Military Contractor Blackwater, AKA Xe, in Trouble Again

The private contracting firm of Blackwater, now known as Xe, has had a number of problems since the Bush administration began the practice of hiring mercenaries under the rubric of private contractors. Having been ejected from Iraq, Blackwater's problems this time are in Afghanistan. As usual, stories involving Blackwater seem to involve contradictions. Here's CNN's version of the Blackwater shooting incident:

One of three Afghan civilians wounded when U.S. contractors shot at them in an incident in early May died of his wounds Sunday, according to U.S. military officials in Afghanistan.

A second Afghan civilian remains in serious condition, and the third person wounded was treated and released from a Kabul hospital, according to the U.S. military in Kabul.

(snip)

After the shooting, the men claimed they were being held against their will by their former employer, Paravant, in Kabul. Paravant's parent company, Xe, said the men were not being held against their will. It said the U.S. military told the company to instruct the men to stay as the investigation progressed.

The U.S. military denied the men were being asked to stay because of the investigation...

The controversy continues over the shooting incident and who authorized what. Here's the AP story:

Two men who worked for the security firm formerly known as Blackwater say the company issued weapons to their employees in Afghanistan despite the military prohibiting workers from carrying guns.

The employees were military trainers apparently allowed to use weapons during training but not otherwise because of restrictions placed on Blackwater by the military. The restrictions are a clear response to repeated incidents by private contractors, Blackwater included.

At the management level, Blackwater's reputation for integrity is not good. It was Blackwater whose contractors were killed by insurgents in an ugly 2004 incident in Fallujah after being warned by the military to use a different route. Like Cheney, Rumsfeld and Bush, Blackwater's executives have a knack for revising history. Here's part of a 2007 story from Bloomberg:

In a 10-page report delivered yesterday to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Blackwater said its security guards couldn't have prevented the deaths of four Americans in an attack in Fallujah at an Iraqi Civil Defense Corps checkpoint. The videotaped brutality of the incident sparked a U.S. military offensive.

However, in the same news story, we find a different version after investigations by others:

Committee Chairman Henry Waxman has criticized the company in a series of reports, including a Sept. 27 review that said the company ignored warnings, failed to properly equip its employees and cut essential personnel before the ambush.

Waxman has accused the company of initiating violence in a series of incidents in Iraq, quietly paying off one victim's family and avoiding U.S. taxes. He also highlighted ties between its top executives and the Bush administration.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice yesterday ordered added training and revised rules for use of force by security contractors in Iraq, following a Sept. 16 incident involving Blackwater that left at least 11 people dead.

The head of Blackwater, now know as Xe, is a well-connected Republican, Erik D. Prince. The New York Times did a profile on him during congressional investigations in 2007:

Republican political connections ran deep in his family long before Mr. Prince founded Blackwater in 1997. When he was a teenager, religious conservative leaders like Gary Bauer, now the president of American Values, were house guests. James C. Dobson, the founder of the evangelical organization Focus on the Family, gave the eulogy at his father’s funeral in 1995. “Dr. and Mrs. Dobson are friends with Erik Prince and his mother, Elsa Broekhuizen,” Focus on the Family said in a statement.

Mr. Prince’s sister, Betsy DeVos, married into one of the most politically active conservative families in the Midwest. She has served as the chairwoman of the Republican Party of Michigan, and last year, her husband, Richard DeVos Jr., ran unsuccessfully for governor of Michigan as the Republican candidate. Mr. Prince and his family have given hundreds of thousands of dollars to Republican candidates and other conservative and religious causes, records show.

Various excuses are made for Blackwater just as excuses have been made for Cheney, Rumseld, Scooter Libby, Karl Rove and yes, George W. Bush. Hopefully, the era of private military contractors is drawing to a close. It cannot happen soon enough.

Afghanistan and NATO

Afghanistan is a war that should have been done a long time ago. However, Bush's decision to go to war in Iraq put Afghanistan somewhat on the back burner for the better part of three years. The decision to bring in NATO was a good one but it's never certain what the outcome will be if someone like President Bush is involved. Afghanistan requires close watching.

I'm not sure I totally agree with him but American Pundit had a thoughtful post on Afghanistan that's worth passing along, particularly these two paragraphs:

Last summer NATO and Afghan government forces moved into the south and east of the country. For the first time in decades these provinces are coming under control of the central government. This is good news for the common folk and bad news for the Taliban and opium growers who thrive on lawlessness. Unsurprisingly, the level of violence in Afghanistan's eastern and western provinces ratcheted up last year in response.

