.@igorvolsky "This is the operative statement. The others are inoperative." — Ron Zeigler, April 17, 1973
— billmon (@billmon1) June 3, 2014
.
Dave Weigel has the backstory to the above tweets.
The GOP morans and ratfvckers have gone nucking futz over Bo Bergdahl’s release, and of course you haven’t reached Peak NuckFutzing until Alex Jones checks in! Per NYMag‘s “Guide to Bowe Bergdahl Conspiracy Theories“:
Bergdahl was a U.S. spy
While Bergdahl had been in captivity for five years, U.S. officials said they had to act quickly because his health and safety were suddenly in jeopardy. InfoWars suggests Bergdahl’s life was in danger because he was an undercover U.S. agent whose cover was blown when the White House accidentally released the name of the CIA’s highest-ranking spy in Afghanistan last week. “Bergdahl may have actually been an embedded intelligence asset who allowed himself to be captured in order to infiltrate the Haqqani network, yet was ultimately endangered by the Obama administration’s blunder,” according to the site…
Also per NYMag, would you be even a tiny bit surprised that “Republican Strategists Are Helping Bowe Bergdahl’s Critics Get Their Stories Out“? Misinformation wants to be free, dude! Yeah, me neither.
Speaking of inoperative statements, Gus at LGF shares a “Flashback! 1/2014: PJ Media Encourages Readers to Sign Petition to Free Bergdahl “By Any Means Necessary”.
And for truly magisterial pigbladdering of the idiots among us, one must never overlook Mr. Charles P. Pierce:
[Emphasis by Mr. Pierce.] ***********Over at the intersection of Unemployable Boulevard and Legacy Hire Way, the kidz and their recess monitors are busily fashioning a yellow ribbon into a noose for Bowe Bergdahl, whom they congratulate for being home so that they can calumnize him, his family, his service, and the president who got him here…
Apart from archiving the ongoing decline & fall of the 27%, what’s on the agenda for the evening?
PsiFighter37
Seeing if the GOP can shoot itself in the dick again by nominating McDaniels in MS-Sen.
Unfortunately, this being Mississippi, I think even though we have a very solid candidate (ex-Rep. Travis Childers) on our side, McDaniels will still win a general election. He could probably be a weird mix of the very worst of the right-wing fringe and still win rather easily.
jibeaux
the intersection of Unemployable Blvd. and Legacy Hire Way
Charlie Pierce is a genius, or is channeling the spirit of H.L. Mencken, or something equally fabulous.
max
Apart from archiving the ongoing decline & fall of the 27%
You missed one from Ed Kilgore:
The tweet link is to picture of the deleted tweet.
max
[‘CRIMESTOP! UNTHINK UNGOOD THOUGHTCRIMES!’]
Baud
Uh oh.
C Nelson Reilly
OT – MUST CREDIT DRUDGE!
06/03/14 9:00 P.M. CST ABC NETWORK
DWEEZIL ZAPPA CELEBRITY WIFE SWAP!
NotMax
Emphasizing the ‘bull’ in bullhorn.
Empty vessels make the most noise.
The Dangerman
I was watching Faux News tonight (morbid curiosity) and they’ve jumped beyond impeachment to treason (supposedly providing material support to the enemy). These assholes have lost their minds.
chopper
someday they’ll be making films about our brave 101st chairborne.
like ‘Chicken Hawk Down’, or ‘Zero Dark QWERTY’, or ‘The Charge of the Lite Beer Brigade’.
Mandalay
@C Nelson Reilly:
As good an excuse as any.
TG Chicago
In the Weigel link, he quotes McCain as referring to the 5 Gitmo detainees as “wanted war criminals”.
If they’re war criminals, why haven’t they been charged with any war crimes?
And more obviously, if they’re in Gitmo, how can they be “wanted”?
catclub
@PsiFighter37: McDaniel would likely win over Childers. THAD would CERTAINLY win.
PLus the GOP will have to spend lots of money to win with McDaniel.
But looks like Thad wins the primary.
catclub
@chopper: The Zerpy Dozen.
scav
@TG Chicago: Well, “we” wanted them to be war criminals??
