Blackwater contractors in Iraq in 2005
Posted on 02/22/2010 1:19:46 PM PST by AAABEST
WASHINGTON — Two lawmakers announced legislation Monday that would force the United States to phase out its controversial use of private security contractors in war zones like Iraq and Afghanistan.
Blackwater contractors in Iraq in 2005
Democratic Representative Jan Schakowsky and Independent Senator Bernie Sanders said they planned to introduce the "Stop Outsourcing Security Act" on Tuesday.
"The legislation would restore the responsibility of the American military to train troops and police, guard convoys, repair weapons, administer military prisons, and perform military intelligence," their offices said.
"The bill also would require that all diplomatic security be undertaken by US government personnel," they said.
The US reliance on private security contractors has drawn heavy fire, notably after a 2007 incident in which employees of Blackwater, since renamed Xe, were accused of shooting to death 17 civilians in Baghdad.
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Oh and (earth-to-clueless-congressmen) the additional (and non-existent) 70,000 active duty troops will have to have among them all kinds of new MOS classifications, as there are many tasks and missions which contractors are doing that the military simply doesn't do or is incapable of doing.
Nice to know the lawmakers are wasting taxapayer time and money on bills doomed to fail.
November cannot get here quick enough!!
Unbelievable. PMCs are nothing but professional. The job requirements to even be considered for these companies are insane. They only want the best. I guess former operators will have to find work elsewhere including working for other governments.
Fine.
Just restart the draft.
Morons.
Of course, sons of Dem lawmakers, SEIU members, and the MSM will be exempt.
“Someone ought to ask these nincompoops where they’re going to get another 70,000 or so active duty military to replace the existing contractors.”
They will be unionized government employees.
I wonder how many contractors we needed in past wars....
Unions exist to protect the incompetent. I hope these two legislators are among the first to travel to a zone where their safety is dependent on the "replacements". Idiots like this should have to bear the consequences of their decisions.
Exactly.
The bill will never see the light of day, and even if it did, it would be completely impossible to implement.
But hey, why should that stop Sanders the Socialist from introducing it - it's not like congressmen have to come to terms with like, what do they call that.... "reality?"
You're question presumes that the leftists care if our military is able to accomplish the mission, or if the country can meet it's own defense obligations. They don't.
The purpose of this legislative initiative is the same as all national security bills that are pushed by the Dums - to undermine national security and America's influence in the year. For them, the defeat of this country can't come soon enough.
Probably some of them should be regular govt employees.
All the contractors providing security for State in countries that are not warzones—other than Afghanistand and Iraq..should be State Dept security people. The State people now treat the contractors like dirt and they are expendable. They have no job security(even with their high level security clearances). But State doesn’t want the job back. They can’t get enough regular employees now.
I propose we just prohibit the spending of taxpayer dollars protecting politicians, bureaucrats and other low life forms at all. They should pay for their own security.
The troops are supposed to kill people and break things....They are not qualified/trained to provide security of the type that the contractors provide.
In most prior wars, our troops did what they were trained to do...With the result that there were few unmanageable security issues left behind that military police couldn't handle.
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