Army deserter Bowe Bergdahl goes free, receives slap on the wrist

Bowe Bergdahl, an Army deserter whose reckless actions caused the deaths of at least six U.S. service members, has received a mere dishonorable discharge and won’t have to serve a day in jail, a military judge ruled Friday.

The judge ruled that for Bergdahl will receive a $1,000 fine and his rank will be reduced from an E5 (sergeant) to an E1 (private).

The Obama administration secured the release of Bergdahl by negotiating with the Taliban, a jihadi terrorist group that controls much of Afghanistan. The Obama White House freed five high-ranking Taliban commanders in exchange for Bergdahl.

Even though Bergdahl deserted his post, Obama national security adviser Susan Rice infamously declared that he served with “honor and distinction.”

According to CNN, the defense argued that Bergdahl should never have been in the Army because he suffered from mental illness. The prosecution repeatedly reminded the military judge that his actions put American soldiers in continuous danger, as they commenced several missions to find Bergdahl.

While stationed in Afghanistan, Bergdahl wrote that he had become ashamed of his nation and hated the United States, and therefore wanted to renounce his citizenship.

It became clear to those stationed with him that his act of desertion was intentional. There’s also evidence to suspect that Bergdahl’s decision to desert his fellow Americans may have come from a sympathetic agreement with the Taliban’s anti-American extremist ideology.

Prosecutors had asked for a 14-year prison sentence, but the judge disagreed. Bergdahl walked out of the courtroom on Friday morning in Fort Bragg, N.C., having received a mere slap on the wrist. An alleged traitor is now a free man.

UPDATE: President Trump weighed in on the judge's decision while on board Air Force One for his scheduled trip to East Asia:

The decision on Sergeant Bergdahl is a complete and total disgrace to our Country and to our Military.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 3, 2017

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