On the House floor yesterday, Rep. Jan Schakowsky lambasted the State Department's decision to renew Blackwater's contract to provide security services in Iraq. Here's her statement:
Last Friday, the State Department decided to renew Blackwater's $1.2 billion contract for another year.
It has been over six months since Blackwater contractors killed 17 innocent Iraqi civilians, 16 months since the Christmas Eve murder in the Green Zone, and 35 months since a Blackwater helicopter dropped CS gas on a traffic jam in Baghdad.
Yet, there have been no arrests, no charges, no trials, no convictions…Nothing
The Department of Justice, the FBI and the State Department have remained completely silent about those investigations.
Meanwhile, those contractors are still working side-by-side with our troops in Iraq.
But what is even more appalling is that our government has ignored those abuses and renewed Blackwater’s contract.
If you owned a company, would you rehire someone who has killed dozens of innocent people?
The State Department’s decision not only puts the lives of innocent Iraqi civilians at risk, but it threatens the safety of our troops and jeopardizes our mission in Iraq.
You can find video of her statement here.
Rep. Schakowsky is the sponsor of a bill -- HR 4102 -- that "would begin phasing out the use of private security contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan."
But House Democrats aren't the only ones unhappy about the renewal of Blackwater's contract -- high-ranking Iraq officials are also upset about the news.
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