In this Special Feature, Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer reveals to BillOReilly.com never-before-heard information about Bowe Bergdahl, the Army sergeant who spent five years imprisoned by the Taliban. 

On May 31, 2014, President Obama traded five Taliban commanders held at Guantanamo to get Bergdahl back to the United States. 

Obama's prisoner swap soon became a political firestorm due to widespread allegations that the Taliban captured Bergdahl only after he deserted his Army post in Afghanistan.

But what other options did Obama really have for Bergdahl? 

Retired intelligence operative Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer joins us to break down the alternative plans to rescue Bergdahl that the Obama administration rejected. 

For the first time, Shaffer reveals his own role in a covert operation to get custody of Bergdahl - one that involved no trading of Guantanamo prisoners.  Listen now to hear the incredible inside story of how intelligence operatives tried to bring home Bergdahl before Obama went ahead with his now notorious trade with the Taliban.

Read highlights from the exchange below.

4:46: Shaffer gets called into trying to get Bergdahl released from the Taliban:

SHAFFER: It was something out of a movie.  It was kind of like, 'Hey, your past is calling.  We need to talk to you.'  And so, I get to a secure phone.  And we have probably about a 20-minute conversation about Bergdahl.  And it was one of those things where I had limited knowledge like the American public did, and I was given a little bit more.  It was like, 'There is something more to this, and we think there are some things you can do to help us.'

6:29: Shaffer describes his plan to Bergdahl back to the U.S.:

 SHAFFER: The way to describe the concept was essentially an option relating to creating a mechanism through Pakistan to get him back.  The basic idea was to work with individuals who would have a mutual interest in getting him back, returned.  I think that was the primary thing.  The option had to do with essentially trying to figure out a way to, not to put too a fine a point on it, to cut a deal.  To basically acknowledge the fact that we believed at the time that Pakistan had far more knowledge about his actual disposition, his location all that ... the Pakistan government, and I think that's one of the issues which we still don't know all the details of.

11:14: Shaffer describes the plans presented to Obama to get Bergdahl back:

SHAFFER: There were three basic options briefed to him [Obama].  Possibly a sequence of four because there was a commercial effort, as well.  I would say that there was three I know for sure, possibly four that were briefed.  Direct action ... a Delta Force raid or in this case would probably be the Navy SEALs who would go in and essentially do a direct action, a raid ... on the location once they had good intelligence.  The second option was ... basically  trying find a way to cut a deal to get him back one way or another ... It probably involved money.  And then the third option was this commercial option where you basically give some mercenaries some money and let 'em go to try and figure it out ... a third party vendor helps you out.  And they go do things and tell you some things and gives some level of plausible deniability if things go wrong.  ... And then the other option, which was obviously the one executed was the trade ... five for one trade of the five Taliban leaders for Bergdahl.

12:40: Shaffer says Obama did the trade in part to clear out prisoners from Guantanamo :

SHAFFER: I believe it [the trading of five Guantanamo prisoners for Bergdahl] was done because it was an opportunity.  And the opportunity was for the president to clear out 5 individuals who clearly were some of the worst of the worst in Guantanamo. And let me say this very clearly for the record, at least two of those individuals should be in front of the World Court tried for crimes against humanity.  Two of the individuals met the requirements for kill or capture under the original authorization to use military force authorized in 2001. So at least four of the five should never have been released period just because of the crimes which they were accused of.   Two of which should have been tried in front of the World Court and I believe they would have been found guilty, two of which did meet the requirements of providing aid and comfort and direct assistance to the al Qaeda planners of the 9/11 attacks.  That leaves No. 5, No. 5 was essentially a Haqqani guy who got wrapped up and was traded off because basically the Haqqani guys weren't going to release Bergdahl over the four I just mentioned because they weren't Haqqani.  So they had to throw the fifth guy in, who was Haqqani, to get the deal done.  So this is how badly designed that deal was.  And frankly it was designed to just get a problem off the president's desk.

QUESTION: The problem of Guantanamo?

SHAFFER: Yes, it moved out more. 

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