September 2009
18 posts
Jeremy Scahill Speaking in NYC and DC This Weekend
I am going to be speaking at two important events this weekend that deal with the future of US wars and foreign policy. On Friday and Saturday, October 2-3, I will be at the Who Decides About War conference in Washington DC On Friday night at 7pm, I am speaking on a panel, “Peace Advocacy and Defense Reform: An Oxymoron or a Necessity?” and at 11am on Saturday morning about Blackwater:...
WatchVideo of my September 25 appearance on The Rachel Maddow Show, discussing the hypocrisy of the war against ACORN.
Is the Hypocritical War Against ACORN...
How could any sane person put even the wildest allegations against ACORN up against the systematic misconduct and criminality of massive corporations?
By Jeremy Scahill
In the ever-evolving story of the witch-hunt against the community organization, ACORN, Florida Democrat Rep. Alan Grayson and others, have been hammering away on an interesting point about the Defund ACORN Act, which recently...
Where is the Defund Blackwater Act?
Democrats joined Republicans in voting to “Defund ACORN,” yet have done nothing to stop Blackwater’s ongoing taxpayer funded crusade in Iraq and Afghanistan.
By Jeremy Scahill
Republican Congressional leaders are continuing their witch-hunt against ACORN, the grassroots community group dedicated to helping poor and working class people. This campaign now unfortunately has...
Pressure Builds On Pentagon to Investigate...
Lawmakers tell Defense Secretary Gates they ‘are appalled by the Pentagon’s failure to pursue answers’ in death of Adam Hermanson.
By Jeremy Scahill
Congressional pressure is increasing on the Department of Defense to investigate the apparent electrocution death of Adam Hermanson, a 25 year old DoD contractor who died September 1 in a shower at Camp Olympia inside the Green...
Blackwater Offers Training to 'Faith Based...
This is not a story from The Onion. By Jeremy Scahill In its ever-evolving re-branding campaign, Blackwater has created a new alter-ego for part of the company’s business. Meet the “Personal Security Awareness” program, which appears to be an off-shoot of Erik Prince’s Greystone, Ltd., a classic mercenary operation registered offshore in Barbados. On its website, which...
Jamie Rubin, Cruise Missile Liberal, Calls for...
Rubin joins a chorus of discredited neocons and out of touch Democrats in selling Obama’s war. By Jeremy Scahill Jamie Rubin, one of the leading Democratic Party hawks, was on MSNBC’s Morning Joe Wednesday to discuss Afghanistan policy. Rubin, who served as former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright’s top deputy in the 1990s, was a major figure in shaping and refining...
Cheney and Rumsfeld's 'Close Friend' Throws Out...
Should Judge Laurence Silberman have recused himself from a case involving alleged torture for which his buddies were ultimately responsible?
By Jeremy Scahill
On September 11, the US appeals court for the District of Columbia announced in a 2-1 decision that it was throwing out a lawsuit against CACI International and L-3 Communications Titan unit, which are being sued by Iraqi civilians for...
NY Times Picks Up Story on Justice Dept....
By Jeremy Scahill
Last week, I wrote about the US Justice Department’s allegations about Blackwater, which were filed in the criminal case against the men alleged to be responsible for the Nisour Square massacre. Blackwater forces “fired at innocent Iraqis not because they actually believed that they were in imminent danger of serious bodily injury and actually believed that they had no...
WatchOn Friday, Democracy Now! did a program on the death of Adam Hermanson, a 25 year old Air Force veteran who died September 1 in Baghdad—apparently of electrocution in a shower. He was working for the private military company, Triple Canopy. You can find my two articles for The Nation on Adam’s death here and here.
A Mysterious Electrocution Death in Iraq's Green... →
My new piece for The Nation:
Earlier this week, Adam Hermanson returned home from Iraq, where he worked as a contractor for Triple Canopy, on a flight to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. His body was in a coffin. Hermanson was not killed by enemy fire or an improvised explosive device or even by “friendly fire.” In fact, he died in what is considered to be the safest place in Iraq...
Federal Prosecutors Say Blackwater 'Specifically...
The US government’s allegations back-up the explosive testimony of two former Blackwater employees. Gov’t says Blackwater shot Iraqis as “payback for 9/11”
By Jeremy Scahill
A month ago, most major, corporate media outlets ignored the sworn statements of two former Blackwater employees, one of whom—identified in court papers as John Doe #2— alleged that the...
Sarah Palin, the Neocons & Howard Dean Love the...
As the war worsens and support plunges, an alliance of neocons and some partisan Democrats is supporting the White House. By Jeremy Scahill The neoconservative Project for a New American Century laid much of the groundwork for the foreign policy of the Bush administration. Its members received important postings in the White House, Department of Defense and other institutions. But what is seldom...
Rep. Mike Pence, Who Led Witch Hunt Against Van...
Among Pence’s campaign contributors is Blackwater’s owner, whom Pence defended after the Nisour Square massacre in Baghdad.
By Jeremy Scahill
Rep. Mike Pence, an Indiana Republican whose name has been mentioned as a potential GOP presidential candidate (and who is not sure if he believes in evolution), led the witch-hunt to force the resignation of White House Green Jobs advisor,...
Michael Goldfarb's Scurrilous Attack on Rep....
By Jeremy Scahill
Michael Goldfarb of Bill Kristol’s neconservative magazine, The Weekly Standard, which has engaged in quite a bit of masturbation over how awesome Blackwater is, needs to give Rush Limbaugh back his supply of pharmaceuticals. Goldfarb has posted a story comparing the outing of CIA operative Valerie Plame to the unsubstantiated claim from a Blackwater/Xe/US Training...
WatchMy appearance on Morning Joe on MSNBC on Friday morning.
Did al Qaeda Misspell Erik Prince's Name on Its...
The Washington Times, the newspaper owned by the king of the Moonies, is “reporting” that Blackwater—er Xe, er U.S. Training Center’s— owner is on al Qaeda’s death list… or did they? According to the paper:
“Al Qaeda has placed Xe’s chief executive, Eric Prince, on its own version of a most-wanted list, said Mark Corallo, a spokesman for...
Why Doesn't Hillary Clinton Fire Blackwater?
As a candidate, Clinton pledged to ban Blackwater. She now has the power to do it, but continues to use them “indefinitely” By Jeremy Scahill As a candidate for president, Hillary Clinton pledged to ban Blackwater. In February 2008, she announced that she would sign on as the co-sponsor of a little-known bill put forward in the House by Representative Jan Schakowsky and in the Senate...