Trump's 'traitor' rhetoric looms over Bowe Bergdahl's sentencing

[DonViejo]

Source: The Washington Post




By Alex Horton October 23 at 2:28 PM

FORT BRAGG, N.C. — The military judge who will decide whether Bowe Bergdahl goes to prison for leaving his post in Afghanistan indicated Monday that President Trump’s recent remarks about the case could raise doubts about the Army sergeant’s legal proceedings and whether they were fair.

Bergdahl, 31, said few words during the first day of his pre-sentencing hearing, having pleaded guilty to charges of desertion and misbehavior before the enemy in connection with his 2009 disappearance and five-year captivity by a Taliban affiliate. But the court heard several sound bites from Trump as the judge, Army Col. Jeffrey R. Nance, sought to determine whether the president’s new comments affirmed his past statements about Bergdahl being a “dirty, rotten traitor.”

Speaking to reporters last week, Trump declined to say whether his previous attacks on Bergdahl may have unfairly influenced the soldier’s decision to plead guilty. Yet his word choice — “But I think people have heard my comments in the past,” the president said — was the subject of debate between Nance and attorneys for the defense and prosecution. In 2015, Trump also promised to review decisions made in the case if he were to become commander in chief.

Lead defense attorney Eugene Fidell filed a motion saying Trump’s latest comments build on his harsh campaign rhetoric and amount to unlawful command influence, thus compromising Bergdahl’s chances to receive a fair sentencing. The motion seeks to dismiss the case on those grounds.



Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/trumps-traitor-rhetoric-looms-over-bowe-berghdals-sentencing/2017/10/23/d2329aec-b809-11e7-be94-fabb0f1e9ffb_story.html

[NastyRiffraff]

1. Has this EVER happened before?

A sitting president commenting on an ongoing legal process? I can't remember any; presidents normally refrain from any comment so they don't influence the process. Of course, "normally" and Donald Trump don't go together.

[murielm99]

12. Yes.

Nixon commented on the Tate-La Bianca murders during Manson's trial. Manson tried to capitalize on it.

Dumb, dumb move.

[NastyRiffraff]

17. Ah, right; I forgot about that one

It's NEVER a good idea for reasons even Dump should be able to understand (but doesn't).

[Sneederbunk]

2. Dotard is just projecting.

[dhol82]

3. Yup

Whenever he says things like this you just know he has guilt somewhere in his reptile brain.

[kairos12]

4. His remarks constitute Command Influence and should be disregarded. But won't be.

[Perseus]

5. I wonder how

Trump's five demerits equate to Bergdahl's leaving his post.

I would think that lying about your medical history to avoid going in the military would be equal to leaving your post once you are in there.

Think about it, Trump had a post to go to, there it was, waiting for him, but instead he run to a Dr who gave him an excuse to avoid the draft, thus allowing Trump to leave his post.

The most disgusting thing about the man-child is that his rhetoric is one that would make people think he is a war hero, and who knows, maybe in his delusional mind he believes he is.

[SkatmanRoth]

6. It does not matter what Trump has to say about Sargent Bergdahl

Bergdahl is going to be sentenced from 20 years to life. If he is in the general population at Leavenworth, his chances of surviving until he is released are small.

[metalbot]

11. Is that true (that he wouldn't survive)?

I tried to find statistics on the murder rate at Leavenworth and couldn't find any obvious ones. There are certainly inmates there who actively murdered their fellow soldiers, which seems like it would be a much worse crime than desertion (even if desertion got people hurt).

[SkatmanRoth]

18. Bergdahl's fellow military inmates will not murder him

The esprit de corps of the solders will make conditions for Bergdahl so unpleasant, he will take care of the matter himself.

[yallerdawg]

7. We have to remember...

Bowe Bergdahl volunteered to serve his country - and paid THAT price.

This sham trial is a disgrace, and I hope everyone in the military is watching.

This is Trump's America.

This could happen to you.

[alarimer]

20. And he was held captive for five years.

That should be enough.

[jmowreader]

8. Trump should be glad I'm not the prosecutor

The standard we always used in the Army:

Soldier gone less than 24 hours: Article 86(1), "Failure to Repair."
Soldier gone 24 hours to 30 days: Article 86, Absence Without Leave
Soldier gone 31 days or more: Article 85, Desertion

Nothing is ever simple. Bergdahl was gone five years, which points to a clean Article 85 charge. Bergdahl was captured by the Taliban less than 24 hours after leaving his base camp, and he attempted to escape and return to friendly lines several times. I would put them down as Matters in Mitigation and reduced the charge to Absence Without Leave. I'd have recommended a Field Grade Article 15 with reduction to pay grade E-4, and a General discharge under Chapter 14 (separation for misconduct) of the discharge regulation.

This would have thoroughly pissed off Trump and his minions, which is part of the reason I would have done it. The other reason is it would be the right thing to do.

[cstanleytech]

9. Seeing how long he was held I would say just giving him a dishonorable should

be enough but if they do sentence him to some time it should not exceed a year.

[former9thward]

10. Bergdahl took what is known as a "naked plea".

He made no attempt to negotiate a plea bargain with the prosecutors. He simply plead guilty and threw himself on the mercy of the court. As a defendant you do this when the evidence is overwhelmingly against you and you don't want it to have a public airing. I believe very little about what Bergdahl has publicly said about what happened.

[keithbvadu2]

13. Right wingers whined that Obama was not getting Bergdahl back until Obama got him back and then they

Right wingers whined that Obama was not getting Bergdahl back until Obama got him back and then they whined that Obama got him back.

Politicians Caught Deleting Bergdahl Tweets

https://www.google.com/search?q=palin+wanted+bergdahl+back&cad=h

http://www.outsidethebeltway.com/john-mccain-was-for-trading-taliban-prisoners-for-sgt-bergdahl-before-he-was-against-it/

https://thedailybanter.com/2014/06/republicans-sgt-bergdahl-now/


Republicans Frantically Scrub Their Praise Of Bowe Bergdahl
Terry called Bergdahl a “national hero.”

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/republicans-delete-praise-of-bergdahl

[TomSlick]

14. If the sentencing was being done by a court (sorta like a jury),

Trumps statements would be a serious problem as unlawful command influence. I would expect a military judge to do what s/he thinks right irrespective of the President's improvident statements.

Nevertheless, a President making any statements about an ongoing court-martial is a really bad idea. There is a real danger of improper command influence in the court-martial system. Because of that, the military appellate courts are very sensitive to the issue.

If a stiff sentence is handed down by the military judge, if I was advising the convening authority, I'd recommend a reduction in the sentence to "cure" any potential for unlawful command influence.

[cstanleytech]

15. Does Bergdahl have an appeals option if the sentencing exceeds what another person

guilty of the same crime might have gotten?

[TomSlick]

16. There is an appellate process.

The Army Court of Criminal Appeals can review the appropriateness of the sentence. That being said, this is a very unusual case with little potential for comparison to other cases.

[Not Ruth]

19. I hope that this makes more people realize that joining the military voluntarily can be a mistake

Maybe it will end up saving a lot of lives