Obama was successful in flipping the news cycle away from the VA scandal, and towards the release of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. So who does his father thank? His son, not for helping America’s interests in Afghanistan, but rather ‘helping the Afghan people‘:
But most of all, I’m proud of how much you wanted to help the Afghan people, and what you were willing to do to go to that length,” Bob Bergdahl said, fighting back tears during a press conference in Boise. “I’ll say it again: I’m so proud of how far you were willing to go to help the Afghan people. And I think you have succeeded.”
Parents Bob and Jani Bergdahl didn’t elaborate on what that meant.
The circumstances surrounding Bergdahl’s capture remain something of a mystery. There has been some speculation that he willingly walked away from his unit, raising the question of whether he could face charges.
In 2012, Rolling Stone magazine quoted emails Bergdahl is said to have sent to his parents that suggest he was disillusioned with America’s mission in Afghanistan, had lost faith in the U.S. Army’s mission there and was considering desertion. Bergdahl told his parents he was “ashamed to even be American.” The Associated Press could not independently authenticate the emails.