Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) has become notorious for harsh attacks on his political opponents, especially the military industrial complex:
Perhaps it’s with some irony that Daniel Schulman reports for Mother Jones on Alternet that Grayson:
… who made his substantial fortune by suing military contractors and later lambasted them as a lawmmaker, was indeed evacuated from Niger by personnel working for Xe Services (the private security empire formally known as Blackwater), his spokesman confirms.
Earlier today I reported on the testimony of Fred Roitz, an executive vice president at Xe, at todays Senate Armed Service Committee on Blackwater subsidiary Paravant. In his prepared remarks, he stated: “Xe Services, through its subsidiary Presidential Airways, provides aviation support and medevac services to Defense Department personnel in Africa. Just last week, our personnel evacuated a congressman from Niger during civil unrest.”
Grayson’s spokesman responded to inquiries about the incident:
“The Congressman does not deny that there is admirable work being done by some employees of private contractors. However, he stands by his criticism of companies who have been found to cheat the American people, defraud our government, and unnecessarily risk the lives of members of our military, all in the name of making a profit.”
Full story: Blackwater Rescued Progressive House Rep. Alan Grayson from Niger’s ‘Civil Unrest’ | World | AlterNet