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Multiple Fox Hosts Say American POW's Father Looks "Like A Muslim,""Member Of Taliban"

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“Well, your son’s out now. So if you really don’t want to no longer look like a member of the Taliban, you don’t have to look like a member of the Taliban.”

Bob Bergdahl is the father of former American prisoner of war Bowe Bergdahl. Here he is with President Obama after his son was exchanged for five Taliban captives.

Bob Bergdahl is the father of former American prisoner of war Bowe Bergdahl. Here he is with President Obama after his son was exchanged for five Taliban captives.

Via washingtonpost.com

Last night, Bill O'Reilly said Bob Bergdahl "looks like a Muslim."

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"But it is Robert Bergdahl, the father, who is also engendering some controversy. He has learned to speak Pashto, the language of the Taliban, and looks like a Muslim. He is also somewhat sympathetic to Islam, actually thanking Allah right in front of the president."

This morning Fox and Friends host Brian Kilmeade said Bob Bergdahl looks "like a member of the Taliban."

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"I mean, he says he was growing his beard because his son was in captivity. Well, your son’s out now. So if you really don’t want to no longer look like a member of the Taliban, you don’t have to look like a member of the Taliban, are you out of razors?"


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John McCain: Decision To Bring Bergdahl Home "Ill-Founded, A Mistake"

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The Arizona senator said the deal would put more American lives at risk.

Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain called the swap deal for American prisoner of war Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl "ill-founded" and "a mistake," speaking at a press conference Tuesday.

McCain, a former POW himself who spent five and a half years as a captive in North Vietnam, said the deal to exchange Bergdahl for five Taliban prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay would put more American soldiers at risk.

"This decision to bring Sgt. Bergdahl home — and we applaud that he is home — is ill-founded ... it is a mistake, and it is putting the lives of American servicemen and women at risk. And that to me is unacceptable."

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Senate Democrats Consider Defunding Raids Of Legal Medical Marijuana Operations

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The Republican-controlled House passed a bill to restrict DEA raids in states where medical marijuana is legal. Will the Senate do the same?

Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images

WASHINGTON — Key Senate Democrats say they would be open to a measure defunding Drug Enforcement Agency raids on medical marijuana facilities in states where the businesses are legal.

But it's unclear whether anyone on the Appropriations Committee — the committee that determines how the country spends its money — will introduce such an amendment. None of the senators on the committee who were approached by BuzzFeed had seen one.

"I've always supported the availability of medical marijuana," said Sen. Barbara Mikulski, chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee. "We are not an authorizing committee, we are a funding committee. But I will have an open amendment process. If a member offers an amendment, we'll see where we are."

A similar amendment narrowly passed the Republican-controlled House for the first time last week.

The House version lists 33 specific states where targeting medical marijuana facilities would be defunded. They include the 22 states and the District of Columbia where medical marijuana is legal, but also states where recreational marijuana has been legalized and states where only cannabidiol (CBD) oils have been approved.

Iowa Democratic Sen. Tom Harkin said he "might support" such an amendment if it were proposed, though he didn't appear to have heard about the issue before a reporter brought it up to him.

"Why would they raid them if it's legal?" he asked.

California Democratic Sen. Diane Feinstein said she would oppose such an amendment if one were proposed.

The Senate's $51.2 billion version of the appropriations bill that governs spending for the Department of Justice and the DEA is still being marked up. The bill will be considered by the full Appropriations Committee on Thursday.

Politico's Next Stop Is Brussels, Sources Say

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Eurocrats await the swarming insider approach that turned Washington media upside down.

Politico Chief White House correspondent Mike Allen speaks as he hosts a Politico Playbook Breakfast Nov. 28, 2012, at the Newseum in Washington, D.C.

Alex Wong / Getty Images

The parent company of the Washington, D.C. politics website and newspaper Politico is on the verge of expansion to Europe, launching a news organization in Brussels on the same model it recently exported to New York, two sources familiar with the plans said.

