Category: War

What the Blackwater Immunity Deal Means

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ABC News has the text of the Blackwater immunity deal:

I understand this statement is being given in furtherance of an official administrative inquiry,” and that, “I further understand that neither my statements nor any information or evidence gained by reason of my statements can be used against me in a criminal proceeding, except that if I knowingly and willfully provide false statements or information, I may be criminally prosecuted for that action under 18 United States Code, Section 1001.

While the State Department claims that this still allows for prosecution, the case clearly indicates otherwise, particularly in the DC Circuit Court, where this would almost certainly be heard.

Josh Marshall called on “a highly knowledgeable source“, and their assessment was that “Use Immunity”, pretty much eliminates the possibility of presecution:

  • Prosecutors, “would then have to prove that every piece of evidence used in the prosecution was obtained completely independent of the employees’ statements.” (emphasis mine)
  • The DC circuit has an even more extreme view, where the prosecution, “would also have to show that none of their witnesses had heard what the employees said in their immunized statements.”prosecution was obtained completely independent of the employees’ statements.” (emphasis mine)

Additionally, even if there was no authorization and the immunity was granted in error, the courts, particularly the DC Circuit, generally still treat it as if it were.

I call coverup.

MoDo Calls Cheney Crazy

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I think that she intends it as allegory, but I believe that Dick Cheney is actually nuts….Delusional…Batsh%$ insane. He is so confinced of his power, or more accurately the power of the US military-industrial complex, to do anything, including sewing a button on a fart.

Worked great in Iraq.

Insanity is doing something over, and over again, exactly the same way, and and expecting a different outcome.

Her essay is a good, if catty* read, and this time, for once, there is a point at the end:

As Pat Buchanan noted on “Hardball,” “Cheney and Bush are laying down markers for themselves which they’re going to have to meet. I don’t see how … Bush and Cheney can avoid attacking Iran and retaining their credibility going out of office.”

In other words, once our cowboys have talked their crazy talk, they have to walk their crazy walk.

*Like everything she writes.

Snark of the Day, Budget Edition

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It should be noted that some budget budget wonks have uncovered a line item for a weapon to attack Iran.(h/t Attytood)

It’s for a modification to the B2 Stealth bomber so that it can carry the 30,000 penetrating pound bomb

Tucked inside the White House’s $196 billion emergency funding request for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is an item that has some people wondering whether the administration is preparing for military action against Iran.

The item: $88 million to modify B-2 stealth bombers so they can carry a newly developed 30,000-pound bomb called the massive ordnance penetrator, or, in military-speak, the MOP.

The MOP is the the military’s largest conventional bomb, a super “bunker-buster” capable of destroying hardened targets deep underground. The one-line explanation for the request said it is in response to “an urgent operational need from theater commanders.”

Hey, well, I’m sure the federal government has lots of uses for super “bunker-buster” bombs, such as, um, uh, na….

“You’d use it on Natanz,” said John Pike of GlobalSecurity.org. “And you’d use it on a stealth bomber because you want it to be a surprise. And you put in an emergency funding request because you want to bomb quickly.”

There is no reason to put this in an emergency request unless you have a target, and you want to hit it soon.

BTW, two snaps up to Will Bunch for this comment, “I’ve long been in the camp that the Cheney-Bush administration isn’t really as incompetent as it looks, that most of the worst stuff they do is 100 percent intentional. Putting your air-attack plans in a budget bill, however, is actually pretty incompetent. Hopefully they’ll get rid of this before Hillary can enthusiastically vote for it.“

Now I have to clean off my screen.

Iraq Revokes Contractor Immunity

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Iraq has revoked L. Paul Bremer’s grant of immunity to contractors, and so now the contractors in Iraq are considering cutting and running.

This is a good thing. They do more harm than good, they cost too much, and mercenaries are just plain wrong.

Furthermore, this is an action that must have somewhere near 100% support by the Iraqi public, and it useful for the average citizen to see the central government doing something productive.

