Blackwater

12 August 2008 -- A new report says the United States has spent about $100 billion on private contractors to support operations in Iraq since the 2003 invasion to oust Saddam Hussein.

At the height of last year's military surge in Iraq, the United States had roughly 168,000 troops deployed in the country.

Blackwater security guards, Republican Palace, Baghdad: US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) photograph by ACoE photographer Jim Gordon.

But America's armed forces have been outnumbered by what some see as a private army funded by the federal government: contractors that provide a wide array of services, from security operations to rebuilding projects to logistical support.    » read more »

Contractors Allegedly Violated Small-Business Laws

August 12, 2008 -- WASHINGTON, DC—Following release of a Congressional Budget Office report today showing the massive expenditures and an over-reliance on private contractors in Iraq under the Bush Administration and the revelation of a report by the Small Business Administration Inspector General showing Blackwater was awarded millions of dollars in federal contracts designated for small businesses, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton today called on Congress to act on her legislation to reform the contracting system and put in place needed accountability measures and urged the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to launch an investigation into the impact of Blackwater’s violation.    » read more »

WASHINGTON -- May 16, 2008 – Three measures sponsored by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) to hold private security contractors and war profiteers accountable under U.S. law for the first time were approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee Thursday afternoon and included in the Senate version of the emergency supplemental spending bill for Iraq, Afghanistan, and key domestic programs.

Blackwater protesters, Seattle: Photo by Robert Whitlock (CC)    » read more »

05/10/2008 -- Boston, Massachusetts – Today, Senator John Kerry, who chairs the Senate Foreign Relation’s Committee’s Middle East Subcommittee, called for Foreign Relations Committee hearings on the State Department’s decision to renew Blackwater’s no bid contract for private security in Iraq.

Blackwater is today under continued grand jury investigation, and a top House Committee has asked the I.R.S. to investigate Blackwater’s controversial tax practices. The New York Times today revealed that even after Blackwater became the focus of several different investigations, “the State Department did not even open talks with two companies, DynCorp International and Triple Canopy, to see if they could take over from Blackwater.”    » read more »

February 28, 2008 -- Washington, DC – Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton announced today that she has cosponsored legislation to ban the use of Blackwater and other private mercenary firms in Iraq.    » read more »

17 January 2008 -- A report issued by a U.S.-based human rights group is criticizing the Justice Department for failing to hold private security contractors operating in Iraq and Afghanistan responsible for acts of violence. The report was released Wednesday in Washington.

The report by the New York-based Human Rights First says private security contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan are not being held accountable for excessive use of force, which has given rise to what the group calls "shoot first, ask questions later, or never."    » read more »

According to reports, Blackwater Worldwide released riot control gas on U.S. troops in 2005

January 11, 2008 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) today sent the following letter to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, calling on him to respond to reports that Blackwater Worldwide allegedly dispersed CS gas, a riot control substance, in an intersection populated by U.S. military personnel and Iraqi civilians in 2005.    » read more »