Monday, May 12, 2008
This seems so normal for Republicans
The Middle East has always carried a slightly unsavory aura, even the word for bribes sounds exotic-baksheesh. And now we find that our State Dept in Iraq done its part to continue this disreputable tradition.
The Bush administration repeatedly ignored corruption at the highest levels within the Iraqi government and kept secret potentially embarrassing information so as not to undermine its relationship with Baghdad, according two former State Department employees.We can't have government agencies getting in the way of Maliki of Iraq's personal development. Besides, it's not his money he is stealing.
The State Department's policies "not only contradicted the anti-corruption mission but indirectly contributed to and has allowed corruption to fester at the highest levels of the Iraqi government," Brennan told the Senate Democratic Policy Committee.
The U.S. embassy "effort against corruption — including its new centerpiece, the now-defunct Office of Accountability and Transparency — was little more than 'window dressing,' " he added.
The U.S.-led Office of Accountability and Transparency, or "OAT" team, was intended to provide assistance and training to Iraq's anti-corruption agencies. It was dismantled last December, after it alleged in a draft report leaked to the media that al-Maliki's office had derailed or prevented investigations into Shiite-controlled agencies.
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