Interrogators Hired for Iraq Despite Ban

WASHINGTON - The Army hired private interrogators to work in Iraq and Afghanistan despite the service's policy of barring contractors from military intelligence jobs such as interrogating prisoners. A policy memo from December 2000 says letting private workers gather military intelligence would jeopardize national security. An Army spokeswoman said senior commanders have the authority to override the contractor ban.

Some of the dozens of private contractors hired to interrogate prisoners in Iraq and Afghanistan are under investigation in connection with abuses at the Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad and other prisons. Army investigators are looking into whether the contracts were awarded properly. The Abu Ghraib case also stirred criticism from some Democrats that the Pentagon was relying too heavily on private contractors, even for military functions such as collecting intelligence.

Thomas White, who quit as Army secretary last year after clashing with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, said he opposed hiring contractors to question prisoners.

"The principle that should be applied is that the basic process of interrogation and oversight of prisoners should be kept in-house, on the Army side," White said in a telephone interview. "That's something that would have to be under the direct supervision of the Army."

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=514&e=4&u=/ap/20040612/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/army_private_interrogators_4

And no one is accountable.

The same torturers in this society who beat up and sodomize black men in jail.

I want a special prosecutor!

This story has a whiff of RumsFool in it. I've finally come to some conclusions about the man (and it took me about 1 year).

1) Here's Rumsfeld's theory: the fewer people who know what he's up to, the better he likes it. No need for media coverage on this one. Even though he loves the limelight, it's very important to keep his dealings as secretive as possible. He's obviously made MANY secret deals that we who are footing the tab will never know about.

Ever see Rumsfeld testify before some Senate Committee? He gets really upset. As the meeting wears on, his patience slowly runs out. Eventually, he gets pissed and answers in one-word replies. He gets very upset that people are asking him questions, and he does his dodgy best to avoid answering, or outright lies.

Why? Because he feels he's accountable to no one. Those idiotic senators just get in the way of his plans. SECRECY, baby.

2) Rummy obviously has a much closer relationship with private industry than the army he heads. (by the way, he's a CIVILIAN in charge of The Pentagon). He's bypassed the military and instead shown favoritism to the contractors like BlackWater, CACI, Titan, Marriott Sodexho, and many others.

He's given them the money while he's dumped on the very people he represents.

3) Randi Rhodes is right. She rants on endlessly about PRIVATE CONTRACTORS giving orders to THE MILITARY. This is absolutely upside-down, she claims. It should be the other way around. NO WAY do you let civilians decide over what GI's do in a prison. Again, Donald.

:kick: