SEAL deaths a "staggering loss": Ex-SEAL

The deaths of 22 Navy SEALs in Afghanistan was a staggering loss of life for the special operations unit.

Former SEAL Howard Wasdin, author of "SEAL Team Six: Memoirs of an Elite Navy SEAL Sniper," called the loss of life a "staggering blow" to the elite team, though he would not specify numbers "because it gives out capability."

On "The Early Show," he called it a "terrible loss," adding, "You never quit training. You train as a SEAL and then, once you get to this team, you continue training just like every other team. It's a never-ending process and a commitment most people can't even comprehend."

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When asked if the loss of these soldiers hurts the mission in Afghanistan, Wasdin said he doesn't know the particulars of the situation because he's not part of the team anymore. However, he added, "When you have this many elite forces go down, it's got to hurt and it's got to hurt for a long time."

"It takes a long time to train up a member of this group," he said. "It takes way more money and time to train one member of this group than it does an astronaut. So you know, it's going to be felt for a long time."

Wasdin said that, when he received the news  over the weekend, "all-too-real" memories came back to him.

"I found myself Saturday feeling the same way I did during the infamous Black Hawk Down battle, where I lost good friends, and I'd like to say to the American people (that), when we stand up and are happy for the guys when everything goes well, we've got to be willing to stand behind them when things go terribly wrong, and I hope America does that."

The former SEAL also had a word for Washington, saying, "(To be a SEAL), you have to have a dedication, a commitment, a love of country, a love of God and country, and you have to be willing to go out on a daily basis and put your life on the line. I mean, I'm appalled when I look at our country right now, I see the news on the weekend and we got our politicians pointing the fingers about who's to blame for our credit rating, and in the meantime, you've got the best and the brightest out there giving their lives, sacrificing themselves on a daily basis. And my words to our administration, our leaders need to take a play from the playbook of the Navy SEALS, be a team and quit all the infighting."

For more information on how to help the families affected, go to the Special Operations Warriors Foundation.