The planned move would mark an ambitious step for Allbritton Communications, which publishes Politico and Capital New York, and has been selling the local television stations that were long the center of its business in favor of digital and print initiatives led by Politico co-founder Jim VandeHei, who is now CEO and president of the two publications.

Politico's model — high-velocity reporting, newsletters consumed by lobbyists and other insiders with money to spend, and a lucrative print business driven by the high value of influence in Washington — is in some ways a natural fit for Brussels, home to the European Parliament and European Commission. It will also depend on advertisers' willingness to spend money to influence officials who often report, ultimately, to decision-makers in London, Paris, Berlin, and other national capitals.

Politico elbowed its way into what had been seen as a crowded Capitol Hill market in 2007, and there are other English language news outlets in Brussels including Europolitics, a daily newspaper that has been publishing daily since its founding in Brussels in 1972. There are several digital publications too, like the independent website EUobserver and Euractiv, which is partially funded by the European Commission.

Perhaps the latest major attempt to capture the Eurocrat audience came from the Financial Times, the dominant broadsheet of EU politics and policy, which launched the English-language, EU-focused weekly newspaper European Voice in Brussels in 1995. But the FT sold the publication to the French company Selectcom in 2013. It is currently distributed free of charge to MEPs and top Commission officials.

The move to Brussels would be the second notable expansion for Allbritton. In September 2013, Politico ventured out of D.C. for the first time by acquiring Capital New York. Shortly after the move, it was announced that co-founder and Executive Editor Jim VandeHei would take over as president and CEO of Politico and Capital New York. Allbritton Communications Company has also sold off several of its TV properties within the past year.

Politico Chief Operating Officer Kim Kingsley did not immediately return a request for comment.

Email the author of this post at myles.tanzer@buzzfeed.com.

White House Apologizes For Keeping Top Intel Senators In The Dark About Bergdahl

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Top White House officials reached out on Monday night to apologize for not letting Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Saxby Chambliss know about the prisoner swap in advance.

U.S. Senator Saxby Chambliss

Jonathan Ernst / Reuters

WASHINGTON — The top two Senators on the Senate Intelligence Committee said Tuesday the White House had reached out to apologize for not giving them notice about the deal to exchange five Taliban prisoners for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl.

Sen. Saxby Chambliss, the Republican ranking member of the committee, told reporters that a "high-ranking" White House official called him Monday night to apologize. Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein said she received a similar call.

"They said it just been called to their attention that I had not received advanced notification of this transaction," Chambliss said. "You can't undo what the president has done. They said they we'll give it to you next time."

The White House has increasingly come under fire from members of Congress for not alerting members prior to Bergdahl's release, and many Republican senators have said the president blatantly broke the law by not notifying Congress 30 days in advance that he planned on transferring prisoners out of the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay.

The White House has called Bargdahl's situation "unique and exigent," requiring them to move quickly. White House press secretary Jay Carney said Monday of the prisoner swap that it should not be a "surprise to members of Congress that this was possible, because we had been working to secure Sgt. Bergdahl's release for a long time."

Chambliss said he was out of the loop on the Bergdahl release and did not find out about the swap until after the fact.

"I haven't had a conversation with the White House on this issue in a year and a half. If that's keeping us in the loop than the administration is more arrogant than I thought," he said.

Feinstein, the committee's chairwoman, likewise did not get a heads up on the deal. She told reporters on Tuesday that Deputy National Security Adviser Tony Blinken called her to apologize.

"It's very disappointing that there was not a level of trust sufficient to justify alerting us," she said.

Majority Leader Harry Reid appeared to be one of the few to know about the deal in advance. He said he learned on Friday of the exchange. Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said he did not find out until Saturday morning.

Here Is How Close The Leaders Of Our Senate Got Today

Former NSA Director On Edward Snowden: "He's Working For Someone"

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“Well, I think he’s working for them. I wouldn’t go so far as to say a double agent but he’s working for someone.”

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Former director of the National Security Agency Keith Alexander said Tuesday that he thinks NSA leaker Edward Snowden was working with Russian intelligence.

