One survivor of the 2012 terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya, however, is sick of it — and in a tweet, he pointed to the hypocrisy over the outrage liberals saved for Barack Obama when he let five terrorists go free.
So, as for the reactions, NBC News’ Ken White said that D’Souza’s pardon “advances the narrative that some prosecutions — particularly those that can be connected, however tenuously, to former President Obama — are politically motivated and illegitimate, which is precisely the message Trump wants us to hear during special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation.”
Meanwhile, Benghazi survivor Kris Paronto had a message about another “pardon” he felt put the D’Souza affair into perspective.
https://twitter.com/KrisParonto/status/1002266241677967360
“Spare me leftists with your ‘outrage’ over @realDonaldTrump pardoning @DineshDSouza , where was the outrage when @BarackObama released 5 Taliban terrorists for traitor&deserter Bowe Bergdahl?! Y’all need to shut your dang pie holes,” Paronto tweeted.
Yes, in case you forgot, the former president traded five terrorists for an American soldier who was later convicted of deserting his post in Afghanistan.
In all fairness, Obama’s action was a bit more of a quid pro quo than an actual pardon, but here are the five men that Barack Obama thought were worth letting go in order to secure Bergdahl’s release, as per the Military Times:
- Mohammad Fazl, the former deputy defense minister, chief of staff and commander for the Taliban army: “Detainee is wanted by the U.N. for possible war crimes including the murder of thousands of Shiites. Detainee was associated with terrorist groups currently opposing U.S. and coalition forces,” a 2008 detainee assessment of Fazl read. “If released, detainee would likely rejoin the Taliban and establish ties with … elements participating in hostilities against U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan.”
- Khairullah Khairkhwa, former interior minister and military commander for the Taliban. Had direct ties with Osama bin Laden and Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar.
- Mohammed Nabi, chief of security for the Taliban in Qalat, Afghanistan.
- Mullah Norullah Nori, senior Taliban commander in Mazar-e-Sharif during the battle with U.S. forces for that city. “Detainee continues to be a significant figure encouraging acts of aggression and his brother is currently a Taliban commander conducting operations against U.S. and coalition forces,” a 2008 assessment of Nori read.
- Abdul Haq Wasiq, former Taliban deputy minister of intelligence. “He was central to the Taliban’s efforts to form alliances with other Islamic fundamentalist groups to fight alongside the Taliban against U.S. and coalition forces after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks,” an assessment states. “Detainee utilized his office to support al-Qaida and to assist Taliban personnel elude capture. Detainee arranged for al-Qaida personnel to train Taliban intelligence staff.”