Congressman Fred Upton, R-St. Joseph, today supported a bipartisan resolution (H.Res.644) condemning the Obama administration for its failure to properly notify Congress before releasing five senior Taliban members from the U.S. Naval Station at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in exchange for the release of U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. The non-partisan Government Accountability Office (GAO) – the federal government’s independent internal watchdog agency – found the action to be in violation of U.S. law, which requires Congress to be notified at least 30 days in advance of such a transfer. H.Res.644 passed by a vote of 249 to 163. 

“The administration broke the law, and in doing so deprived Congress of its responsibility to consider the sequences to our national security. The lack of accountability and regard for the law is appalling,” said Upton. “Time and again we have seen former captives return to the field of battle to take up arms against the United States and our allies. The five prisoners released in May were not casual observers; they were the ones the Taliban wanted back.” 

On May 31, 2014, the U.S. Department of Defense released the five detainees from Guantanamo Bay to the State of Qatar, which brokered the exchange between the United States and the Taliban. Pursuant to the agreement, these five individuals are to remain in Qatar for one year. Each of these detainees was a senior Taliban leader who previously had associations with al-Qaeda or had engaged in hostilities against the United States or its coalition partners.

In 2010, the Obama administration undertook an evaluation of the detainees at Guantanamo Bay to determine those who could be transferred. The evaluation concluded that the five men involved in the Bergdahl exchange were too dangerous to transfer. 

While the Obama administration failed to properly notify relevant congressional leaders and committees of the exchange, approximately 80 to 90 administration officials and an unknown number of Qatari officials received notification prior to the transfer. 

The GAO also found the administration to be in violation of the Antideficiency Act for spending nearly $1 million in excess of available appropriations to facilitate the transfer.