"Well, I think he's working for them. I wouldn't go so far as to say a double agent but he's working for someone," Alexander, who resigned in the wake of Snowden's revelations of massive government surveillance, said on Bloomberg TV.

Alexander also said earlier he didn't believe Snowden got out of the Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport without making an agreement with Russian intelligence services.

Snowden spent a month living in the transit zone of the airport after fleeing Hong Kong in June of 2013 before being granted temporarily asylum in Russia.

Snowden has denied any such connection, for which there is no clear evidence.

"I have no relationship with the Russian government at all. I've never met the Russian president," Snowden said in an interview last week with NBC News. "I'm not supported by the Russian government. I'm not taking money from the Russian government. I'm not a spy, which is the real question."

Obama Administration Stalls Response To Uganda's Anti-Homosexuality Act

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“Delay is putting lives at risk,” said Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin.

Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin

Todd Franson/HRC / Via s3.amazonaws.com

The Obama administration has delayed action in adjusting aid to Uganda in response to passage of the Anti-Homosexuality Act, even though an interagency review process put forward recommendations some weeks ago.

Sources familiar with the review process, which the administration announced just after Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni signed the anti-gay bill into law in February, told BuzzFeed they have expected an announcement from the United States government for some time because the recommendations were pending, but the White House has been silent.

This inaction follows a seemingly contradictory series of announcements in March. The White House announced an adjustment of around $10 million — including a cut to a religious organization that vocally supported the law — out of the more than $700 million that the U.S. gives to Uganda annually on March 23 because of the new law. But days later, the U.S. embassy in Kampala issued a press release saying "No Changes in U.S. Assistance to Uganda." And the initial cuts were announced on the same night as the administration said it would send military helicopters much coveted by President Museveni to assist in the hunt for rebel leader Joseph Kony.

As the review has dragged on, American LGBT and public health advocates have grown increasingly frustrated by the White House, which they say has frozen them out of consultations over responding to the law. The administration has increasingly held back details on what options are under consideration and when they might come.

"They haven't been telling us anything concrete," one told BuzzFeed.

On Tuesday, Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin publicly called out President Obama for his inaction in a letter that said the "delay is putting lives at risk."

"More than three months since the enactment of this law, I respectfully ask
that you direct the Administration's interagency review to begin issuing immediate, concrete results that will illustrate the United States's commitment to protecting human rights in Uganda," Griffin wrote. "President Museveni must understand that there will be continuing and long term political and economic consequences to state-driven homophobia."

Griffin also called for expanding the review to include other countries that have recently enacted "heinous anti-LGBT laws" — Nigeria, Russia, and Brunei — in order to "signal to the world that these consequences are not directed solely towards Africa."

National Security Council spokesman Patrick Ventrell would not comment on why the administration had not made a final decision on the recommendations from the interagency review process. However, he avoided referencing the review in a statement responding to the Human Rights Campaign's letter.

"In response to President Museveni's decision to assent to the Anti-Homosexuality Act, the United States took immediate steps to demonstrate our support for the LGBT community in Uganda, deter other countries from enacting similar laws, and reinforce our commitment to the promotion and defense of human rights for all people – including LGBT individuals," Ventrell wrote. "As we move forward, we will take additional steps to demonstrate our opposition to the Act and our support for LGBT persons in Uganda and around the world—recognizing that the struggle to end discrimination against LGBT persons is a global challenge, and one that is central to the United States commitment to promoting human rights."


Republican Congressman Deletes Statement Calling Bergdahl "A National Hero"

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A link on his website, now gone.

Nebraska Republican Rep. Lee Terry appears to have deleted from his website and Facebook a statement praising former American prisoner of war Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. A link still appears on a cached version of his Facebook and returns a dead link on his website when clicked.

Here's the cached Facebook page with the link:

Here's the cached Facebook page with the link:

Via Facebook: leeterry

Terry's website has a page where the statement previously was:

Terry's website has a page where the statement previously was:

Via leeterry.house.gov


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Republican Senators Say Claims That Bergdahl Was A Deserter Are A Separate Issue

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“Even if Bergdahl had been a sterling, decorated hero it wouldn’t make a difference because a decision was made to get [the Taliban] out.”

