Rep. Marsha Blackburn, Tennessee Republican, said Wednesday that the military’s “leave no man behind” ethos at play in the release of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl is partly why Americans are upset about the Sept. 11, 2012, terrorist attack on a U.S. compound in Benghazi, Libya.
“The thing is, do you leave no man behind? No, you do not, and that’s one of the reasons the American people are so upset about Benghazi,” she said on MSNBC, adding that she disagreed with comments from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Nevada Democrat, that were aired just earlier.
“Opponents of President Obama seized upon the release of an American prisoner of war — that’s what he was,” Mr. Reid said, “using what should be a moment of unity and celebration for our nation as a chance to play political games.”
Ms. Blackburn said priority No. 1 is to find out why the White House did not give Congress the required 30 days’ notice before the transferring of five Guantanamo Bay detainees in exchange for Sgt. Bergdahl’s release from captivity by the Taliban and predicted “many months” of hearings and investigations.
“You look at what has happened with Benghazi, you look at the situation with the VA, you look at the president acting unilaterally on this, and people are saying, ’Whoa — wait a minute — we need to back up and look at this,’” she said.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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