Bill Arnold
The Infowars speculation (“Sgt. Bergdahl, An Intelligence Asset Endangered By Obama’s CIA Blunder?”) surprised me, feeling a little dense to not think of it. What other combinations of recent “bad for Obama” events might make sense?
Newsmax has
VA scandal
IRS targetting by Democratic Senators
War on coal
Benghazi
(Not much to work with)
lamh36
this is how you do it and NOT give ammo to the other side. Feinstein should take a damn lesson.
White House first discussed Bergdahl prisoner exchange with lawmakers in 2011
Belafon
You should also include where the Republicans blocked this deal before: tomhayden.com/home/republicans-block-release-of-us-soldier-held-by-taliban.html. There’s a reason Obama didn’t go back to Congress.
Hal
My coworker is now insisting that “we” are all in danger because of those five TERRORISTS!!!! Oh, and Bergdahl is a sleeper agent. Why else did they keep him alive? She knows he’s turned. The next two minutes if you were passing by our office:
me: You don’t know that.
him: Yes I do.
me: no you don’t.
him: yes I do.
Wash, rinse, repeat.
ruemara
I am patting myself on the back this evening. While our new product launch was not spectacular, as I wasn’t thinking it would be, overall, our sales have jumped to an average of 200% on all other product lines, suspiciously coinciding with my new marketing and social media efforts. Boss calling for head has told my supes she is pleased. Even more importantly, notoriously incapable of praise boss told me she is pleased after 2 hrs long meeting where I ladened her with more work for finalizing things for my dept. Bad news, I just got to keep this up so no one notices I’m a lazy blah. Plus I have all these edits to do for new webisodes feature I want to debut for a new line. But, praise is nice.
TG Chicago
@max: So weird. It’s not like there’s anything wrong with praying for the guy and his family, even in the worst-case scenario.
Side note: any military people know why Bergdahl was promoted twice while he was in custody? Seems odd to this civilian.
jl
I have a question. Did every single high profile GOP bullshit artist pull a 180 turn around on Bergdahl’s release the moment Obama got him released?
Seriously, I want to know. Seems like that would be some kind of Guinness world record thing. Should be recorded for history.
lamh36
Anoniminous
Damn it. Gary King is leading the Democratic primary for NM Governor nomination. Party activists don’t want him and he’s got no chance against Martinez.
jl
And, I heard that the five U.S. prisoners released were on a ‘do not prosecute’ list and that the prosecutors had recommended their release for some time.
I am curious about that angle of the story. Been looking but could not find it, since I guess it is more complicated and boring than videos and stories about Palin and McCain perform as howling hypocrites and frothing at the mouth.
Mnemosyne
@Hal:
He totally saw a documentary about it on HBO. And you’ll never be able to convince him it was fiction.
Suffern ACE
@max: sorry dude. God already head the prayers and you can’t take them back
Mandalay
@lamh36:
Yep, dead right. I’m not real fond of Levin but that is exactly what Feinstein should be saying, and she is making a habit of publicly fucking with the Administration.
I’ve come to loathe Feinstein with the heat of a thousand suns. She’s egotistical, dangerous and powerful on defense and security issues, and, on balance, is worse than most Republicans. She’s taking up space that could be occupied by someone much more progressive, and unlike Cruz, Paul et al, she pretends to be on our side.
Morzer (0th of His PseudoName and Founder of the Walter Sobchak Peacekeepers)
@catclub:
Derpy Dancing.
Baud
@Mandalay:
She does seem to be turning herself into a female Joe Lieberman.
Patrick
@Belafon:
Not only that. The White House has given classified material to Darrel Issa for his idiotic Benghazi committee, who subsequently has leaked same documents to the media.
Why the hell would Obama consult with people who apparently could care less about America and its security?
Belafon
@ruemara: Maybe someday I’ll work up to being as lazy a blah a you. I’m whih so it could be a while. Congrats.
Kay
@lamh36:
The group of people who knew about this swap proposal just gets bigger by the hour.
trollhattan
@lamh36:
DiFi has been on the wrong side of so many issues lately I’m beginning to think she’s losing her shit. In the meantime someone should check the color of her dog’s fur, for a bluish hue.
