Obama Presses Bush on Blackwater [View All]

[illinoisprogressive]

As Democrats weigh new limits on the private security firms in Iraq, one of the party’s presidential hopefuls on Monday pushed President Bush to shed new light on war contractors before Congress does so first.

Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) has proposed clarifying that private contractors accused of misconduct can be tried under U.S. law and urging the Pentagon to pursue such civilian prosecution. Following a Sept. 16 shooting that infuriated the Iraqi government and got the contracting firm Blackwater USA briefly barred from the country, Senate aides are working on adding parts of Obama’s plan to the defense authorization bill.

Obama told Bush in a Monday letter that he should pin down information immediately on offenses committed by contractors.

“It is our government’s obligation to ensure that security contractors in Iraq are subject to adequate and transparent oversight and that their actions do not have a negative impact on our military’s efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan,” Obama wrote.

His proposal also would require the Justice Department inspector general to report to Congress on the number of complaints it has received against private contractors, and the number of investigations opened and criminal cases pursued in response. Baghdad officials are investigating Blackwater’s actions in the Sept. 16 violence and other recent incidents that caused Iraqi civilian casualties, and the State Department launched its own probe late last week.

Obama told Bush he was “disturbed” by the Blackwater episode, which “raises larger questions about the role of private security contractors.”

http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/sen.-obama-presses-bush-on-blackwater-2007-09-25.html