On Sunday, the Washington Post ran a stunning, must-read item by Rajiv Chandrasekaran, excerpted from his new book, “Imperial Life in the Emerald City.” As we discussed on Monday, Chandrasekaran explained, among other things, how the Bush gang chose Americans to fill key government posts in Iraq (by applying a rigid ideological test, and discarding genuine experts who weren’t considered politically conservative enough).
It’s worth noting that congressional Dems don’t have much time left before lawmakers adjourn for the year, but they’re doing their level best to use Chandrasekaran’s story to remind everyone about the total lack of oversight and accountability when it comes to the war in Iraq.
Democrats hoping to capture control of the U.S. Congress in this fall elections called on Tuesday for probes of the Bush administration’s Iraq rebuilding effort, which they likened to the government’s botched response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Senate Democrats urged congressional and Pentagon investigations into hiring and contracting practices in Iraq. The requests came after the Washington Post newspaper reported young novices with Republican political connections got high-level jobs rebuilding Iraq in 2003 and 2004.
“Iraq, in one of the most critical moments in its history when the United States was there was being run by neocons (neoconservatives) in diapers,” said Sen. Richard Durbin of Illinois, a senior Democrat. “The Coalition Provisional Authority became the Bush administration’s FEMA in Iraq.”
Dems, of course, want some kind of oversight hearing, which would offer lawmakers a list of the names the administration hired to run the CPA. With only nine days left in the session, a hearing seems unlikely, but I’m glad to see Dems keep the pressure on anyway.
Most notably, Durbin and Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid had a highly entertaining exchange on the Senate floor yesterday, highlighting their concerns.
Bob Geiger published a transcript from the Congressional Record — and AlterNet has the video — of what practically became a comedy routine.
Mr. Durbin: Will the Senator yield for a question?
Mr. Reid: I will be happy to yield for a question.
Mr. Durbin: Can the Senator refresh my memory? Was Mr. Bremmer the recipient of a gold medal or something from the President? Didn’t he receive some high decoration or medal for his performance in Iraq?
Mr. Reid: The answer is, yes, he received that. I assume one would expect that from somebody who had a throne while he was over there.
Mr. Durbin: Isn’t it also true that George Tenet, who was responsible for the intelligence that was so bad that led us into the war in Iraq, got a medal from the President the same day?
Mr. Reid: That is true.
Mr. Durbin: Did Michael Brown with FEMA receive a gold medal from the White House before he was dismissed?
Mr. Reid: I don’t think he did. Even though he was doing a heck of a job, I don’t think he obtained a medal from the White House.
Mr. Durbin: Apparently, these gold medals were being awarded for incompetence. They missed Mr. Brown, but they did give one to Mr. Bremmer…. Will the Senator yield for another question?
Mr. Reid: I will be happy to.
Mr. Durbin: I am trying to recall the exact number — it was in the billions of dollars — that we gave to the President for the reconstruction of Iraq; is that not true?
Mr. Reid: It started out at $18 billion. But as the Senator from Illinois will remember, part of that money, stacks of one-hundred-dollar bills, was used by some of the contractors who were sent over there to play football games — some of these same people.
Mr. Durbin: It is also true, is it not, that the Democratic policy conference has been holding hearings — in fact, I think it is the only agency on the Hill holding hearings — on this waste and abuse, this profiteering and corruption at the expense of American taxpayers and even, equally important — more importantly — at the expense of our troops?
Mr. Reid: I say to my friend, this war is approaching 3 1/2 years, and there has not been a single congressional oversight hearing on the conduct of the war. This war has now cost us, the American taxpayers, about $325 billion. There has not been a single congressional oversight hearing on the war.
Mr. Durbin: I ask the Senator from Nevada if he might comment on this as well: Are we not in a situation where the President has told us that he wants to “stay the course” in Iraq, and Vice President Cheney, when asked a week ago, said he wouldn’t change a thing in the way they have done this war in Iraq? Is it very clear that unless there is a change in leadership in this town soon, we are going to continue down this disastrous course, exposing our soldiers to danger every single day, their families to the anxiety of separation, and the taxpayers of this country to billions and billions of dollars more being spent that don’t make us any safer?
The text doesn’t do it justice; go watch the video.