Blackwater: Tax Cheats and Mercenaries Security Contractors

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Well, it appears that Blackwater is both more crooked, and more stupid, than I had previously thought. They have been classifying their mercenaries as independent contractors for tax purposes.

The rules on this are pretty strict. To be an independent contract, you have to be indepndent, you have to set your own hours, place of works, not be subject to company supervisors, etc. Mercenaries don’t qualify. They are told when and where and with what to fight, and Blackwater supplied them with uniforms, flak jackets, weapons, etc.

These were not freelance illustrators.

Henry Waxman has noticed this discrepancy, and that this does not correspond to the standard practices of other firms, like Triple Canopy and Dyncorp, and further noticed that his testimony did not jibe with direction from the IRS.

They are looking at huge fines. It may not be as satisfying as getting them for being mercs and war criminals, but it worked to get Al Capone.

Here is the first part of Waxman’s letter to Blackwater, which implies tax evasion and perjury before congress:

I have received documents which suggest that Blackwater may have engaged in significant tax evasion. According to an IRS ruling in March 2007, Blackwater violated federal tax laws by treating an armed guard as an “independent contractor.” The implication of this ruling is that Blackwater may have avoided paying millions of dollars in Social Security, Medicare, unemployment, and related taxes for which it is legally responsible.

Unlike DynCorp and Triple Canopy, the two other major private military contractors providing security services to the State Department in lraq, Blackwater classifies its armed guards as independent contractors rather than as employees. Under federal tax laws, this classification has important ramifications. Businesses must pay Social Security, Medicare, and unemployment taxes for their employees. They must also withhold federal income taxes on their salaries. By classifying its armed guards and other personnel as independent contractors instead of employees, Blackwater has apparently evaded withholding and paying these taxes.

When you testified before our Committee on October 2,2007, Congresswoman Norton asked you why Blackwater treats its security personnel as independent contractors, while your competitors treat their guards as employees. You responded that Blackwater treats its guards as contractors because you found “it is a model that works” and because your guards prefer the “flexibility” of an independent contractor relationship.

Since the hearing, I have learned that the IRS determined in March – six months prior to your testimony – that your classification of a security guard working in Afghanistan as an independent contractor was “without merit.” The IRS advised that “[y]ou are responsible for satisfying the employment tax reporting, filing, and payment obligations that result from this determination.” By its terms, the IRS ruling applied only to the individual security guard who protested his classification, but the IRS warned that its ruling “may be applicable to any other individuals engaged by the fum.” The logic of the ruling would appear to apply to your entire workforce in Iraq and Afghanistan.

There is also evidence that Blackwater has tried to conceal the IRS ruling and the evasion of taxes from Congress and law enforcement officials. The IRS determination was issued in response to an inquiry by an individual security guard who questioned his classification as an independent contractor. In June, Blackwater required this employee to sign a nondisclosure agreement before it agreed to pay the back pay and other compensation that he was owed. The terms of this agreement explicitly prohibited the guard from disclosing any information about Blackwater to “any politician” or “public official.” The agreement further provided: “THE UTMOST PROTECTION AND NONDISCLOSURE OF CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION IS OF CRITICAL IMPORTANCE AND IS THE ESSENCE OF THIS AGREEMENT.“

It is difficult to read the IRS ruling and the nondisclosure agreement and not question Blackwater’s intent and actions. When the IRS issued an alert in 2004 warning employers not to “incorrectly treat employees as independent contractors,” the IRS Commissioner described the “[f]ailure to pay employment taxes” as “stealing from the employees of the business” and said that “those who embrace these schemes face civil or criminal sanctions.” Yet it now appears that Blackwater used this illegal scheme to avoid millions of dollars in taxes and then prevented the security guard who discovered the tax evasion from contacting members of Congress or law enforcement officials.

I believe that Blackwater is completely boned.

Fatah Planting Bombs in Gaza????

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Three Hamas militants wounded in Gaza in a Gaza explosion, and not only does Israel deny involvement, but Hamas agrees that the IDF had nothing to do with it.

It could be Islamic Jihad, of course, but given the PLO’s record on both conventional and urban fighting, their military record implies that they are over matched by a mean little kid with a pea shooter, this seems more the work of the PLO, particularly Fatah.