? Martin
So, apparently Bergdahl’s dad is now a terrorist for having a long beard and not shaving it off the second that his son was released. Meanwhile, this guy keynotes at every GOP function now.
I have a new theory. Conservatives aren’t ideological. They’ve contracted some kind of slow-developing mutated virus that is turning them into insane zombies. This is only the beginning. They’ll be feasting on brains by 2016.
Baud
@Patrick:
I think that’s the real reason Obama didn’t consult.
Anne Laurie
@jl:
Way I remember it, those five could not be prosecuted under the U.S. tribunal because of “legal errors” — such as the fact they’d been tortured while in U.S. custody, thus making any confession inadmissible.
Thanks, Dubya! Thanks, Darth Cheney!
Baud
@Kay:
Everyone except Congress knew, because everyone except Congress can keep a secret. Hell, I got an OFA email about this deal on Memorial Day.
RaflW
Sen. Kelly Ayotte’s press office, 1/24/14:
Ayotte Urges Defense Secretary to Redouble Efforts to Find Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl
.
Sen. Ayotte’s press office, 6/2/14:
Sen. Ayotte Never Knew He Was a Deserter and Shit
Cassidy
@TG Chicago: His official status was POW/MIA. Personnel with that status continue to be paid and promoted as they would if they are still around until their status officially changes.
Patrick
@? Martin:
That guy was on Sean Hannity’s show. So based on FoxNews’ own logic; Hannity is now best buddies with a terrorist.
max
@TG Chicago: So weird. It’s not like there’s anything wrong with praying for the guy and his family, even in the worst-case scenario.
Joni is apparently the living definition of sincerity. GOP sincerity. As in ‘not a sincere bone in their bodies’.
@Suffern ACE: God already head the prayers and you can’t take them back
But if the usual suspects are correct about God, then Bergdahl gets the blessing, and Ernst gets a big black mark on her score sheet.
max
[‘And if there is a Satan, I’ll bet he’s beaming with pride over the antics of his crew.’]
Mandalay
@Kay:
It’s made my day that WaPo knew about this before Feinstein. I suspect the Administration had concluded that the Post could be trusted to keep its trap firmly shut, but the Chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee not so much….
Baud
@Cassidy:
So we’re paying people for not working, huh? Thanks, Obama.
Cassidy
They were tortured.
bago
Deleted Prayers would make a great title for a book.
Cassidy
@Baud: Hell, walk into any Army unit after lunch and odds are you’ll find a bunch of dudes sitting around wondering why they aren’t gainfully employed or going home.
? Martin
@Patrick: The proper term is ‘pallin’ around’
TG Chicago
@Cassidy: The paying part makes total sense to me. Getting promoted for doing nothing seems odd. Seems like you should have to at least get a good job evaluation to become Sgt, but whatever. Thanks!
Patrick
@? Martin:
Of course – Hannity has been “palling around with terrorists”.
BTW – McDaniel just took the lead.
Ash Can
The NRA has walked back its criticism of the open-carry terrorists in Texas.
Belafon
@TG Chicago: Your pay is tied to your rank, so you get taken prisoner as an E-1 and held for 19 years, and retire as an E-2. Your pay would suck.
Yes, my example is extreme, but it’s to make the point.
burnspbesq
Just got back from voting in the CA primary. No, I did not vote for Orly Taitz for state Attorney General.
Unfortunately, the state official whose activities have the most impact on me, and who has done an absolutely great job, is term-limited, so I didn’t get to vote for Debra Bowen to be re-elected as Secretary of State.
burnspbesq
@TG Chicago:
There you go again, applying logic to this deal. Waste of time and effort.
Higgs Boson's Mate
@TG Chicago:
As a circa 1971 graduate of SERE school I can assure you that staying alive in captivity is doing plenty.
Tommy
I’ve said this a few times here. I will keep saying it. I think it was 1974. Dad told me were were going to see a great American speak. His name was John McCain. I was five. He said things a five year should not hear. The horror of being tortured. I think most folks forget he broke under that torture. I am not remotely putting him down. It was kind of the thesis of his talk. That everybody here thinks they won’t break. You will. I want to ask McCain if he recalls speaking there.
catclub
@? Martin:
I think Pierce has you beaten on that. Something about prion disease.
