The Inevitability of Blackwater

Yesterday Bob Gates tried to wiggle out of the reality that the Army is as broken as at any time in recent history. Every single combat-ready brigade is either in Iraq or Afghanistan, just coming back, or about to be deployed. And if limits are placed on extending deployments, like Jim Webb and Jack Murtha's bill recommends, then the Defense Department would have to go to the National Guard and Army reservesfor more bodies.

And what this facilitates is the allowance of hundreds of thousands of contractors and security personnel in the country. Anything the Army doesn't have to do themselves makes it easier for them to sustain themselves. And so you get these private companies like Blackwter deploying essentially mercenaries into the region. And then stuff like this happens.

The Iraqi government said Monday that it was revoking the license of an American security firm accused of involvement in the deaths of eight civilians in a firefight that followed a car bomb explosion near a State Department motorcade.

The Interior Ministry said it would prosecute any foreign contractors found to have used excessive force in the Sunday shooting. It was latest accusation against the U.S.-contracted firms that operate with little or no supervision and are widely disliked by Iraqis who resent their speeding motorcades and forceful behavior.

Interior Ministry spokesman Abdul-Karim Khalaf said eight civilians were killed and 13 were wounded when contractors believed to be working for Blackwater USA opened fire in a predominantly Sunni neighborhood of western Baghdad.

''We have canceled the license of Blackwater and prevented them from working all over Iraqi territory. We will also refer those involved to Iraqi judicial authorities,'' Khalaf said.

It's unclear what power the Iraqi government has in this instance. Private security contractors exist in a legal black hole, not fully liable to Iraqi law or military law. In fact, the Coalition Provisional Authority codified the private contractor exemption into law when they were in power.

The embassy also refused to answer any questions on Blackwater's status or legal issues, saying it was seeking clarification on the issue as part of the investigation, which was being carried out by the State Department's diplomatic security service and law enforcement officials working with the Iraqi government and the U.S. military.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki late Sunday condemned the shooting by a ''foreign security company'' and called it a ''crime.''

The decision to pull the license was likely to face a challenge, as it would be a major blow to a company that was at the forefront of one of the main turning points in the war.

This does have the ability to strengthen the credibility of the Iraqi government if they can actually eject Blackwater from the country, but I'm not certain they can be successful. Blackwater has a lot of power and pull within the US government.

''There have been so many innocent people they've killed over there, and they just keep doing it,'' said Katy Helvenston, the mother of late Blackwater contractor Steve Helvenston, who died in 2004 during the ambush in Fallujah. ''They have just a callous disregard for life.''

Helvenston is now part of a lawsuit that accuses Blackwater of cutting corners that ultimately led to the death of her son and three others.

If the Bush Administration doesn't do the right thing here, they will worsen the prospects of both the Iraqi government and their own troops. Already I imagine the Iraqi people have less problems with killing Americans in their country.

UPDATE: To circle back to the Webb Amendment, this ought to be the strategy.

The Democrats should offer the Webb Amendment when the Defense Appropriation comes up. If the Republicans want to filibuster, fine. Don't pull the amendment. Just let them keep filibustering. As long as the amendment is on the floor, there can be no vote on the bill itself. Keep calling cloture votes, one per day. After a few days, start asking how long the Republicans intend to withhold money to fund troops in the field in order to pursue their petty partisan agenda.

If the Republicans in the Senate hold firm, it's their stubbornness that's holding up the bill. If they fold, and the bill gets to the President's desk and he vetoes it, then pass the same damned bill again. And start asking how long the President intends to block funding for troops in the field in order to pursue his petty partisan agenda.

As of October 1, there's no money to fund the war. So the usual move is to pass a continuing resolution, which keeps the money flowing until the appropriation passes. Fine. Pass a continuing resolution with the Webb Amendment attached. If the CR runs into a filibuster or a veto, ask how long ...

There's this idea among Democratic leaders that you can't pass the same bill twice because Americans just won't accept it. In truth, it's only the Washington elites that won't accept it. The people want to end the war, and furthermore they want to support the troops with the rest and readiness they need. They're willing to hang in and force the President's hand. In fact it's the best thing the Democratic Party could possibly do.