Blackwater ‘may be worse than Abu Ghraib’

September 26, 2007

To describe the ongoing Blackwater scandal as a fiasco would be a dramatic understatement. Not only do we have a situation in which private security contractors stand accused of killing Iraqi civilians without provocation, we also have deep divisions brewing between the Pentagon and the State Department, coupled by State stonewalling a congressional investigation.

A confrontation between the U.S. military and the State Department is unfolding over the involvement of Blackwater USA in the shooting deaths of Iraqi civilians in a Baghdad square Sept. 16, bringing to the surface long-simmering tensions between the military and private security companies in Iraq, according to U.S. military and government officials.

In high-level meetings over the past several days, U.S. military officials have pressed State Department officials to assert more control over Blackwater, which operates under the department’s authority, said a U.S. government official with knowledge of the discussions. “The military is very sensitive to its relationship that they’ve built with the Iraqis being altered or even severely degraded by actions such as this event,” the official said.

“This is a nightmare,” said a senior U.S. military official. “We had guys who saw the aftermath, and it was very bad. This is going to hurt us badly. It may be worse than Abu Ghraib, and it comes at a time when we’re trying to have an impact for the long term.”

At this point, the State Department seems to be treating Blackwater contractors as the agency’s own private army, accountable to no one outside the department. The Maliki government believes Blackwater is a criminal enterprise, the Iraqi people resent Blackwater’s presence, the Pentagon believes Blackwater is lying about the Sept. 16 incident in Nisoor Square, and congressional Democrats have questions about what has transpired — which the State Department refuses to answer.

This is a debacle so severe and humiliating, only the Bush administration could pull it off.

David Kurtz offers this helpful timeline of events that sets the stage for where we are now.

Sun, Sept. 16: Blackwater incident in which 11 Iraqi civilians are killed after State Department convoy reportedly comes under fire, an account disputed by the Iraqis.

Mon, Sept. 17: Rep. Henry Waxman, chairman of the House Government Reform Committee announces his committee will investigate the Blackwater incident.

Tue, Sept. 18: The American Embassy in Baghdad suspends diplomatic convoys outside the Green Zone.

Wed, Sept. 19: In a phone call, Acting Assistant Secretary of State William Moser warns Blackwater that no information regarding the Blackwater contract can be released without State’s prior written approval.

Thu, Sept. 20: Moser repeats the warning in a second call to Blackwater, and State sends Blackwater a follow-up letter again asserting again that the information possessed by Blackwater belongs to State and cannot be disclosed.

Fri, Sept. 21: The four-day suspension of State Department convoys ends and Blackwater resumes business. Secretary of State Condi Rice announces that her department will undertake a “full and complete review” of diplomatic security in Iraq.

And while it’s certainly nice of Rice to suddenly take an interest in accountability, Congress, which has oversight responsibility and is paying the bills for all of this, believes a bipartisan review on Capitol Hill will produce a more accurate picture of what’s transpired.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice not only refuses to cooperate, her office has also ordered Blackwater not to answer any questions from lawmakers.

The State Department has interceded in a congressional investigation of Blackwater USA, the private security firm accused of killing Iraqi civilians last week, ordering the company not to disclose information about its Iraq operations without approval from the Bush administration, according to documents revealed Tuesday.

In a letter sent to a senior Blackwater executive Thursday, a State Department contracting official ordered the company “to make no disclosure of the documents or information” about its work in Iraq without permission.

I appreciate the fact that outrage fatigue is inevitable when dealing with the Bush gang, but this is truly ridiculous. We have American taxpayers financing a private security army, whose members stand accused of slaughtering civilians. The Secretary of State believes no one should ask any questions about this, and those who do must be ignored. It’s pure lunacy.

The State Department’s cooperation with a congressional inquiry is not optional. Rice can’t simply refuse to divulge information, and ordering others to remain silent is getting fairly close to the obstruction-of-justice line.

When these guys act like they have something to hide, it’s almost always because they have something to hide. Stay tuned.

Just awful. Impeach. All. Now.

Oh, that’s right… impeachment only happens in a constitutional republic.

Where is the outrage, except on the blogs and in street protests? Where is the leadership? Where are Clinton, Obama, & Edwards???

Pathetic.

  • It must be even worse than has been speculated, if State is trying this hard to keep it under wraps. I say get the full story out and let the chips fall where they may. If it contributes to the end of a US presence in Iraq, good riddance.

  • slightly off topic……on the news last night, there was discussion about the new military base less than five miles from the iran border. it will be staffed with approximately 200 soldiers and……wait for this…….us border patrol agents.

    yeah, that’s what they said. us border patrol agents. if the story was correct, what in hell are border patrol agents doing in iraq? it would seem that the military would be better suited for this role, plus we don’t have enough agents here in this country as it is! they have trouble stopping illegals from entering this country in the south, and canadians are cancelling visits to the us because of the lengthy backups at border crossings in the north.

    so what’s up with this? anyone have any more info on this?

  • Since the Congressional Republicans think anyone in uniform (during a Republican administration) can do or say no wrong, perhaps the Dems should run a short, quick piece of emergency legislation freezing all funding from going to Blackwater. When the Rethugs balk, ask them why they are siding with a for-profit company against the brave men and women of the US Military.

  • Isn’t it time Congress refused to allow the Bush administration to withhold evidence from them, when they have a Constitutional responsibility to investigate and oversee the administration’s actions and use of resources? Can’t they file charges against the administration for this refusal and put somebody in jail?

