Rumors are circulating, some on talk radio, that the Obama Administration may have deliberately delayed a bin Laden-style special operations raid several times to allow President Barack Hussein Obama to pursue an October surprise for political purposes. It is said that credible “on-the-ground” actionable intelligence, superior to what we knew about bin Laden, may not have been used immediately because of political concerns.

Unlike the bin Laden “kill” mission, this alleged mission would be to secure the return of an American Army Soldier, Bowe Bergdahl, who has been held in captivity by the Afghani Taliban since June 2009.

Bergdahl was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 501st Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, based at Fort Richardson, Alaska. During his unit's normal deployment rotation to Afghanistan, he went missing on June 30, 2009, near the town of Yahya Khel in the Paktika Province, which is in the south-east of Afghanistan, right on the border to Pakistan. The area in which Bergdahl was captured is right next to Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas.

He is believed to be held by the Haqqani network, an insurgent group affiliated with the Taliban, probably somewhere in Pakistan.

Since then, the Taliban has released five videos showing him in captivity. The Taliban have demanded $1 million and the release of 21 Afghan prisoners and Aafia Siddiqui in exchange for Bergdahl's release. They have threatened to execute Bergdahl if Siddiqui is not released. Most of the Afghan prisoners are being held at Guantanamo Bay.  <Source: Bowe Bergdahl>

From the book that describes the bin Laden raid …

A new book that documents an attempt to rescue an Idaho soldier in Afghanistan will not likely interfere with efforts to bring him home. That’s according to at least one national security expert. The controversial book is getting attention because it describes the raid that killed Osama bin Laden. It also says in 2009, Navy SEALs went after Bowe Bergdahl’s captors too.

Former Navy SEAL Matt Bissonnette details a moonlit raid on a house in central Afghanistan in his book “No Easy Day.” He says it was one of several attempts made in the summer of 2009 to rescue Idaho native Bowe Bergdahl from the Taliban. Bissonnette describes one gun battle that left a SEAL injured and several Taliban fighters dead.

Michael O’Hanlon of the Brookings Institution says other classified information in the book could harm national security, but he doubts this passage poses a threat to efforts to get Bergdahl back.

“First of all it was three years ago," O’Hanlon says. "Secondly, there has to be an awareness, at least the more senior ones, that this sort of thing is attempted and so when you add it all up, I’m not overly concerned by this passage, even though it’s, again, one more thing that probably should not have been said publicly.”

The Pentagon has been tight-lipped about Bergdahl. In an email, a spokesman said “we can’t confirm or deny this author's recollection of events, however Bowe Bergdahl's safe return remains our highest priority.” <Source: National Public Radio>

Does speaking about the subject openly, hinder rescue attempts.

Like the NPR article, those who hold Bergdahl must be aware of the situation – and the President’s zeal in taking credit for the bin Laden raid. I just hope that we have eyes on the ground and any attempt to move Bergdahl only confirms his location so that action may be taken.

An alternate scenario …

The U.S. State Department is actively considering negotiations with the Egyptian government for the transfer of custody of Omar Abdel-Rahman, also known as “the Blind Sheikh,” for humanitarian and health reasons, a source close to the the Obama administration told TheBlaze.
 
The Department of Justice, however, told TheBlaze that Rahman is serving a life sentence and is not considered for possible “release.” Previous calls to the State Department were referred to the Department of Justice and so far, the State Department has neither confirmed nor denied the report.

From a comment posted by “bb” … “We should consider the possibility that this is the flip side of an October surprise in which POW Bergdahl is released. What a concise way of showing how shadowy jihadist agents coordinate.” <Source>

Even Facebook chatter is ramping up …

Bowe Bergdahl's family gets call from Obama, assured U.S. trying to free soldier captured in Afghanistan *DO YOU SEE BOWE ON THE 'OCTOBER' SURPRISE LIST?* <Source>

BOISE, Idaho -- President Barack Obama called the parents of an American prisoner of war to assure them that he and the U.S. Department of Defense were doing everything in their power to free Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl three years after his capture in Afghanistan.
The soldier's father, Bob Bergdahl, told The Associated Press on Thursday through a spokesman that the family is now confident that everything that can be done to return their son to U.S. control is being done. <Source>

Bottom line …

If President Obama has delayed the return of Bergdahl for political purposes, he is not worthy of the Presidency or the title Commander-in-Chief. I cannot believe that the American mainstream media would allow such a crass political maneuver to occur prior to an election without additional comment about a cynical and craven Obama. Would Obama or his supporters pay the ransom? Or would Obama use Bergdahl’s return on humanitarian purposes to cushion any impact of releasing the “Blind Sheik” in a lame duck session.

Pray for our troops and say a special prayer for Bergdahl’s safe return – if not under this President, surely under the next one. And, perhaps given the Pakistani's apparent involvement with bin Laden, they can proffer a token of support for the United States by returning Bergdahl alive and well – now!

-- steve