Sen. Jim Inhofe

Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images

WASHINGTON — Several soldiers who served with Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl have called him a deserter who deserves to face punishment for, they say, abandoning his unit.

These men have spoken to the New York Times, CNN, and other outlets, expressing their outrage over Bergdahl's disappearance, calling him "at best a deserter, at worst a traitor", and recounting stories of how soldiers died and were put into danger looking for a man they believe chose to leave his post.

But Republican senators on the Hill aren't weighing in on those claims, and say whether or not Bergdahl was a deserter misses the bigger issue of the release of five Taliban prisoners from Guantanamo Bay.

"People are stressing that too much. The issue is that we moved the very leadership of the Taliban and giving them back as we leave," said Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe, who is the ranking member on the Armed Services Committee. "Even if Bergdahl had been a sterling, decorated hero it wouldn't make a difference because a decision was made to get these people out. I think that's the important point."

Sen. Lindsey Graham told reporters on Monday that he very much wanted to find out what happened and why Bergdahl left his post, but he would leave that investigation up to the Department of Defense.

"The one thing I don't want to do is judge this young man based on internet rumors. I want a professional independent investigation by the appropriate military authorities with no interference by the Congress or the White House to apply labels to Bergdahl," he said. "I'm glad he's home for the sake of his family. I want to understand what happened and not make an emotional decision. I want to find out why he left his post. That should be done by the Department of Defense."

Members may have a chance to hear more about the circumstances under which Bergdahl left his post at a classified briefing on Wednesday. A Pentagon spokesman said a 2009 investigation into the matter was classified and would remain that way.

The top Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, Sen. Saxby Chambliss, said he didn't want to comment on the reports or the stories from soldiers who served with Bergdahl before the Department of Defense looked into the matter.

Later at a press conference, Chambliss said that he was "happy for the family" of Bergdahl but reiterated the larger concerns over the prisoner swap.

"The fact is the Taliban picked these five individuals out and said, 'Mr. President, we'll give the sergeant for these five,'" he said. "That's an entirely different issue than being excited or happy for the family."

The White House has also been calling Bergdahl's potential abandonment a "separate issue" from the need to go in and retrieve him.

"The principle at stake here is: Do we, the United States, leave our uniformed members of the military behind when they've been captured by the enemy," White House spokesman Jay Carney told CNN. "And the answer is: No. We don't do that."

An Army spokesman said in a statement that the Army's first priority was "ensuring Sgt. Bergdahl's health and beginning his reintegration process" and any decision about how to proceed would happen afterwards.

"As Chairman Dempsey indicated, the Army will then review this in a comprehensive, coordinated effort that will include speaking with Sgt. Bergdahl to better learn from him the circumstances of his disappearance and captivity," said Secretary of the Army John McHugh. "All other decisions will be made thereafter, and in accordance with appropriate regulations, policies and practices."

Missouri Republican Sen. Roy Blunt said that at the moment, it wasn't really appropriate for members of Congress to weigh in on the circumstances of Bergdahl's capture.

"In the short term, the best people to talk about that are the people that know what happened and that doesn't involve a single member of the House or Senate," Blunt said. "He's not had a chance to tell his story as far as I know, and I'll look forward to hearing it. I consider it a separate issue from whether or not the president has authority to make those kind of releases."

Few Documents Back Up Labor Department's Claim Of "Ongoing Review" About Transgender Rights

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BuzzFeed submitted a public records request for documents about the review. The only document the Labor Department produced was a letter mentioning the “ongoing review.”

Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images

WASHINGTON — The Labor Department has yet to begin in earnest its review of transgender worker protections despite repeated claims by Secretary Tom Perez that it is underway, based on a review of the results of a public records request.

The only document in Perez's office pertaining to the review is a single letter sent to several members of Congress mentioning that the review is ongoing, according to records produced following a Freedom of Information Act request submitted by BuzzFeed in April.

The request followed more than two years of incomplete answers from the Labor Department, including more than a dozen email and in-person requests about whether the department would follow a ruling stating that "sex discrimination" bans include protections against transgender discrimination.

More than two years ago, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ruled in a case brought by Mia Macy that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act protects transgender people from employment discrimination under the act's ban on sex discrimination. Since then, Labor Department officials have refused repeatedly to say whether the department is applying the EEOC's interpretation to the sex discrimination ban in the executive order signed by President Lyndon Johnson that bars federal contractors from discrimination.

In February, Perez responded to a question at a White House briefing by saying that the issue was under review — the first time anyone with the department mentioned any such review. A little more than a month later, Perez expanded on that, saying on March 21, "It is under review. It continues to be under review, and I'm in charge of it." He would not say when the review began, who was a part of the review, or when he expected the review to end.

But when BuzzFeed filed a FOIA request in April for records pertaining to the review, no responsive documents could be found in the Office of the Secretary, according to a May 6 letter from Charlotte Hayes, the deputy assistant secretary for policy.

On May 19, Hayes sent a second letter, stating that "a further search within the Office of the Secretary" resulted in "locat[ing a] responsive document."

The document, date-stamped March 21, was a response to several members of Congress who had asked Perez for information about, among other issues, the enforcement of the executive order in light of the EEOC ruling. In the three-page letter, Perez wrote about the EEOC decision and the review mentioned at the news conference in one-half of a single paragraph, adding only, "That review is ongoing." BuzzFeed was provided with copies of each letter, with identical text other than the addressee, sent to all 19 House members.

BuzzFeed requested all records between April 20, 2012 and April 23 related to:

(1) the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's decision in Mia Macy v. Eric Holder, Appeal No. 0120120821 (April 20, 2012), and
(2) any documents relating to a review of or implementation discussion relating to the effect and/or consequences of the Macy decision on the implementation of Executive Order 11246, and
(3) any communications between officials within the Office of the Secretary and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs regarding the implementation of Executive Order 11246 in light of the Macy decision, and
(4) any communications between officials within the Office of the Secretary (or other Department of Labor officials) and any EEOC or White House employees regarding the implementation of Executive Order 11246 in light of the Macy decision.

BuzzFeed also submitted a similar FOIA request to the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), which is under the Department of Labor and responsible for enforcing Executive Order 11246.

On May 28, BuzzFeed received a "partial response" to the request Herman Narcho, the enforcement branch chief in the Division of Program Operations within OFCCP.

"While OFCCP's search is ongoing, the agency has identified 24 e-mails which are responsive to your request," Narcho wrote. "All 24 e-mails are being withheld in their entirety pursuant to Exemption 5 of the FOIA [5 U.S.C. Sec. 552(b)(5)]. For 23 of the responsive emails, we are invoking the deliberative process privilege incorporated within Exemption 5 to protect OFCCP's decision making process. In addition, with respect to Email No. 2, this e-mail is protected by the attorney-client privilege incorporated within Exemption 5."

As of June 3, OFCCP has not followed up with any other documents — provided or withheld — responsive to BuzzFeed's request.

In contrast, both the EEOC and the Justice Department have made clear that, as to Title VII, it is enforcing the expanded definition of "sex discrimination," as has the Education Department in its enforcement of Title IX.

The Human Rights Campaign, which has called for action from the Labor Department on the issue but has mostly stayed out of the public debate, appears to have reached a breaking point on the issue.

"How long does the review of a black and white decision that protects trans Americans need to last? It's critical that our community understand the elements of this review process, and the unfortunate fact is that these documents shed no new light on the reasons for the delay," HRC spokesman Fred Sainz said Tuesday. "Secretary Perez has long been an advocate for LGBT equality. It's entirely in keeping with his past record of accomplishment that he bring this review process to a quick close and that the Labor Department announce how they plan to effectuate the historic Macy decision."

