Yesterday, Rep. Jan Schakowsky put forth an amendment to strip funding for the security contractor Blackwater Worldwide from the Iraq supplemental funding bill. From her House floor statement on the measure:
Everyone knows about the horrible incidents involving Blackwater opening fire on innocent civilians last September in Nisour Square, about a Blackwater employee killing the Iraqi Vice President’s guard, about Blackwater releasing poisonous gas on a crowded intersection in Baghdad. Nothing has been done in response to these incidents.
And these incidents have damaged our already-tattered image in the eyes of the Iraqi people. They have irreparably harmed our relationship with the Iraqi government. Prime Minister Maliki attempted to revoke Blackwater’s license to operate in Iraq in 2007, and last month he said that Blackwater has “massacred”—that’s his word—Iraqi civilians.
Despite the extremely serious nature of each of the incidents Blackwater has been involved in, not one investigation has been completed. And despite the existence of so many ongoing investigations into Blackwater’s actions, both possible criminal actions and abuse of the tax code, the State Department renewed Blackwater’s contract last month. [...]We cannot continue to allow Blackwater to run roughshod over the law and jeopardize the safety, security and well-being of the U.S. military and the Iraqi people.
For more on Schakowsky's thoughts about the Iraq war, check out part two of her interview with Faithfully Liberal's Aaron Krager.
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