional approval.Read the full story here.

Related:

Marco Rubio blasts Obama for not telling Congress of Bowe Bergdahl terror trade

Five Taliban militants traded for captive soldier are free to roam Qatar and will be allowed to return to Afghanistan after a year - despite Obama's promise to monitor their movements 

'Bowe Bergdahl deserted and these Americans lost their lives searching for him'

'Bowe Bergdahl deserted and these Americans lost their lives searching for him'. HT: DailyMail.

• The Facebook group 'Bowe Bergdahl is NOT hero!' has 5,400 members
• Men who served in his unit in Afghanistan are now emerging to say they believe Bergdahl deserted before he was captured
• Bergdahl e-mailed his parents saying he 'was ashamed to be an American'
• Military seems to acknowledge Bergdahl, 28, could have committed some kind of violation
• However, officials say he likely won't be punished: 'five years is enough'
• Former squad leader said Bergdahl always talked about seeing what was on the other side of the mountains

Not everyone is welcoming Bowe Bergdahl home with open arms. Some of the men who served with the Taliban POW believe that he deserted his post. And they say six American soldiers died because of his actions.

Bergdahl's release, brokered with the Taliban in exchange for five Guantanamo detainees, has ignited fury in some corners of the U.S. military community and re-opened old wounds. 'Bowe Bergdahl deserted during a time of war and his fellow Americans lost their lives searching for him,' former Sergeant Matt Vierkant told CNN.

A former superior of the 28-year-old soldier, Greg Leatherman, said he hopes the military investigates Bergdahl and questions whether he did, indeed, desert his post in Afghanistan on June 30, 2009.Read the full story here.

Related: 

EXCLUSIVE: Pentagon knew Bergdahl’s whereabouts but didn’t risk rescue for ‘deserter’

“They’re really underestimating the fury over this,” Wellman said. “It’s a tidal wave of anger.”  

More here