Tico Almeida, the founder of Freedom to Work, has long pressed the Labor Department for action and been a key critic of the administration's inaction on LGBT workplace issues.

"If the Labor Department can conduct a review of the [United States v.] Windsor decision [striking down the Defense of Marriage Act] in less than two months before issuing revised guidance on Family and Medical Leave Act," he said in reference to August 2013 changes to include same-sex spouses under the FMLA that followed the June 2013 Windsor decision, "there's no possible reason why a review of the Macy decision should take more than two years. This stalling should end."

BuzzFeed has followed up with a third and fourth FOIA request for any similar documents in the Office of the Secretary or OFCCP between the April 23 request and June 3.

Read the first response from the Office of the Secretary:

Read the second response from the Office of the Secretary:


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Former Obama Official: Rose Garden Ceremony Was To Tell Bergdahl’s Story

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“I’m positive everyone knew that it was all going to come out. But what’s the alternative?” says former White House national security spokesperson Tommy Vietor.

President Barack Obama, accompanied by Jani and Bob Bergdahl, speaks in the Rose Garden of the White House on Saturday.

AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster

WASHINGTON — On Saturday, President Obama stood with the parents of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl in the White House Rose Garden — a voluntary media event — to announce the deal that exchanged five Taliban detainees for Bergdahl's release.

Days later, that feel-good event stands in contrast to the deal's reception, with reports from soldiers he served with that Bergdahl may have been a deserter, and lawmakers demanding to know why the administration did not notify Congress of the deal in advance.

Tommy Vietor, one of Obama's former top aides, said Tuesday the goal of Saturday's event was to get in front of the story and take a moment to reflect on Bergdahl's years in Taliban custody before the issue could be politicized.

"What they were trying to do was tell the story before it devolved into partisan attacks," said Vietor, Obama's former National Security Council spokesperson. "To tell a story about who Bowe is, what he's endured, and what his family's endured."

Saturday's White House event with Bergdahl's family was about as high-profile as events get. Networks broke into programming and the White House got the time to make its case. Reporters traveling with the president said Tuesday that the White House didn't expect the immediate criticisms of the Bergdahl swap that began before Obama had left the lectern.

Vietor said administration officials expected the heat to come, but he said the degree of the attacks on Bergdahl and his family before they have had a chance to speak was a surprise.

"I'm positive everyone knew that it was all going to come out," he said. "But what's the alternative? Are we going to preemptively sentence this kid to rot in in a Taliban jail?"

Vietor said veterans who served with Bergdahl have "every right" to speak about their experiences with Bergdahl and criticize him if they want. But Vietor took exception to attacks on Bergdahl's father's beard and his efforts to learn Pashto in an attempt to communicate with his son.

"It's surprising that people would go there," he said.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment on the circumstances behind Saturday's event or how it was organized.

Vietor echoed the defense of Bergdahl's transfer voiced by many in the administration Tuesday — Obama included.

At a press conference in Warsaw, Obama said the military will investigate the circumstances of Bergdahl's Taliban detention now that he's headed back to American soil. But returning any American service member from the theatre of combat is the first duty of military leaders, Obama said.

"Whatever the circumstances may turn out to be, we still get an American soldier back if he is held in captivity. Period. Full stop," the president said. "We don't condition that."

The administration appears to be trying to find its footing as the Bergdahl swap criticisms continue. A top White House official apologized to some senior congressional leaders for not informing them about the Bergdahl deal before it was announced. And Obama and the Army have said there will be an investigation into the circumstances behind Bergdahl's capture away from an American military base. That could signal a shift from the weekend, when a Pentagon source told the New York Times that "the Army would probably not be punishing the sergeant for any violations of rules."

Vietor said Bergdahl should have a chance to tell his story before facing blanket condemnations.

"This guy was in captivity for five years … we should be celebrating his release," he said. "It's a good thing for him, it's a good thing for the country, and it's a good thing for his family."

California Candidate Indicted For Arms Trafficking Gets Hundreds Of Thousands Of Votes

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Despite dropping out of the secretary of state race and being charged in a federal indictment, state Sen. Leland Yee was receiving almost 10% of the vote.

California State Sen. Leland Yee gets into an awaiting car as he leaves the Phillip Burton Federal Building after a court appearance on March 31 in San Francisco.

Justin Sullivan / Getty

LOS ANGELES — A California state senator charged in a federal indictment received nearly one in ten votes in Tuesday's primary election for secretary of state.

Sen. Leland Yee, a San Francisco Democrat, dropped out of the race after being charged in a federal indictment in March with conspiracy to traffic in firearms, after the deadline for removing names from the ballot.

Yee, who has a history of supporting gun control, was accused of accepting money from an undercover officer in return for introducing the undercover officer to an arms dealer. According to a federal criminal complaint, Yee discussed with the undercover officer to bring weapons worth up to $2.5 million from a Muslim separatist group in the Philippines into the United States.

Yee received 287,590 votes, or 9.8%. It was the third highest total after Democrat Alex Padilla and Republican Pete Peterson.

LINK: California State Senator Arrested And Charged In FBI Sweep

LINK: 10 Times The California Lawmaker Accused Of Trading Guns For Money Supported Gun Control


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Underdog Republican Advances In California Governor Race

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Neel Kashkari will face California Gov. Jerry Brown in November’s gubernatorial election.

Neel Kashkari (left) arrives with Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., for an election night party at the Port Theater in Newport Beach, Calif., on Tuesday.

AP

LOS ANGELES — Republican Neel Kashkari, a former Treasury Department secretary, will face Gov. Jerry Brown in California's gubernatorial election in November, after defeating a Republican rival he trailed for months in the polls.

Kashkari, 40, led Assemblyman Tim Donnelly of Twin Peaks, Calif., 19% to 14.8%. Brown, who is seeking a historic fourth term, received 54.5% of the vote.

"Since launching my campaign in January, I've said that my commitment is to rebuilding California's middle class and reenergizing the Republican Party," Kashkari said in a statement. "I am honored and grateful for all the people who share that vision for our state and who have contributed to the success of my campaign so far."

An April poll found Kashkari with less than 4% support, trailing behind Donnelly and three other Republican challengers, including a registered sex offender.

A newcomer to California politics, Kashkari was endorsed by former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, and 2012 presidential candidate Mitt Romney. By Sunday, Kashkari had risen to a dead heat with Donnelly, according to a SC Dornsife–Los Angeles Times poll.

Brown enters his reelection bid with 58% of likely voters who approve of the job he's doing, Sunday's poll found, and about $3.6 million.

GOP Senate Candidate Learns That She Lost Her Race Live On Air

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During a segment on The Kelly File , South Dakota senate candidate Annette Bosworth learned that she had lost her primary race from host Megyn Kelly.

"I didn't know, so I found out on national television," Bosworth said.

View Video ›

Via foxnews.com


Taliban Release Video Showing Moment Bowe Bergdahl Was Handed Over To U.S.

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New footage shows the final moments of the U.S. soldier’s captivity and exchange from the Taliban to U.S. forces in Afghanistan on Saturday.

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The exchange takes place just after the 10-minute mark in the video.

The Taliban released video early Wednesday showing its fighters handing over Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl to U.S. forces in eastern Afghanistan after five years of holding the soldier captive.

In the video, Taliban fighters are seen perched with RPGs on a hillside while others carrying machine guns stand around a pickup truck where Bergdahl is waiting inside, appearing gaunt and blinking frequently. A single Black Hawk helicopter then lands and three ununiformed men emerge.

Two Taliban fighters, under a white flag, then walk out and meet the civilian-clothed U.S. forces halfway and hand over the prisoner. Bergdahl is seen wearing traditional Afghan clothing and carrying what appears to be a plastic bag as U.S. forces shake hands with the Taliban captors and escort him to safety on board the helicopter.

