MSNBC "Hardball with Chris Matthews" - Transcript: Bowe Bergdahl

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Senator Angus King is an independent from Maine who caucuses with the
Democrats. He was present at last night`s closed Senate briefing about
Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl`s release, which took place in a secure basement
room in the Capitol visitor center last night, an unusual setting.
What was it like in that room? Did you get a sense, Senator King,
that you had learned something new last night about the circumstances of
the president`s decision?

SEN. ANGUS KING (I), MAINE: Yes, Chris, I`ve been to a lot of these
briefings. Last night was actually one of the most informative. I went in
with a lot of questions, and many of them were answered.
I think probably the most dramatic moment in the briefing was when
they played the 30-second video of Bowe Bergdahl last winter in captivity.
It was -- he looked awful, sounded awful. It was -- it was pretty
dramatic. When that video went off, there was a sort of a stunned silence
in the room. I think they ought to declassify that video. I think it
would be very informative to people to see it.

Now, I can`t -- nobody`s going to be able to diagnose whether he was
sick or malnourished or what it was, but I`ll tell you, he wasn`t in very
good shape. And I think that was an important part.

The other question was, why now? Why this deal? There were -- it was
an hour-and-a-half, two-hour briefing, and we had a lot of those questions.
But the fundamental principle is, we bring our soldiers home, period.
And...

MATTHEWS: Were they going to kill him if we...

A. KING: ... that goes back to George Washington.

MATTHEWS: Were they going to kill him, not just the malnutrition, but
I`m getting reports that people coming to that briefing said they were told
last night that he risked being killed if we -- if the word got out, even
about the deal itself.

A. KING: That was what we were told. I can`t reveal the sources,
Chris. That`s classified. But I specifically asked after this statement
was made, Can we make this public? And the answer was yes. He was at risk
of being killed if the negotiations had leaked out. I don`t think there
was any certainty to it, but it was credible intelligence that this was a
possibility.

MATTHEWS: You know, the polling -- we`ll be talking to Howard Fineman
in a moment, but the polling is showing that people do have a different
attitude about this deal based upon what they think of his service record
and the status of Bergdahl when he left his post there.

My question -- most politicians, however, officeholders, says, No,
that`s not the issue. And I think you just made that point. The issue is,
do we bring back all our guys, whatever kind of service record they have?

Is that your position, we bring the guy home, period?

A. KING: Hey, Chris, one of the things we fight for around the world
is rule of law and due process. This guy is entitled to due process.

MATTHEWS: OK, fine.

A. KING: He hasn`t had any hearing yet, and that`s what`s important.
Get him back here, get him well, and then we`ll deal with what he did or
didn`t do.

MATTHEWS: Well, what`s (INAUDIBLE)

A. KING: And he`ll be dealt with accordingly.

MATTHEWS: What`s -- if he was really in danger of dying through
malnutrition or in danger of being killed because the word leaked out,
where`s the argument anymore? I mean, I`m not thrilled with this deal, as
everybody knows, but when it comes down to it, you sort of have to suck it
up and take it, and you make the best of it you can, like all grown-ups do
in life.

A. KING: Well...

MATTHEWS: What`s more to be talked about here?

A. KING: Well...

MATTHEWS: What`s the yelling (ph) about here?

A. KING: Listen, I`m in an institution here, Chris, that`s a lot
better second-guessing than it is actually doing things.

MATTHEWS: Well said.

A. KING: And you know, there`s a lot of second-guessing to be done
around here. But you know, I think you have it right. There are
questions. Was it a good deal? But you know, we don`t know all the
circumstances the president was facing, what the options were, what the
counteroffer and offers were. This is something -- you know, this is a
tough decision that the president had to make, and he brought the guy home.

MATTHEWS: I agree with that. Look, I respect you as a smart, in
fact, fair guy, which is a hell of a statement for a politician.

A. KING: Thank you.

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