MomSense
@ruemara:
Well done!!
Gin & Tonic
How was it that Robert Garwood was repatriated?
Hal
If Obama had gone to Congress say 30 days ago, Congress would have rebuffed him. Information would be leaked to the press, and no deal. If Bergdhal ended up dead every wingnut on TV would be saying the same shit, but instead it would be that Obama let him die. Impeach, impeach, impeach.
Suffern ACE
@Kay: yes, but in our political system, you need permission from a bunch of very emotional right wing veterans before you can do anything. Apparently.
Commenting at Balloon Juice since 1937
Democracy Now had some good coverage of the prisoner release today if you prefer thoughtful and informative over crazy rumors. An interview with a Guardian journo who interviewed Bergdahl’s unit claims they were all disillusioned with their assignment.
Kay
@Mandalay:
I can’t tell from the piece who knew what, when. Her story seems to be evolving. “2012” could be “2011” by tomorrow. It does seem clear a lot of people knew about the proposal in 2011, when, apparently, “negotiating with terrorists” was not unthinkable, as it is in 2014.
Obama may have to hold hearings and call members of Congress. “What did you know and when did you know it? Don’t lie. I was there, remember?”
Tommy
@Higgs Boson’s Mate: That might be about the best comment here. Ever. If I am not mistaken that is the goal isn’t it? Stay alive. He had to know we were coming for him. Five years later, stay alive, we will come for you.
Craig J
@TG Chicago: my guess would be it was automatic promotions due to time in grade
Cassidy
@TG Chicago: Under normal circumstances, you are your own advocate for promotion. You have to get your packets ready and turned in on time, DA photo, etc. In a POW status, since you are unable to do so, the military is kind enough to assume you would.
maya
@Mandalay: The only reason Feinstein has a (D) after her name is because, in San Francisco, where she began her political career (given a big assist when Mayor Mosconi was shot while she was BoS President, so she slid right in) – she couldn’t get elected with an (R) after it. That’s all. You rarely hear Repubs and their stooges criticizing her like they do Boxer.
RaflW
@Hal:
FTFY.
danielx
@TG Chicago:
Hey, you’re blaming McCain for inconsistency? How dare you impugn the reputation of a man who is a preferred guest on Sunday morning talk shows? Don’t you know the bookers for those shows really have a true, nay, the only, finger on the pulse of American sentiment?
Cassidy
@Tommy: That’s the point. That’s the promise made to us and we make to each other. It’s drilled into our heads from Day 0. You never leave a man behind. The conversation is over at that point.
John Revolta
So, the NRfuckingA is now taking marching orders from an outfit called Open Carry Texas. Good to know.
Not that I’m really surprised, you know, but sheesh.
smintheus
Who can forget Ron Ziegler? How to spell his name, sure, but not the phenomenon himself.
? Martin
@burnspbesq: Yeah, sad that Bowen wasn’t on the ballot. I did, however, vote for Taitz (again!), because holy shit how fun would that be? Also for Tim Donnelly, because I want the GOP in this state dead.
Kay
@Suffern ACE:
The White House is “rattled” that so many members of Congress are freaking out, which is understandable, because they’ve been tossing around this proposal for three years with Congress so Congress had some inkling that some kind of crazy exchange might take place.
Although, as John McCain hedged in February, he didn’t agree to the specifics.
He knew only the 5 dangerous detainees for the one soldier part. Other than that? Completely in the dark, and if not in the dark exactly then certainly undecided.
Ruckus
@trollhattan:
I think the only reason DiFi keeps getting reelected is the D behind her name, that and the Rs have been running complete assholes against her. Better the enemy you know than the one you know is worse.
But she is about 40 yrs past her prime. I considered running against her last time for 3 reasons. First, my dog would have been better than her and he would have come along with me. Second, I couldn’t possibly be as bad as her. Third, I needed the work.
Tommy
@Cassidy: As it should be. I have not served, but note my family business is the military. Kind of what we do. You never, never leave a person on the battlefield. Never!