The NATO commander during this period, British Gen. David Richards, did a fantastic job with the forces he had available. He understood the basic premise of counterinsurgency warfare: less is more. The fewer battles fought and the less damage and killing done, the better our relationship with the Afghan civilians who hold the power to either give shelter to the enemy or turn them over to us.

Something of the same sort may have to happen in Iraq. We need to get ourselves out of the civil war that has far too many factions and issues for us to resolve. One option is to remain in the country, outside the urban areas, and act only when it is clear what we need to do, while working hard on political settlements. We can also start drawing down while we pursue this option; in fact, drawing down would facilitate the option since it would make it clear to the Iraqis that they have to take control of their future.

Hillary Clinton in Afghanistan and Pakistan

There's not exactly a whole lot to report but here's a story on Hillary Clinton's visit to Asia courtesy of AP writer Jason Straziuso in The Guardian:

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton ate breakfast with soldiers from New York and Indiana at the main U.S. base in Afghanistan on Sunday before meeting with the top American general in Afghanistan and Afghan President Hamid Karzai, officials said.

Clinton, a Democrat from New York who is considering running for president, later went to Lahore, Pakistan, where she met briefly with Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf late Sunday, according to a foreign ministry statement.

At the meeting, Musharraf said a ``peaceful and stable Afghanistan was in Pakistan's vital interest,'' the statement read. Musharraf also ``affirmed Pakistan's firm resolve to fight extremism and terrorism.''

I'm a little uneasy with Pakistan's policy towards the Taliban which seems to be one of occassional pressure on the Taliban mixed with long periods of benign neglect followed by gestures and promises of doing something and, well, otherwise—not much happens. Since they're not on the same page, it keeps the Americans and the home crowds pacified I suppose. Pakistan claims that it's not harboring al Qaida, and that' s only true in the sense that they'll capture members of al Qaida if they happen to fall into their laps or start creating trouble in Pakistan but otherwise Pakistan doesn't seem to have an active program in the Northwest Territories of tracking down al Qaida where many believe they are probably located.

Given who Hillary Clinton is, I'm surprised by the lack of coverage. I hope when she comes back that she gives us some details on what she learned.

Hillary Says No to Troop Surge in Iraq, Yes to Troop Surge in Afghanistan

Senator Hillary Clinton is on her way to Iraq and Afghanistan. Here's one story from the International Herald Tribune:

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton is headed to Iraq this weekend with two other lawmakers as the rest of Congress engages in a fierce debate over President George W. Bush's plan to send 21,500 additional troops to salvage the U.S. effort there.

Clinton, Democrat of New York, who is considering running for president, is traveling with Senator Evan Bayh of Indiana, a Democrat who had also considered the 2008 race but opted out, and Representative John McHugh, Republican of New York.

The three, who are all members of armed services committees, are to meet with top Iraqi officials and U.S. military commanders, and also travel to Afghanistan.

Here's more details from Glenn Thrush of Newsday:

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is heading to Iraq and Afghanistan this weekend - and calling for a troop "surge" in Afghanistan even though she opposes a similar measure in Iraq.

Clinton's trip isn't surprising politically. As the top Democratic contender in 2008 who voted for the war - and hasn't recanted - Clinton needed to emphasize her foreign policy strengths: gravitas, affection for the troops and on-the-ground experience in a war zone.

On Wednesday, as President George W. Bush delivered his address on his plan for a 21,500-troop increases in Iraq, Clinton was about the only serious contender in either party to turn down an invitation to dissect the speech on TV.

Although many people perceive Hillary Clinton to be a liberal, most Democrats actually consider her politics over the last six years to be moderate and even sometimes moderate/conservative. Now political labels in 2008 are going to mean less than they have in the past simply because people are more concerned about leadership these days. But even Republican 2008 contenders are engaging the press more than Hillary. Senator Clinton's carefully timed statements with long bouts of silence on some issues are actually somewhat puzzling. Being a leader isn't simply about establishing foreign policy credentials and having long lunches with powerful people, it also means engaging and shaping the issues of the time.

But I welcome Senator Clinton's position on Afghanistan, the neglected war that should have been completed a long time ago. Perhaps when she gets back she'll discuss that some of the troop surge for Iraq depends on taking troops from Afghanistan which is really in no position to lose those troops.