House rejects cuts to notorious schoolBy BEN EVANS, Associated Press Writer
21 minutes ago
WASHINGTON - Congress has turned back the latest attempt to
cut funding for an Army school that trains military officers from
Latin America and has a tainted past.
Just before midnight Thursday, the House voted 214-203 against
a bid to eliminate the money used for foreign military officers
to attend the controversial Army facility at Fort Benning, formerly
called the School of the Americas.
The amendment, sponsored by Rep. James McGovern, D-Mass.,
is similar to one that the school's critics have tried to pass for
years. It failed 218-188 in a House vote last year.
The school is best known for training Latin American soldiers who
fought communist insurgencies in the 1980s and 1990s. Critics
have long charged that the Defense Department teaches abusive
and illegal tactics there, citing allegations that many graduates
later became involved in corruption, murder and human rights
violations. Large protests are held annually outside the school
near Columbus, Ga.
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