  • Hey Dems, let’s use the money that is supposed to go to Blackwater to pay the overage on the SCHIP bill Bush is threatening to veto. Then it can claim to be revenue neutral;>

  • There is no better way to win the trust of of the Iraqi people than to have a private army, accountable to no law, cowboying around their country. By forcing the central government to cave on its demand to even suspend Blackwater, the State Department has certainly reinforced both the authority of that government and demonstrated its sovereignty and legitimacy.

    [/snark]

    Many of the militias, armed gangs and paramilitaries in Iraq are making the argument that the Maliki government is nothing more than a powerless bunch of puppets. Bolstering that argument might not be wise.

  • I am with Anney and JKap. I finally hit the point where I really don’t understand how impeachment precedings don’t take place. I just cannot imagine how any organization, public or private, can afford to recover from repeated damning unprofessional acts of increasing public notoriety. This is doubly true when the perpetrators of said acts insist they can never be investigated. Fire the bums.

    At the very least, call as much public attention to it as possible. Subpeona witnesses. When the executive refuses to cooperate start procedures to impeach. When the Republicans start screaming bloody murder about “politics”, use that attention to point out why you are bringing the charges. Do about 15-20 people in quick succession. Point out just how ridiculously corrupt the Republican machine has become and drive that point home. The louder they squeal, the more it draws attention to their behavior and the sooner this nightmare is over with.

  • I’ve argued against impeachment in the recent past, but noted that there was a rapidly approaching point at which there would be no other option. That point has come and gone.

    It is at the very least why Kucinich deserves to be treated as a credible candidate.

  • Note that when I say impeachment, I don’t mean start with the President and VP. Start hitting appointed officials. They are the ones publicly violating the public trust. We all know who is behind it. But for now, you take out the whole side systematically.

  • “The State Department’s cooperation with a congressional inquiry is not optional. Rice can’t simply refuse to divulge information, and ordering others to remain silent is getting fairly close to the obstruction-of-justice line.”

    Sorry, CB. Of course it’s optional.

    As long as subpoenas that are outstanding exist–and there are many that do (e.g., Miers, Rove, attorneygate emails)–there is absolutely no compulsory action required from State or from anyone else.

    This so-called ‘Democratically-controlled congress” is indeed DINO. They have been shown to have no backbone at all with respect to their constitutionally-mandated power of oversight. They have shown that they will not exercise their power, to the detriment of law-abiding Americans.

    Our congress continues to stand idly by regarding the rule of law. Why should cooperation not be an option in this environment?

  • Note that when I say impeachment, I don’t mean start with the President and VP. Start hitting appointed officials. They are the ones publicly violating the public trust.

    So we should be finished impeaching people by about 2047, then. Nay, I say. Cut off the head.

  • I was struck by the pictures outside the UN of the protestors holding signs saying “Hitler lives”. I agree, but he lives in the White House, he has invaded Czechoslovakia (Iraq) and the world has done nothing. Now he has his sights on Poland (Iran). I agree with Tom Cleaver, Blackwater is $hrub’s Waffen SS.

  • I suppose arresting Blackwater’s Board of Directors for running a terrorist organization is out of the question.

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  • I worked with Blackwater and I tell you that it is a professional business. With out Blackwater, the Iraq rebuilding will fail and it will crumble. We secure everything over there.

  • Get real. The “timeline you suggest has amnesia. It was Blackwater in Fallujah that is something like the beginning of this story. That was April 2004. Four Blackwater mercenaries were beheaded. Gee, you don’t suppose they were behaving like lawless thugs back then, do you? Poor innocent babies. Back then he US Bushevik criminal government used this incident as a sort of extra casus belli to smoke the entire city. The destruction of Fallujah and how it was conducted was a first tier war crime, if that term has any meaning any more. I’m not knocking the Marines. They were following orders, and so maybe they have cover there. A bunch of trusting kids. The order came from the top. That would be Cheney-Bush-Rumsfeld. When an Italian woman journalist tried to get the story out she was shot by the American military (who said, “Oops.”) on her way to the airport and her Italian Secret Service guard, a high ranking officer was killed. The only reason Italy didn’t break diplomatic relations with the United States over this was that Berlusconi – the Italian Rupert Murdoch – was still President of Italy.

  • Just think of Iraq as Graduate school for terrorists, both ours and theirs.
    The Knee-Jerk killing of civillians is a REQUIRED subject.
    Just wait until they come home.

    Got FrieKorps?

  • I can envision the complete privatization of the military and police forces. I think this is only the beginning. Blackwater was even used in Katrina. Check it oun on youtube.

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  • Does Military Intelligence/CIA use Blackwater as a cover for their own paramilitary/death squad operations? Of course they do, just like in Vietnam. I served as a Case Officer for a CIA directed operation designed to conduct black terror/false flag operations inside Cambodia and Vietnam, all in violation of Presidential Directives issued during National Security Council meetings. Not much has changed in forty years.

    http://johnmccarthy90066.tripod.com/id1.html

    http://johnmccarthy90066.tripod.com/id258.html

    The CIA has run out of “sources and methods”…..but they continue their treason.

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  • This is outrageous!! Using the term “security guards” for these high paid killers should not be allowed since it is all too misleading. The media should call them “Murderous war profiteers” , IMO. The fact that these companies are getting paid with U.S. tax money makes me sick! I am refusing to file taxes until the wars are over. Screw the Bush administration’s greedy warmongering pigs!

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