a "rush to judgment based on inaccurate information."
Posted on 10/02/2007 2:25:31 PM PDT by RedRover
'I believe we acted appropriately at all times,' he says in a congressional hearing called after the private security firm is implicated in the deaths of Iraqi civilians.
WASHINGTON — Blackwater USA, the private security firm in Iraq, defended its record today amid an FBI investigation into a deadly Baghdad shootout last month in which at least 11 Iraqi civilians were killed by Blackwater guards protecting U.S. diplomats.
"I believe we acted appropriately at all times," said Blackwater founder Erik Prince, a former Navy SEAL. He noted that 27 Blackwater contractors had been killed while guarding U.S. officials, and that no U.S. diplomat had lost his life on missions protected by Blackwater.
"There is no better evidence of the skill and dedication of these men," he said.
Prince made his statements at the start of a hearing by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
Chairman Henry A. Waxman (D-Beverly Hills) announced that the FBI had requested that the hearing avoid questions about the Sept. 16 shooting. But Waxman questioned whether the State Department had been lax in oversight of Blackwater, citing a Christmas Eve incident in which a drunken Blackwater contractor shot the guard of the Iraqi vice president inside the protected Green Zone.
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
Welcome to SOP in the US Congress.
Yeah, right!!
Everytime I hear something like this I think of "Terms of Engagement".
The DNC hopes for a ‘Church Commission II’.
Wow what a look he gave those guys.
It’s a witch hunt...the Dems in Congress hate all those that carry a weapon in defense of this country whether that be a US soldier or a Blackwater operative...
I bet nine times out of ten the contractors do a better job and they do it cheaper.
thanks for posting
Thanks for the PING.
I see Waxman’s name attached, and I automatically want to take the opposing view. It’s reflexive.
“Rush to judgment” seems to be SOP on Capitol Hill—especially when it involves the “good guys”.
Waxman is a pathetic little worm and a shell of the man Erik Prince is and it’s plain Waxman has no idea what the job of Blackwater USA is in Iraq.
Waxman if a raghead shoot at me then runs to hide behind 11 women and children there will be 12 dead bodys went it is over.
Hey Erik......next time you are guarding those DEMOCRAT Congresspukes, well......
That really is the kicker. Blackwater guards pukes like Waxman when they sneeringly visit Iraq.
If insurgents threatened Waxman’s life, you can bet he’d be squealing for his guards to blast anything that moved.
The point, of course, isn’t Blackwater. It’s just another way to bash the President.
I believe that a thorough investigation would show that this incident was a set-up by the terrorists who want Blackwater out, and who know that the Dems will help them. They’ve read their American history, and they know the playbook. So do we. It reeks of Haditha.
Yes....what they are doing to the people who SAVE THEIR LIVES, Blackwater, the Democrats ahve ALSO done to the OTHER group of people who SAVE THEIR LIVES, our MILITARY!!! They try to DESTROY both, because they DESPISE BUSH so much....mainly because he’s a CHRISTIAN!! Truly disgusting group of people.
I haven’t been followed this closely, but I believe the FBI is investigating in Iraq. If contractors are charged, it’ll be in federal court. Hopefully, it won’t get that far.
The Dems are pulling another bait and switch on ya, boys and girls.
...and you bought it, hook, line and sinker.
It is about Blackwater, but only in part...and it isn’t really about them shooting people; good, bad or indifferent.
It is about money, historic levels of corruption, and who takes the fall. Blackwater was chosen. Meanwhile, the corrupt Dems and Pubbies, who’ve known about all of this all along, play outraged elected officials while you waste yet more time questioning their patriotism....and even supporting... one of the most corrupt contractors in Iraq.
Do the research.
Follow the money.
And, of course, the media and the Dems sing from the same hymnal. How many attackers / insurgents have Blackwater employees killed?
Why are Dems in Congress and the media not interested in that number?
I would love to be standing next to Congressman Waxman should he ever visit Iraq. As he walks down the ramp, whisper in his ear, “remember the Blackwater hearings?” and introduce him to his private security team.
The reflexive nostril flare should be near classic.
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