It requires a significant investment in resources and planning, but very little risk to the perps.

Are Blackwater and Other Mercenaries Security Contractors Unlawful Combatants?

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There are a number of who think so.

The designation of lawful and unlawful combatants is set out in the Geneva Convention.Lawful combatants are nonmilitary personnel who operate under their military’s chain of command. Others may carry weapons in a war zone but may not use offensive force. Under the international agreements, they may only defend themselves.

The amount of force being used in Iraq by security firms like Blackwater has raised questions.

I would also add that under the UN convention on mercenaries (see my posts here and here), some of the activities, like protecting military supply convoys in a war zone are clearly illegal.

While the US hass not ratified the convention (Neither has the UK) the position of one of the many countries that has might very well be to treat these folks as common criminals, or worse.

Some readings Islamic law call for the prompt execution of mercenaries.

Hillary Clinton Pledges to End War “Immediately” When Taking Office

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She appears to have made that statement at a fund raising meeting of the Eleanor Roosevelt’s Legacy Committee.

There were no cameras, or recorders at the event, which is odd for such a significant statement.

Also, what does “ending the war immediately” mean? My guess is that her commitment to this is about the same as Bill’s to Gays serving honorably and openly in the military.

When she does the gasbag circuit, and explains what it means, I’ll believe her.

General Calls Iraq a Nightmare in Stars and Stripes

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Ricardo Sanchez calls the Iraq war, “A nightmare with no end in sight”, and he does so in a an interview in Stars and Stripes which is is close as you can come to being the Army’s newspaper and not be a part of the Pentagon budget.

The Republicans, of course, going after him in ways that makes Moveon’s dumb-ass “Betray Us” ad seem like a bloody love in, but the fact that this is in Stars and Stripes is significant.

As to Sanchez himself? I think that he is looking at his place in history, and a possible life sentence in the Hague, and trying to backtrack.

Mitt Romney Loses Nevada Straw Poll…To Ron Paul???????

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Yes you read that right Paul beat Romney, and he beat him handily: Paul 33%, Romney 16%, Hunter 15%, “Undecided” 11%, and the rest were in single digits.

It should be noted that it was a small conference, about 430 people, and Paul was not at the conference, but Romney and Hunter were.

While a part of it might be attributed to the libertarian streak of western Republicans, I think that a lot of has to do with the fact that polling shows that most Republicans favor us leaving Iraq too.

Ron Paul will not be the Republican nominee. Some of his positions regarding “social issues” and “law and order” are out of sync with the party.

That being said, the first mainstream Republican who says, “George W. Bush, Kiss My Ass, We are Leaving Iraq” would sweep the primaries. He might even have a chance in the general.

But no one running has the guts to do that.

We are Losing Afghanistan

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Not surprising, and largely driven by American failures:

  • Failure to devote sufficient resources.
  • Failure to deal with Pakistani government support (by which I mean their intelligence service, the ISI) of the Taliban.
  • Just plain stupidity:

Although it is a volatile area and a centre of Taliban support, the Dutch forces had forged close links with community leaders, cutting down the fighting, until a botched poppy eradication program by a US private security firm a few months ago, analysts say.

“Uruzgan was going OK until they went in with tractors and started ripping the poppy fields up,” said the Kabul-based security analyst. “The Dutch had a good relationship with the people down there, the local leaders, but when they rip up your crop, what do you do? You grab your gun. They didn’t even do that much damage to the crops in the end.”

To quote John Wilkes Booth, “Useless”.

Army needs three to four years to recover from Iraq strains: chief – Yahoo! News

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General Casey is claiming that the service is not broken, but that it will take 3-4 years for it to recover from Iraq.

Well duh!!!

It’s actually going to take longer. When you consider the amount that the army has had to drop it’s standards for recruits, the people held in by stop loss orders and inactive ready reserve (aka backdoor draft), and the people who are staying only because they don’t want to leave their buddies while the fight is still going on, it’s going to be a lot longer.