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VOL. 2/ISSUE 32
JUNE 12, 2014
Murphy adds voice to fray on Bergdahl Nicole Rodriguez Staff writer
TREASURE COAST — Much like the rest of Congress, who was left in the dark about the swap of an American prisoner of war for five Guantanamo Bay Taliban detainees, U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy, D-Jupiter, has a lot of questions for the Obama Administration. “I do have some reservations about this deal and I have a lot of questions,” Murphy said. Bowe Bergdahl, 28, was traded late last month by the Obama Administration for five Taliban members held in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Bergdahl apparently left his platoon and was captured by the Taliban in Afghanistan in June 2009. The circumstances under which Bergdahl went missing remain murky. Former Army mates have spoken out publicly, saying Bergdahl had become disillusioned by the war and went AWOL. The Obama Administration is also under fire for not briefing Congress before the exchange, a requirement of federal law if detainees are going to be released. Did the White House break the law and send the message America negotiates with terrorists? Murphy’s not sure. “I’m not ready to go that far yet … I’ve been a little bit hesitant to speculate, because I haven’t been in D.C. yet to be briefed,” Murphy said. “I do wish the White House would have briefed the appropriate committees. That’s definitely something I’m anxious to have happen.” Just before Bergdahl’s controversial release from captivity, Murphy spent Memorial Day with troops stationed in Kabul, Afghanistan, where great strides toward a free country have been made thanks to U.S. forces, Murphy said. “I went over a bit pessimistic about the chance of democracy or prosperity in Afghanistan. But that really changed,” Murphy said. “I think there’s a fighting chance that things are going to work out for the better there.” The Afghan military, which is slowly becoming
Photo courtesy of The Office of Congressman Patrick Murphy Over Memorial Day weekend, U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy, D-Jupiter, visited U.S. troops stationed in Afghanistan. Murphy was part of a bipartisan delegation, spending time with service members as well as meeting with military leaders to be updated on the current situation on the ground. Murphy is shown here with U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Joseph E. Dunford Jr., who was just last week named next commandant of the Marine Corps. more independent, numbers to almost 350,000, Murphy said. “We’re not out there doing hand-to-hand combat missions. The vast majority of what we’re doing is training them. In the last year or so, we really stopped the detailed oversight. It’s really more high-level things like budgeting,” Murphy said. “Sometimes they’ll come back after a mission and report to us and we’ll tell them they could have done better, but they’re basically operating independently right now.” During a recent presidential election, Afghans voted overwhelmingly for two pro-Western candidates, who will face off during a runoff election later this month, Murphy said. “It was really more about which candidate people thought was going to be better for the economy or better for women’s rights or better for personal liberties, much like you would see in America,” Murphy said. During his trip overseas, Murphy learned Kabul had a 60 percent voter turnout. Of the 60 percent, 40 percent were women voters, Murphy said. While venturing off base, Murphy witnessed the technological advances that
Bowe Bergdahl have happened since war was waged more than 10 years ago. “The propaganda machine of the Taliban cannot overcome this,” Murphy said. “Sixty percent of Afghans have cell phones, 80 percent have access to a cellphone.” But there’s still more work to be done.
See BERGDAHL page 9