Yes, Obama Broke the Law

Marc Ambinder: “There’s no bones about it: in trading five Taliban detainees at Guantanamo Bay for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, President Obama willfully broke a law. And this wasn’t an old law, or a law that was passed before he became president. It was his law — or more accurately, successive versions of the military budget bill called the National Defense Authorization Act.”

“Now, Obama did not like the provision that required him to give Congress 30 days of notice before transferring detainees out of Guantanamo. And in a signing statement, he said as much: the executive branch’s ability to defend the country shouldn’t be constrained by the notification period. But the law’s language was clear, as was Congress’s intent.”

The Hill: “A special briefing by senior administration officials Wednesday evening failed to sell skeptical senators concerned about President Obama’s decision to trade five Taliban commanders for Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl’s release.”