RaflW
Since its an OT
Paging disgraced carpetbagger Liz Cheney! Liz Cheney! Please come to the pink discourtesy phone for a message.
RaflW
@Kay: It does frustrate me that the Obama White House manages to be rattled by this sort of thing 5.5 years in.
Does no one there read BJ? Or attempt to watch Fox Nooz? Surely the “we’ll f*k over a POW soldier -or anyone, really- to score cheap GOP points against Obama” could have been anticipated?!
Higgs Boson's Mate
@RaflW:
Wouldn’t it be utterly refreshing if Obama ended his next news conference with, “The reason I didn’t notify Congress about the prisoner exchange is simple; the Republicans would pull out their own mothers’ teeth with rusty pliers if they though that would score points against me. Sergeant Bergdahl deserved better from his country than to rot in captivity just because the Republicans believe that politics must be a zero-sum game.”
Mandalay
@Higgs Boson’s Mate:
Wouldn’t it also be refreshing if we just dropped the “we never negotiate with terrorists” nonsense that needlessly boxes Administrations into a corner (“we never negotiate with terrorists” vs. “we never leave our soldiers behind”)? Of course we negotiate with terrorists, time and time again. To do otherwise would be mindless.
FWIW, Russia gave this lesson on how not to negotiate with terrorists successfully….
Original Lee
I am so furious with this whole Rethuglican uproar it’s not even funny. Original Son was surprised at how vehement I was. My cousin is MIA in Vietnam and the Viet Cong basically gaslighted the U.S. about his POW status until the end of the war, when they denied ever having had him in custody. So to this day his family knows nothing about what happened to him. They found his plane, and they found his parachute. That’s it. So Bergdahl was a POW for 5 years, everybody knows the Taliban has him, Obama cuts a deal to bring him home, and none of those guys have the decency to say, “Welcome back” before pouring shit all over him.
And, BTW, where was all this “deserter” stuff back in 2011 when they first started talking about cutting a deal? One would have thought the Love Our Warriors types would have been all, “Don’t waste any time on that deserter. Let him rot.” IIRC, it has been pretty much “We don’t leave anyone behind” until the deal was done.
FlipYrWhig
@RaflW: I’m sure the only people who “rattle” them are the lily-livered Democrats who scurry rather than backing them up. Over and over and over and over again they do that.
burnspbesq
@? Martin:
Easy for you to say. You don’t have to practice law in this state.
‘Sides, there is a long-term stragety here. A big re-election win sets Harris up to succeed Feinsten (a good thing in and of itself), and clears the way for my friend and law school classmate Jackie Lacey, the LA County DA, to move up to AG.
Frankensteinbeck
@RaflW:
Is the White House rattled by this?
Higgs Boson's Mate
@Mandalay:
Wow, a network of KGB operatives in-country who were able to identify individual Islamist terrorists. How quaint and old fashioned. Our cutting edge technology combined with our crackerjack CIA would have enabled us to guess at the identities of the perps via their cell phone traffic and then blow the hell out of everyone around those phones by remote control.
SFAW
@Ruckus:
All the demon sheep were busy.
SFAW
@RaflW:
Because a POW or any other service member is small potatoes to them.
Example Number 9,273 of why I hate those Rethug motherfuckers so much.
danimal
@? Martin: @burnspbesq: I voted for Donnelly, but all the ratfkucing strategy in the world couldn’t lead me to support Orly Taitz.
SFAW
@Mandalay:
What terrorists? The Taliban ran the government there for awhile, and (I think) Karzai has been negotiating with them as far as power-sharing. Insurgents, maybe, but terrorists? What are the rebels in Syria – terrorists? Insurgents? Freedom fighters? Are Hamas and Fatah terrorists, insurgents, or a political faction?
Fucking Rethugs. If they could get their collective heads out of their collective asses, they might actually deserve to have some say in US policy. Not much say, though, because after all, they’re fucking insane, treasonous bastards.
Gian
@TG Chicago:
It did occur to me that it would tough to argue the gitmo detainees should go to trial when the congressional bed wetters are afraid to do just that.
But have no fear. If Obama said that the flag, apple pie, and moms are nice things. The GOP would hate them all.
