Hearing of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform - Blackwater USA; Private Security Contracting in Iraq & Afghanistan
Interview
Hearing of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform - Blackwater USA; Private Security Contracting in Iraq & Afghanistan
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REP. PAUL W. HODES (D-NH): Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Prince, thank you for being with us today.
MR. PRINCE: Thanks for having me, sir. Glad to come here and correct some facts.
REP. HODES: There has been some discussion from the other side of the aisle about whether or not these hearings are partisan. Do you agree that it is not a partisan issue to examine whether or not the use of private contractors, including Blackwater, is advantageous to American taxpayers?
MR. PRINCE: It's certainly the part of the Congress to make sure the money is spent well that the taxpayers pay.
REP. HODES: And do you also agree that it is not a partisan issue to inquire whether failures to hold Blackwater personnel accountable for misconduct undermine our efforts in Iraq?
MR. PRINCE: It's a fair enough thing to look into.
REP. HODES: Earlier today you were asked what action Blackwater took to penalize an employee who, while drunk, shot and killed an Iraqi security guard for the Iraqi vice president on Christmas Eve of 2006. You recall those questions?
MR. PRINCE: Yes, sir.
REP. HODES: And you responded that Blackwater fired and fined the employee, but you aren't sure of the amount of the fine. Do you recall that?
MR. PRINCE: Yes, sir.
REP. HODES: Blackwater, at the committee's request, provided the committee an internal Blackwater e-mail that appears to reflect the discussion of what Blackwater did to this employee. It's dated Monday, January 8th, 2007, approximately two weeks after the incident in question, and it says, quote, "regarding termination, he has forfeited the following compensation that he would have otherwise been authorized: return airfare, 1,630 (dollars); completion bonus, $7,067; 4th of July bonus, $3,000; and a Christmas bonus of $3,000.
Now, it appears to me that the so-called fine consisted of taking away the contractor's bonuses and making him pay his own way home. Is that accurate?
MR. PRINCE: And any forthcoming compensation that he had. I don't know when the guy's contract would have ended, but yes, we took away whatever else we could.
REP. HODES: How long did he work for your company?
MR. PRINCE: I have no idea.
REP. HODES: Do you know what he'd been paid during the time of his employment up till the time he shot and killed the Iraqi guard?
MR. PRINCE: No idea, sir.
REP. HODES: Do you have any idea what your profit on that employee had been up until the time of this incident?
MR. PRINCE: Probably in keeping with the 10 -- 10-and-a-half percent indicated in our chart.
REP. HODES: Would you have records that would show us what you had paid him up until that time and from which we could find out what profit you had made?
MR. PRINCE: I'm sure we could dig through that and find it. Yes, sir.
REP. HODES: And would you be willing to provide that to us?
MR. PRINCE: I'll get my people right on it.
REP. HODES: I'm asking for it now, so I'd like to have that sent. Thank you very much.
MR. PRINCE: All right.
REP. HODES: Thank you very much.
REP. WAXMAN: Without objection, the document you've used for your questions will be made a part of the record.
REP. HODES: Thank you.
Mr. Prince, you also said that Blackwater is extremely scrupulous in enforcing your standards. And you have told us that you did basically all you could to this employee and that the rest was up to the Department of Justice. What you did was you took away his bonuses: Fourth of July, completion bonus, Christmas bonus. He paid his own way home and he couldn't work for you any more.
MR. PRINCE: And made sure his clearance was cancelled as well.
REP. HODES: Is that your idea, Mr. Prince, of corporate accountability?
MR. PRINCE: Could you say the questions again, sir, please?
REP. HODES: Is that your idea, Mr. Prince, of corporate accountability?
MR. PRINCE: This employee -- I can't make any apologies for what he did. He clearly violated the rules that he knew, that -- you know, we give each of our guys an independent contractor handbook. It's all the dos and the don'ts of what they're expected to do and not do. Beyond firing him for breaking the rules, withholding any funds we can, we can't flog him, we can't incarcerate him, we can't do anything beyond that. That is the sole reservation of the U.S. Justice Department.
REP. HOES: The Justice Department has not acted against this individual?
MR. PRINCE: I believe their investigation is ongoing.
REP. HODES: They haven't done anything so far, right?
MR. PRINCE: We're not privy to that information, sir.
REP. HODES: This was a potential murder, was it not?
MR. PRINCE: It was a guy that put himself in a bad situation
REP. HODES: Would you agree with me that this was potentially a murder, sir?
MR. PRINCE: Beyond watching detective shows on TV, sir, I'm not a lawyer. So I can't determine whether it would be a manslaughter, a negligent homicide, a -- I don't know. I don't know how to nuance that. But I do know, he broke our rules, he put himself in a bad situation, and something very tragic happened.
REP.WAXMAN: Thank you, Mr. Hodes.
REP. HODES: Thank you.
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