Blackwater's Erik Prince is generous donor to Republicans, Pennsylvania Greens

[DeepModem Mom]

LAT: Blackwater and the Democratic House Oversight Committee

....(Erik) Prince, the head of Blackwater, U.S.A., has a lengthy political pedigree as a Republican.

This may shock some, but it also turns out that the target of the committee's angry questions was a 38-year-old former Navy SEAL who has donated $230,000 to federal campaigns and causes in the last decade. Almost all of that money has gone to Republicans, according to a check of Federal Election Commission records by The Times' campaign finance expert, Dan Morain. Prince's latest donation was in July, when he gave $20,000 to the National Republican Congressional Committee....

The former serviceman has given almost all of his donations to Republicans. There was, however, an exception in 2006, when he donated $5,000 to the Green Party of Lucerne County, Pa. That was a Republican ploy to ensure the Green Party's U.S. senate candidate got on the ballot in an effort to peel votes away from Democrat Bob Casey and help Republican Rick Santorum. The effort failed and Casey won.

So far, Prince has stayed out of presidential campaign donations. However, his family members have given to former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

Prince’s lineage includes his late father, Edgar, who owned a large auto parts company in Michigan and was a major donor and advisor to Christian conservative Gary Bauer, a past GOP presidential candidate. Prince’s mother, Elsa Prince, has donated $140,000 to federal Republican causes and candidates in the last decade.

His sister, Betsy, is a former chair of the Michigan Republican Party who has given at least $61,000 to Republican campaigns on the federal level since 1997. Betsy’s husband is Richard DeVos, who hails from the family that founded Amway. He ran unsuccessfully for Michigan governor in 2006. The Republican stalwart has given more than $2 million to federal causes and candidates in the last 10 years, FEC records show.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2007/10/bwater.html

[rpannier]

1. Thanks for the info

I knew he was a republikkan. I did not realize how deep his history is with the reich-wing of the party.

[Bozita]

2. "Republican ploy to ensure the Green Party's U.S. senate candidate got on the ballot ...

... in an effort to peel votes away from Democrat Bob Casey and help Republican Rick Santorum. The effort failed and Casey won. "

See? Prince isn't political at all.

[MADem]

4. Gee, how fucking...NADERESQUE of the guy!!!

Anyone who says that parties don't matter should take a lesson from this shit.

[4nic8em]

3. Wow...

there's a fucking surprise...

[leftchick]

5. Blackwater VP and ex-CIA Coffer Black has joined Romney campaign

as a "security advisor". Isn't this all so cozy?

[fed-up]

6. most of the above info and more is in Scahill's book-"Blackwater" a frightening read nt

[DeepModem Mom]

8. Thanks for that reminder, fed-up. nt

[KharmaTrain]

7. He's A War Criminal

Every dime this goon has made has the blood of our soldiers all over it. It was his mercenaries who kicked the rebellion (not just an "insurgency") into high gear when they shot up Fallujah that led to the decimation of that town which in turn energized the attacks on our troops. It's led to a downhill slide that has greatly endangered our troops and all but destroyed any "gains" that were made in the early days of the invasion.

Also, little mention has been made of the weapon his company has provided to those who end up using them against our soldier. He's worse than a profiteer...he's abeted in the death of many of our soldiers who have been on the receiving end of the anger of the Iraqi people who don't differentiate between one of his goons and our troops.

Congress should pass a law that only allows non-profit organizations in providing "support services"...take the profit motive out of it and then require these companies to comply with the UCMJ and international law.

Here's hoping to see him in the dock in the Hague along with the many other war criminals...including his enablers in Congress.

[blondeatlast]

9. This man ought to do hard time. I know he will never see the inside of a booking

desk, but seriously, why isn't WAR corruption a felony?

I suppose it is, but he'll never, ever suffer for his crimes.

I hate this world, I swear it.

[Odin2005]

10. The Greens getting money from Fascists? Who'd of thunk it?

:sarcasm:

[KamaAina]

11. Prince is into some scary stuff

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erik_Prince#Family

Prince's father founded the Family Research Council with Gary Bauer. Prince is the brother of Betsy DeVos, a former chairman of the Michigan Republican Party and wife of former Alticor (Amway) president and Gubernatorial candidate Dick DeVos<6>, son of Richard DeVos, Sr. (listed by Forbes in 2007 as one of the world's richest men, with a net worth of $2.4 billion).

Prince's first wife, Joan Nicole Prince, died of cancer in 2003, and he has since remarried; he has six children.


Philanthropy and political donations
Prince serves as Vice President of the Edgar and Elsa Prince Foundation which gives money to organizations of the Christian right. Salon reports that "between July 2003 and July 2006, the foundation gave at least $670,000 to the Family Research Council and $531,000 to Focus on the Family" headed by James Dobson. He also serves as a board member of Christian Freedom International, a non-profit group with a mission of helping "Christians who are persecuted for their faith in Jesus Christ."

Since 1998, Prince has personally donated over $200,000 to Republican causes. Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards has characterized Prince as one of George W. Bush's "political cronies." Prince has denied using family clout to obtain contracts for Blackwater.

"Onward, Christian soldiers", indeed! :scared: