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After 11 Iraqis were shot dead last Sunday, The Body Politik has noted that the State Department repeatedly ignored Iraqi requests to regulate Blackwater, extending impunity to a GOP-friendly contractor.
Blackwater founder “[Erik] Prince has been a steady contributor to the Republican National Committee, giving more than $200,000 since 1998. He also has supported various conservative candidates, including President Bush, Sens. Tom Coburn (R-OK) and Rick Santorum (R-PA), Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA), and indicted former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX).”
Yesterday, Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, accused the State Department of obstructing an investigation into the company’s actions in Iraq.
Blackwater has informed the committee that a State Department official directed Blackwater not to provide documents relevant to the committee’s investigation into the company’s activities in Iraq without the prior written approval of the State Department.
Given the President’s penchant for politicizing federal agencies, the State Department’s efforts to shield a Republican political ally may be egregious, but they’re certainly not surprising.
[…] Earlier this week, Rep. Henry Waxman accused the State Department of obstructing an investigation into Blackwater USA’s actions in Iraq. Providing yet another indication of the State Department’s willingness to stick its neck out for the shadowy security contractor, the Washington Post reports today that two career investigators in the office of the State Department Inspector General were threatened with firing if they cooperated with Congressional investigations into Blackwater. The whistle-blowers allege that the State Department Inspector General Howard Krongard “has repeatedly thwarted investigations into alleged contracting fraud in Iraq and Afghanistan…and weapons smuggling allegations against Blackwater USA.” These new allegations bring up a disturbing question: why does the State Department continue to defend Blackwater at the expense of America’s security? […]