Congress Investigates Private Military Contracts in Iraq

GWEN IFILL:

While Congress focuses on the future of 150,000 troops on the ground in Iraq, new questions are being raised about at least 100,000 private contractors who are also critical to the war effort. Some are cooks, dishwashers, drivers, but many are armed and do not work behind the scenes.

Since early in the war, U.S. civilian leaders have been guarded by private contractors, everyone from Paul Bremer to U.S. senators to Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad. Many of the contractors have been killed: four in a helicopter crash two weeks ago, and six others in this helicopter shot down in 2005.

U.S. officials say nearly 800 non-military contractors have died since March of 2003. The presence of these workers, not all of them American citizens, is a major element of the president's plan to ramp up security in Baghdad.

SEN. JOE BIDEN (D), Delaware: Gen. Petraeus is well-known to this committee.

GWEN IFILL:

The top U.S. commander in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus, told a Senate hearing last month that, in Baghdad alone, about 85,000 U.S. and Iraqi forces are on the ground or headed there. Private security swells those numbers.

GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS, U.S. Army:

You then should add in tens of thousands of additional forces that are over there that provide, of all things, contract security for our embassy. Myself, I was secured by contract security in my last tour there. And that frees up uniformed forces to perform other missions. And those have to be factored in, as well.

GWEN IFILL:

But relatives of the four contractors who were killed in Fallujah in 2004, one of the most gruesome attacks of the war, told a House committee today their sons and husbands were exposed to unnecessary risk.

KATHRYN HELVENSTON WETTENGEL, Mother of Stephen Helvenston: Our four men were told that they would be working in armored vehicles with no less than six operators at each detail. There were supposed to be at least three people in each vehicle. This would have provided for a driver, a navigator, and a rear gunner, who would have heavy machine guns to fight off any attacks.

Our men were also told that they would be able to learn the routes through Iraq prior to going on any missions and to conduct a risk assessment of each mission to determine if it was too dangerous to go.

Blackwater did not provide our men with any of these protections. We're subcontracting out our war. As I understand, there's 100,000 contractors over there, and there doesn't seem to be a law that applies.

GWEN IFILL:

Representatives of several companies who employ the contractors said their work is essential.

ANDREW HOWELL, Blackwater General Counsel:

Blackwater professionals, most of whom are military veterans, voluntarily go in harm's way at the request, direction, and control of the United States government.

Chances are, if and when you as members of Congress and your staffs travel into Iraq, your lives will be protected for at least part of the trip by Blackwater. Areas of Iraq are among the most dangerous places on Earth, where violence against Americans is endemic. Our people choose to put their lives on the line daily in the service of our country.

GWEN IFILL:

During questioning, Democrat Elijah Cummings tried, and failed, to get an Army official to divulge how many contractors are even on the ground.

REP. ELIJAH CUMMINGS (D), Maryland: Why does the administration rely on so many private contractors, do you know? And we can't even count them?

HEARING WITNESS:

No, sir, I do not.

GWEN IFILL:

But North Carolina Republican Virginia Foxx said come committee members are demanding too much.

REP. VIRGINIA FOXX (R), North Carolina: What we should be doing is being focused on the way the systems operate in all these areas. And what we've got here is a gotcha situation, it seems to me.

There's a tragic loss of life that's occurred. And every life that's been lost in any of our wars, I am sorry for. What we ought to be about is asking for how the systems works, what's wrong with the systems now, and how do we get at it, instead of spending all this time trying to get people on issues that are irrelevant to much of what we should be concerned about.

GWEN IFILL:

But in a letter sent to two committee Democrats today, the Pentagon confirmed one element of the problem: Many layers of government contracting and subcontracting make it difficult to determine exactly how much money is being spent.