In response to the video's release, Pentagon press secretary Rear Admiral John Kirby said Wednesday, "We have no reason to doubt the video's authenticity, but we are reviewing it. Regardless, we know the transfer was peaceful and successful, and our focus remains on getting Sgt. Bergdahl the care he needs."

Bergdahl, an Idaho native, had been held prisoner by the Taliban since June 2009 until the exchange Saturday. The 28-year-old has been accused by his fellow soldiers of willingly leaving his post.

A 2010 Pentagon investigation into Bergdahl's disappearance concluded that he walked away but stopped short of calling him a deserter, officials told the Associated Press.

On Sunday, Bergdahl was moved from Afghanistan to a U.S. hospital in Germany, where he will remain until he is well enough to return home.

According to U.S. government officials, Sgt. Bergdahl was the only remaining American soldier captured in recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. His release was part of a negotiation that included the trade of five Taliban detainees held at the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Republicans and others in the U.S. have criticized the move, saying it sets a bad precedent by negotiating with "terrorists."

LINK: Bergdahl Willfully Walked Away From His Post, Initial Investigation Found


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All Aboard The "Hillary Bus": Fans Launch National Tour

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A “mobile advertisement” for Hillary 2016.

Hillary Clinton will tour the country this month to promote her new memoir. And she'll be followed by a rolling advertisement for her possible campaign.

Meet the "Hillary Bus."

Ready for Hillary, an organization that's been harnessing support for Clinton since early last year, announced plans for a "coast-to-coast" bus tour this summer. The bus — fondly named the Hillary Bus — will shadow Clinton at a number of stops on her national book tour, the group announced on Wednesday.

The Hillary Bus will also travel to colleges, Democratic events, and state fairs.

The schedule for the bus tour has not been set yet, but is expected to last at least until this year's midterm elections. In the meantime, the bus has its own Twitter account. The first message read, "getting ready for fire up the engine!" A Ready for Hillary aide noted that the bus will tweet in the first person.

In a statement, Ready for Hillary called the bus a "mobile advertisement allowing our organization to reach new supporters in every corner of America." The group, which has already amassed an extensive list of fans, plans to sign up new volunteers for a "grassroots army of supporters who are encouraging her to run."

The group said the Hillary Bus will reach "every corner of America."

Clinton has said she'll make up her mind about the presidential race by the end of this year. She kicks off a national book tour, starting in Manhattan, on June 10.

Democratic Congressman Removes Statements On Bergdahl

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As a backlash grows, members of Congress walk back and remove initial statements on Bergdahl.

His deleted tweets were caught by the website Politiwoops, a product of the Sunlight Foundation that tracks deleted tweets from members of Congress.

His deleted tweets were caught by the website Politiwoops, a product of the Sunlight Foundation that tracks deleted tweets from members of Congress.

The tweets offered "warmest regards to his family with gratitude for his and their service."

Via politwoops.sunlightfoundation.com

The link also appeared on Lynch's Facebook page but has since been removed.

The link also appeared on Lynch's Facebook page but has since been removed.

Via google.com

Republicans and others have criticized the deal in which five Taliban captives were traded for Bergdahl saying it sets a precedent for the exchange of prisoners of war in the future. Several former servicemembers who served with Bergdahl in Afghanistan have also accused him of desertion.

The Obama administration's failure to inform Congress 30 days in advance of any prisoners being released has also caused significant backlash from members of Congress.


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Inside The Secret Dunkin' Donuts Hidden Within The Library Of Congress

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And now your life has changed forever.

After all our years of searching we have found the National Treasure.

After all our years of searching we have found the National Treasure.

And here is the treasure map:

And here is the treasure map:


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Fox News Ran A Very Unfortunate Chyron

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“Hateful little minds.”

"I think this is much more probably about immature [sic], hatred, jealousy, narcissism, and probably coupled with in sufficient parenting — probably what we have here are a couple morally underdeveloped, hateful, jealous, little minds with insufficient supervision and parenting. It's probably a more run-of-the-mill attempted murder really."

This was the chyron Fox News used:

This was the chyron Fox News used:

Fox News


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