Though I expect Freud would have something to say about mothers and the GOP anyway.
Chris T.
Hey, wait a minute, Bergdahl and Benghazi both start with a B as in o’Bama! COINCIDENCE? I THINK NOT!
/crazyrightwinger
RaflW
@Frankensteinbeck: Quoting Kay @73 above.
Mnemosyne
@RaflW:
I think Kay (or the article she read) means they’re rattled by the turncoat Democratic members of Congress. Obviously, the Republicans are going to freak out, but would it fucking kill Dianne Feinstein to stand by a Democratic president for fucking once?
SFAW
@Gian:
A recurrent theme/meme/wish here has been that Obama and Michelle go on TV, and announce that drinking antifreeze is a BAD THING, and that no one should do that.
The 27 percent would drop to 12 percent (or less) within 48 hours.
SFAW
@Mnemosyne:
“She’s with us on everything except Afghanistan, Iraq, and a bunch of other things that are wicked fucking important. So back off!”
RaflW
@Mnemosyne: OK. I get that slightly more.
But yet, the weak-kneed Democrats are about as predictable as the batshit insane, America-Fuck-
YeahOff GOP. So, again, being rattled by what is as easy to foresee as the rain is what I find bothersome.Anyway, whatevs. Its too late at night, and the country & world once again failed to be fixed by all our blather here, so I may as well slink off to sleepytime.
Mandalay
@SFAW:
I’m not sure whether you are snarking or serious, but yes the Taliban are most definitely terrorists:
The Taliban are seriously badass terrorist motherfuckers. Jay Carney’s refusal to brand them as such says all you need to know about the Administration’s policy towards Afghanistan. In the not too distant future they will be running the country again, and we will have to deal with them on their terms (not that we aren’t mostly doing that already).
Rich (In Name Only) in reno
Hah! I’ll see your Infowars conspiracy theory and raise you a Newsmax interview with Lt. Col. Oliver North, who had the clanging brass knockers to ask, “Was there a ransom paid? Did the government of the United States, either directly or indirectly, finance a terrorist organization?”
crooksandliars.com/2014/06/oliver-north-accuses-obama-paying
Suffern ACE
@Mandalay: yep. Pretty much. Yet, we somehow convinced ourselves that rounding up a hundred of them in Cuba and a few hundred in other prisons was “winning.” 12 years and still no army and every briefing we get is that there are still the same number of Taliban that there were when we started. We’ve killed or captured thousands, and yet there’s always the same number.
Dave
@Commenting at Balloon Juice since 1937: It’s Afghanistan of course they were disillusioned; that place made Iraq look like a well oiled machine. Besides there were still true believers floating around in 2006 but by 2009 they were a dying breed. I can barely even begin to wrap my head around how wrong the the idiot frames around this, around what people think the military is, and what people think combat is. Shit if he was having trouble dealing with what was going on that’s a sane reaction to absolute shit (and so is joking about it people do that to minimize the horror). And you know the Taliban, clunky term, may generally be assholes but this treating them like they are Cyborg Commie/Nazi’s from space is just ludicrous. I’m happy I haven’t run into much random dumb discussion of this because I would probably lose it on someone this shit has me severely pissed off.
AnonPhenom
Shorter news cycle: “Conservatives line up to spit on returning war veteran”
debbie
First, the term “101st Chairborne” is brilliant! First I’ve seen this.
But are’t these politicians condemning Bergdahl before he’s even given a hearing the very same politicians who were shrieking because Obama murdered an American member of Al Queda rather than affording him the right to a trial?
SFAW
@Mandalay:
I was being semi-serious, because
as they were before
Yeah, I know they’re evil. But my sense is that they have a lot more support than ‘run-of-the-mill” terrorists, e.g. suicide bombers in Israel. At some level, it starts to feel like Somozistas contra Sandinistas, except with the Taliban assassinating Sandino/Massoud, instead of Karzai doing it. In other words: they all suck, it just depends on who we’re supporting (or maybe working with) on any given day.
Yeah, I realize it’s somewhat more complicated than that. Just trying to give some insight into my “thought” process. I’ve been wrong before, will be again, unless I croak in the next five minu …
erk
(falls over)