Transcripts For WPVI Nightline 20171017 : vimarsana.com

Poor in miami, how his family helped him move on from a major league controversy. And picture perfect, a white house Staff Photographer getting candid about her years following the first Lady Michelle obama, and the story behind this famous image. But first here, the nightline 5. Good evening, and we begin here tonight with our abc news exclusive interview with Sergeant Bowe bergdahl. Who spent five years as a captive of the taliban in afghanistan and was called a traitor by then candidate drump. Now he could go to prison for the rest of his life. Heres abcs chief investigative correspondent brian ross. Hes garbage. Hes a dirty, rotten traitor. A nogood rotten traitor. Reporter other than hillary clinton, no american has been more attacked or savaged by donald trump than this army sergeant, Bowe Bergdahl. In the old days, when we were strong, you know what happens to bergdahl, bing dong, hes gone. Reporter after walking off his post in afghanistan, bergdahl was captured by the taliban for five years. Before being turned over in this dramatic moment. Reporter today bergdahl at a courtmartial hearing pleaded guilty to desertion. He told the military judge, i understand leaving was against the law. I understood. I endangered the safety of my platoon. The army says at least two soldiers were seriously wounded went they searched for bergdahl. Tonight he says the words of candidate donald trump, who is now his commander in chief, would have made a fair trial impossible. Might as well go back to kangaroo courts and lynch mobs. They got what they wanted. The people who want to hang me, youre never gonna convince those people. And it goes quickly, right . Its called, youre dead. The people who were to the point of saying, just shoot him. You could never convince those people to change their minds. And it hurts . It does hurt. Reporter bergdahl talking in a small shed where he spends a lot of time, described how he survived his five years in captivity to a british filmmaker who himself was held captive by the same taliban group. I mean, youre in survival mode. There really are no rules. Just to, you know, when it comes to drinking urine, when it comes to eating food that has been thrown in the dirt that you know is mixed with feces. Theres no rules to surviving. This is a fox news alert reporter and bergdahl scoffs at reports that he was well treated and had actually joined up with the taliban. Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl was said to have declared himself a warrior for islam. Its insulting. Its very insulting the idea that they think i did that. Reporter in fact, says bergdahl, he twice tried to escape from the taliban compound where he was held somewhere in pakistan. It was getting so bad that i was literally looking at myself, looking at my joints, looking at my ribs, i was going, um, im just going to die here from sickness, or, you know, i can die escaping. You know, it didnt really matter. Reporter he says in one escape attempt, he was on the run for several days before being caught. And then put in a cage like an animal. Its a cage that was welded together, about a sevenfootlong, by about sixfootwide and maybe about six feet by one inch tall. And how long were you in the cage for . Second, third, fourth, and into the fifth year. Reporter the military official who debriefed former u. S. Captains said bergdahl was horribly treated and tortured. Ngets when they recaptured him and brought him back, they spread eagled and secured him to a metal bed frame. While he was shackled in that position, they took a plastic pipe, i imagine it was like a plumbing pipe, and they started beating his feet and his legs repeatedly with this plastic pipe. Later they moved to using a copper cable. The idea was to just beat him and injure his legs and his feet so that he could not walk away again. Reporter as all of this was happening, bergdahls plight was being monitored at the pentagon by the head of the Defense Intelligence agency. I am Lieutenant General retired mike flynn. Reporter who became president trumps Top National Security adviser and is now at the center of the russian investigation, was also interviewed about bergdahl. For the first 24 to 72 hours, we were in crisis operations, and we were i was personally diverting every single capability, human intelligence wise, to signals intelligence, to unmanned aerial vehicles, to spacebased systems. I mean, we really turned on, to find this soldier. So you believe, sir, that he did walk off the base, with the intention of meeting the taliban . Absolutely. Absolutely. Reporter bergdahl disputes that he ever planned to join the taliban. Claiming in the serial podcast that he walked off post in an attempt to report that his platoon commander was a bad leader. He was out of control, from what i could see. He was unfit for what he was doing. Reporter a military judge found bergdahls observations about his commander to be unreasonable and incorrect. Whatever bergdahls reasons for deserting, president obama said, they were not a factor in the u. S. Efforts to gain his freedom. The United States of america does not ever leave our men and women in uniform behind. Reporter a team of u. S. Special forces carried out the operation in a remote area of pakistan. Bergdahl says he was too overcome with emotion to even cry. The five years i was dealing with, it was like its a pain that goes beyond anything that its so overwhelming, crying doesnt do anything. It gets stuck. Reporter but to gain his freedom, the Obama Administration agreed to release five taliban prisoners from guantanamo, a decision harshly criticized during the election campaign. We get a nogood traitor, and they get the five people that they wanted for years, and those people are now back on the battlefield, trying to kill us. Reporter now that bergdahl has pleaded guilty to desertion, a military judge will decide next week what his punishment should be, including the possibility of prison. Bergdahl has his defenders. You couldnt ask for a better soldier in captivity than what Bowe Bergdahl did. He continued to fight the enemy. He continued to resist. He escaped within weeks of his initial capture. Hes escaping and trying to get away from them. Reporter and some who believe he did act dishonorably still think hes suffered enough, including general flynn. I dont think that he should serve another day in any sort of confinement or jail or anything like that. Because, frankly, even though he put himself into this situation, we, the United States government, put him in afghanistan. Reporter for nightline, brian ross, abc news, new york. Next, arods second act off the field. Inside the family life of the retired baseball superstar. Does psoriasis ever get in the way of a touching moment . If you have moderate to severe psoriasis, you can embrace the chance of completely clear skin with taltz. Taltz is proven to give you a chance at completely clear skin. With taltz, up to 90 of patients had a significant improvement of their psoriasis plaques. In fact, 4 out of 10 even achieved completely clear skin. Do not use if you are allergic to taltz. Before starting you should be checked for tuberculosis. Taltz may increase your risk of infections and lower your ability to fight them. Tell your doctor if you are being treated for an infection or have symptoms. Or if you have received a vaccine or plan to. 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Are yall ready to have a good time reporter its saturday night, las vegas. Reporter superstar j. Lo sets the stage on fire. And whos watching from the vip section . Her boyfriend, Alex Rodriguez and his 12yearold daughter natasha. Hi. That was the best show ive ever seen. No the best. Really . You were on fire cracker. The two announced their relationship this past may and have been paparazzi gold ever since. Snapped while on vacation in france, cruising in the car oh, yes reporter and all over new york and florida. Jennifers an amazing person. Shes the hardest working person. She has like ten jobs. Reporter shes making you look lazy. I think so. A thousand people in here every night. Good show, baby. The man of the hour she loves sports, great athlete, great mother, great daughter, great friend. Reporter we know Alex Rodriguez as the home run hitter on the yankees. Hes out, a record suspension for Alex Rodriguez. Reporter later involved in a performanceenhancing drugs scandal that rocked the end of his baseball career. I did take a banned substance. You know, for that, im very sorry, and deeply regretful. Reporter now hes in what he calls his second act. Analyzing plays on fox sports. The size of an nfl tight end, but moves around like a shortstop. Guest appearing on shark tank. I understand athletes. And going all in on his multi Million Dollar real estate empire, purchasing his own ufc gym and joining abc news as a contributor. But his number one dad, doting dad. At home hes just a regular guy. But outside hell always be arod whats up . This is the best part of retirement. Reporter but he isnt too famous to embarrass his daughters. What boys . I dont know. What boys are we talking about . Should i go meet all of them . I want all them boys to know ho daddy is. Reporter hes come a long way from his very Humble Beginnings in miami. Poor, raised by a single mother who inspired him to work hard. After school, one of my parents friends would pick me up and drop me off where my mother was a waitress at. Then i go home at midnight with her. I would help her count the tip money and put it under the mattress. This place is very special to me. Reporter it was at this boys and girls club that rodriguez learned to play, and it became his ticket out. I was a scholarship kid, which meant three things, i had to be a good kid, i had to get good grades and i had to play pretty good baseball. Reporter but it was on this field he became a household name. Were there moments that sit heavier than others . Its hard not to think about the great times, the great wins, the walkoffs, the fans going crazy. Reporter his talent and drive making him unstoppable. Some play by alex. Reporter hitting almost 700 home runs, helping usher his team, the new york yankees world champions for the 27th time reporter to a world series win in 2009. That was the best time of my career. Reporter shortly after, things came to a screeching and unforgiving fault. Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez has been suspended. 211 regular season games. Reporter he was front and center in a Major League Baseball over the use of performanceenhancing drugs. Admitting this to espn in 2014. I was young, i was stupid, i was naive. And i wanted to prove to everyone that, you know, i was worth, you know, being one of the greatest players of all time. And i did i did take a banned substance. Reporter but that only came after multiple denials, as he did here on 60 minutes. Have you ever used steroids, Human Growth Hormone or any other performanceenhancing drugs . No. Have you ever been tempted to use any of those things . No. Reporter would you handle those interviews differently today . Theres no question about it. I would, sarah. And you know when i look back, theres a lot of things i would have done differently. I look back at some of those interviews and cringe. Its not just about hitting home runs and winning games that matter. Its how you behave in the clubhouse, how you behave out in the world, what kind of father and role model you are. I think ill be able to look back at the darkest moments of my life, which were those, and think that its one of the biggest blessings in my life as i kind of move forward. Reporter alex says that it was his family who helped him through. He and his exwife of nine years, cynthia skrutis have come a long way from their contentious divorce. Hi, beautiful. The song doesnt stop. She looks incredible, right . Reporter fresh off the plane from j. Los vegas show, they spend the day together. Hi fosh bosh. From the beginning, we always put the kids first, so that they would grow and have Emotional Wellness and not feel a lot of the tugging that you see that happens in families that are divorced. Reporter but the kids have some complaints. He does a lot of funny things. But theyre mostly sometimes embarrassing. He cant dance or sing for his life, but its funny when he does. Reporter while there have been momentous highs and dark lows in his life, alex says its made him a better man, father, and role model. You know, i think everything happens for a reason. Sure theres regrets along the way, but you dont have to be defined by those mistakes. How you come back matters too. Reporter for night line, im sarah haynes. Next, a former white house photographer telling the stories behind her most famous pictures. Abc news nightline brought to you by dav. Looking for balance in your digestive system . Try align probiotic. For a nonstop, sweet treat goodness, hold on to your tiara kind of day. Get 24 7 digestive support, with align. The 1 doctor recommended probiotic brand. Also in kids chewables. My bladder leakage was making me feel like i couldnt spend time with my grandson. Now depend fitflex has their fastest absorbing material inside, so it keeps me dry and protected. Go to depend. Com get a coupon and try them for yourself. Go to depend. Com when you ache and havent youre not you. Tylenol® pm relieves pain and helps you fall fast asleep and stay asleep. We give you a better night. Youre a better you all day. Tylenol®. My shoulders carry some i deserve others i dont but in the end only one name really matters because shoulders were made for greatness, not dandruff sweet 4k tv, mr. Peterson. Thanks. Im pretty psyched. Did you get fios too . No, was i supposed to get fios . Mr. Peterson. Fios is a 100 fiberoptic network. Its like it was invented to stream 4k movies and shows. How do you know so much about tv and internet . The internet. Right. Streaming is only as good as your internet. So get the best internet with the 100 fiberoptic network get fios now just 79. 99 per month for fios gigabit connection plus tv and phone. Finally tonight, the woman behind the lens for some of the most memorable pictures of michelle obama. Heres abcs robin roberts. How about this photograph here with the first ever girl scout campout on the south lawn of the white house. Like, how cool. Reporter just one day in the life for photographer amanda louis don. Now sharing the stories behind a collection of intimate images of former first Lady Michelle obama, in her new book chasing light. As a photographer, you can spend your whole career chasing light. But for me, the deeper meaning was, working at the white house of a transformative time for me. Reporter from Humble Beginnings, she worked her way up to Staff Photographer, one of a few women in this role in history. I learned from her that you can be anything. Reporter for four years, amanda traveled with mrs. Obama, capturing photos of the first lady. She has such a seriously role, but she has this lightness about her. She loves to laugh. Didnt the president tweet this photo for valentines day . Yeah, which is pretty cool. Reporter one of her most widely shared. I think thats the importance of having good editors, because im such a perfectionist, im like, the picture is kind of messy. And then my editor is like, the