John Kerry & the U.S.'s continued use of Blackwater

[beachmom]

Wow, I did not know all of this. Good article in the NYT:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/22/us/22intel.html?_r=1&hpw

U.S. Still Using Security Firm It Broke With

WASHINGTON — Despite publicly breaking with an American private security company in Iraq, the State Department continues to award the company, formerly known as Blackwater, more than $400 million in contracts to fly its diplomats around Iraq, guard them in Afghanistan, and train security forces in antiterrorism tactics at its remote camp in North Carolina.

John Kerry has spoken up on this:

This web of ties is drawing the attention and anger of lawmakers, including Senator John F. Kerry, the Massachusetts Democrat who is chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

On Friday, Mr. Kerry wrote to the founder and chairman of Xe, Erik D. Prince, asking for details of his company’s dealings with the C.I.A. In the letter, a copy of which was supplied to The New York Times, Mr. Kerry expressed concern that contractors could have used their State Department assignments as a “cover to gather information for the targeted killing program.” Leon E. Panetta, the C.I.A.’s director, canceled the program this year, in part because he learned the C.I.A. had used an outside company for the program, government officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity have said.

This week, government officials and current and former Blackwater employees said the company had also taken on a role in the United States’ most important counterterrorism program: the use of remotely piloted drones to kill Al Qaeda leaders.

Mr. Kerry also plans to write to Mrs. Clinton to raise his concerns, said one of his aides.

In a meeting with department employees in February, Mrs. Clinton said, “I certainly am of the mind that we should, insofar as possible, reduce our dependence.” But she added, “Whether we can go all the way to banning, under current circumstances, seems unlikely.”

Read the whole article. Very disturbing.

[karynnj]

1. It is good that Kerry is demanding answer and informing the media that he is

This paragraph is startling -

"Government officials have estimated that about 25 percent of the intelligence workforce consists of contractors, and as much as 70 percent of the entire intelligence budget goes to outside contracts. Yet these are rough estimates, and members of Congressional oversight committees lament that they cannot get reliable figures about the extent of intelligence outsourcing."

It is stunning that this s happening and that they are getting as much as 70% of the intelligence budget - and that the Congressional oversight committee cannot even get reliable figures on cost. If they can't evne get cost, it is unlikely that they are getting much about the programs and actions.