The furor in Congress over the deal that freed an American soldier in exchange for five Taliban detainees held by the U.S. only seemed to grow on Wednesday, as senior administration officials tried to use a closed door briefing with Senators to make their case for the controversial exchange.
"I appreciated the opportunity to be briefed on the negotiations that led to Sergeant Bergdahl’s release, but I believe the Administration needs to do more to inform the public," said Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), one of a number of Democrats who have not publicly rallied to the defense of the White House.
"I remain as deeply skeptical about this before this conversation we just had with the administration," said Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), as he joined with other Republicans after the briefing in slamming the White House for failing to consult with Congress, and for turning over the five Taliban detainees who had been held at Guantanamo Bay.
"I learned nothing in this briefing, nor did I expect to learn anything," Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) bluntly told reporters.
One point of contention was over the freed detainees, and how the U.S. could prevent them from attacking in the future.
"I was not satisfied from the briefing that I received today that the conditions that they've agreed upon are sufficient to ensure that they won't re-engage back in the fight against us and threaten either Americans or our allies," said Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH).
In the briefing, Senators were shown a video that has not been made public, which showed Bergdahl in what seemed to be a failing state of health - information that supposedly pushed the White House to secure his release.
More briefings have been set for next week for members of the Senate Armed Services Committee - and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has agreed to testify on the Bergdahl swap before the House Armed Services Committee.
That public hearing has been scheduled for June 11.
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