Blackwater Down

IBD

Justice: Once again, Americans asked to put their lives on the line go on trial. Their crime was doing the very job we asked them to do in Iraq. Will they now be sacrificed for an ungrateful Iraq?

On Tuesday, five members of a tactical support team of Blackwater Worldwide security guards in Iraq made their first appearance in U.S. District Court on charges ranging from voluntary manslaughter to the use of automatic weapons. The "crime" was protecting State Department personnel under fire in a war zone and firing back.

On Sept. 16, 2007, 18 members of the "Raven 23" team came under fire while responding to an attack on another Blackwater group transporting a State Department official. It was a typical mission under their contract. This freed up military personnel for combat.

To aid their comrades, Raven 23 had to take the most direct route, which took them through Baghdad's Nisour Square on their way to the Green Zone. As radio logs show, they came under fire while trying to set up a temporary roadblock through which their comrades could pass quickly and safely. They returned fire and when the firefight ceased 14 Iraqis were dead and 20 wounded.

To call this action "voluntary manslaughter in the commission of a crime" is a tragic joke. They were protecting State Department personnel in a war zone, as they were contracted to do. They had no reason or motive to show up in downtown Baghdad and start randomly shooting civilians.
According to testimony by Gen. David Petraeus before the Senate on April 8, 2008, there were about 790 attacks on Coalition Forces and diplomatic personnel that week. That comes out to about 112 a day, or more than four an hour. Blackwater personnel knew each day someone would try to kill them and those they were to protect.

But the Iraqis wanted their pound of flesh, and a U.S. government reeling from anti-war criticism was willing to make sacrificial lambs of Raven 23. They're being tried under the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act (MEJA), which lets U.S. Courts punish Defense Department contractors overseas.

One small problem: Blackwater was under contract to the State Department, not the Defense Department.
Even though MEJA was amended to include actions "in support of" the DoD mission, Raven 23 was protecting State Department personnel. Simply, that wasn't the Defense Department's mission.

Amid the fog of war, security teams like Raven 23 have performed magnificently, freeing up U.S. troops to go after al-Qaida in Iraq. It's no exaggeration to say the astounding success of the surge is due, in part, to the private security for U.S. diplomats Blackwater provided. It let the U.S. Marines focus on sending al-Qaida members, who were then making life in Iraq hell, to their just reward.

In a statement to Congress, then-Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte summed it up: "I personally was grateful for the presence of my Blackwater security detail, largely comprised of ex-Special Forces and other military, when I served as ambassador to Iraq. Their alert and controlled posture kept me safe, to get my job done."

Their critics forget another mission on March 31, 2004, when a convoy escorted by Blackwater personnel similarly came under fire during an ambush.

Four Blackwater employees were killed that day and their charred bodies hung from a Fallujah bridge. Gruesome photos of their mutilated bodies were printed in every major newspaper around the world and displayed on jihadist Web sites as a victory against the Great Satan.

Interestingly, their case has been assigned to U.S. District Court Judge Ricardo Urbina. He's the same jurist who ordered Uighur terrorists held at Guantanamo Bay to be released on American streets. His justice is not only blind, it is politically correct.

Like U.S. Border Patrol agents Ramos and Compean, and the U.S. Marines charged with murder in a jihadist ambush in Haditha, Raven 23 is paying the price for political correctness.

They are being sacrificed to placate ungrateful and uncooperative allies and to please critics of the War in Iraq on the far left.

We think it's time to free the "Raven 23."

My Interview with Congressman Rogers

I live in the 8th Congressional district and yesterday I actually had the opportunity to speak for a few minutes with my Congressman, Mike Rogers! He was even willing to go on-the-record with me about some current events. The interview is as follows:

AP2: Good afternoon Congressman Rogers, thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to speak with me. As a blogger I appreciate the opportunity.

CMR: It is my pleasure!

AP2: Congressman, you have traveled extensively in Iraq, and have had innumerable in-depth discussions with military, intelligence and civilian officials. What is your opinion of Barack Obama's trip to Iraq?

CMR: What bothers me most me most is he has changed his position, he has padded his plane with reporters and he is not listening to the on-the-ground commanders. He clearly disregarded the commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus. It has become obvious that this is not an unbiased fact finding tour but a campaign opportunity. And it is offensive for the soldiers on the ground, who did not sign up to be a backdrop on an Obama campaign stop.

AP2: Barack Obama seems to be formulating policy as he goes along. He was against the surge. However now that the surge has been successful he has backtracked.

CMR: Barack Obama's campaign positions are always formulated to maximize votes. Yes, he opposed the surge, now he is calling it an "Improved Security Situation." First he's for timetables, and then he isn't. He calls for unilateral military action in Pakistan then backtracks. He vowed to meet with various heads of terror states including Ahmenidjad of Iran—"without preconditions" and then he had to back track. He said what he thinks and then his handlers get a hold of him and he back tracks. He is the most "handled" presidential candidate I have ever seen.

AP2: That includes the media! A case pinpoint would be the New York Times refusal to print an editorial by John McCain in response to a piece by Barack Obama published in the paper last week.

CMR: Oh absolutely! That was incredibly blatant, a complete repudiation of a fair and unbiased media. I recently saw a figure that media coverage for Obama is 65% to 35% coverage for John McCain.

AP2: Its funny, but I had this very same discussion with a liberal relative of mine recently. I did some research and a 2005 study by a UCLA Political Scientist found of the 20 major media outlets studied, 18 scored left of center. Also, surveys from 1978 to 2005 show that journalists are far more likely to say they are liberal than conservative and are far more liberal than the public at large.

CMR: Well it obvious in this campaign. All three network anchors went with Obama to Iraq. So many of his fundamental policies are not being covered. His polices are in direct opposition to what Americans want, low energy costs, and the retreat of terrorists. The evidence clearly points to the liberal media picking a candidate for the voters. It is a terrible disservice not only to the voters but also to our country.

However, the polls are tight, so I believe that Americans are seeing through it. Americans do not want on the job training at their expense and the security of our country.

AP2: Thank you Congressman Rogers, once again, I appreciate the opportunity to speak with you.

CMR: Thank you, Joan.

This article is crossposted on RightMichigan