Archive for the ‘ Documents ’ Category

Obama Gives $3B To Jobless Homeowners

The Obama administration announced Wednesday that as part of an ongoing effort to stabilize housing markets it will send a $3 billion lifeline to jobless homeowners struggling to make mortgage payments. Remember the Peggy Joseph video:

Tapping into resources from the $700 billion Wall Street bailout, the Treasury Department will add $2 billion to its existing “Hardest Hit Fund,” assisting the 17 states that have unemployment rates higher than the national average, along with Washington D.C.

Obama established the Hardest Hit Fund in February 2010 to provide targeted aid to families in states hit hard by the economic and housing market downturn. The first five states to receive aid each experienced a 20 percent or greater decline in average home prices: Arizona, California, Florida, Michigan and Nevada.  The program was expanded to provide support to five states with high percentages of their population living in areas of economic distress due to unemployment: North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Rhode Island and South Carolina.  Each state Housing Finance Agency (HFA) gathered public input and designed programs to meet the distinct challenges facing struggling homeowners in their state.

On June 23, the Obama Administration announced approval of state proposals put forward by Housing Finance Agencies (HFAs) in Arizona, California, Florida, Michigan and Nevada for $1.5 billion in Hardest Hit Fund foreclosure-prevention funding. Each of these states had an average home price decline of over 20 percent since the housing market downturn.

Approved states will now begin to set up and roll out their specific Hardest Hit Fund programs in order to provide relief to struggling homeowners as soon as possible, with specific implementation timing depending on the types of programs offered, specific state-level procurement procedures, and other factors.

Each state’s approved Hardest Hit Fund proposal and contact information are available below. For more information about a state-specific proposal, please contact that state’s Housing Finance Agency.

On August 4, the Obama Administration announced approval of state proposals put forward by Housing Finance Agencies (HFAs) in North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Rhode Island and South Carolina for $600 million in Hardest Hit Fund foreclosure-prevention funding. This assistance will support local initiatives to assist struggling homeowners in these five states which have high percentages of their population living in areas of economic distress due to unemployment. These concentrations are defined as counties in which the unemployment rate exceeded 12 percent on average during 2009.  Each state HFA determined how to design programs and target resources to meet their distinct needs.

Approved states will now begin to set up and roll out their specific Hardest Hit Fund programs in order to provide relief to struggling homeowners as soon as possible, with specific implementation timing depending on the types of programs offered, specific state-level procurement procedures, and other factors.

Each state’s approved Hardest Hit Fund proposal and contact information are available below. For more information about a state-specific proposal, please contact that state’s Housing Finance Agency.

A new $1 billion program led by the Department of Housing and Urban Development will give homeowners who are at risk of foreclosure due to involuntary unemployment, underemployment, or a medical condition interest-free loans for as much as $50,000 for up to two years.

The two programs “will ultimately impact a broad group of struggling borrowers across the country and in doing so further contribute to the administration’s efforts to stabilize housing markets and communities across the country.

More than 4 million Americans have lost their job since the start of 2009, but the federal government continues to import more than 125,000 foreign workers every month. As of June 2009, nearly 26 million Americans were unemployed, had to settle for part-time work, or left the job market altogether.

Unemployment rate by State or District

State or District Unemployment rate
(seasonally adjusted)
Monthly percent change
(▲=rise in unemployment)
Nevada 14.2 ▲ 0.2%
Michigan 13.2 ▼ 0.4%
California 12.3 ▼ 0.1%
Rhode Island 12.0 ▼ 0.3%
Florida 11.4 ▼ 0.3%
Mississippi 11.0 ▼ 0.3%
South Carolina 10.7 ▼ 0.3%
Ohio 10.5 ▼ 0.2%
Oregon 10.5 ▼ 0.1%
Illinois 10.4 ▼ 0.4%
Alabama 10.3 ▼ 0.5%
Indiana 10.1 ▲ 0.1%
Tennessee 10.1 ▼ 0.3%
District Of Columbia 10.0 ▼ 0.3%
Georgia 10.0 ▼ 0.2%
Kentucky 10.0 ▼ 0.4%
North Carolina 10.0 ▼ 0.3%
Arizona 9.6 ▬ 0.0%
New Jersey 9.6 ▼ 0.1%
United States (national)[5] 9.5 ▼ 0.2%
Pennsylvania 9.2 ▲ 0.1%
Missouri 9.1 ▼ 0.2%
Massachusetts 9.0 ▲ 0.2%
Washington 8.9 ▼ 0.2%
Connecticut 8.8 ▼ 0.1%
Idaho 8.8 ▼ 0.2%
Delaware 8.5 ▼ 0.3%
West Virginia 8.5 ▼ 0.4%
New Mexico 8.2 ▼ 0.2%
New York 8.2 ▼ 0.1%
Texas 8.2 ▼ 0.1%
Colorado 8.0 ▬ 0.0%
Maine 8.0 ▬ 0.0%
Alaska 7.9 ▼ 0.4%
Wisconsin 7.9 ▼ 0.3%
Arkansas 7.5 ▼ 0.2%
Montana 7.3 ▲ 0.1%
Utah 7.2 ▼ 0.1%
Maryland 7.1 ▼ 0.1%
Louisiana 7.0 ▲ 0.1%
Virginia 7.0 ▼ 0.1%
Iowa 6.8 ▬ 0.0%
Minnesota 6.8 ▼ 0.2%
Oklahoma 6.8 ▲ 0.1%
Wyoming 6.8 ▼ 0.2%
Kansas 6.5 ▬ 0.0%
Hawaii 6.3 ▼ 0.3%
Vermont 6.0 ▼ 0.2%
New Hampshire 5.9 ▼ 0.5%
Nebraska 4.8 ▼ 0.1%
South Dakota 4.5 ▼ 0.1%
North Dakota 3.6 ▬ 0.0%

Under the Treasury’s Hardest Hit Fund, California will receive $476 million, the most of any state. Florida and Illinois also top the list with almost $239 million and $166 million, respectively. Funds were allocated among the hardest hit states based on population size. The Treasury’s Hardest Hit Fund, which was announced in February, initially extended $1.5 billion to five states. In March, $600 million was provided to five more states.

In its third round, the program makes funding available to Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee and Washington, D.C.

Join Emptysuit On Twitter

Click On Links
If I help him, he’s going to help me

Rush Limbaugh: The Obamas Party Like Royalty

Glenn Beck: Planet Of The Apes Remarks
The Clintons, Jews And Niggers
Child Dies In House Fire, Aunt Concerned
About Her Food Stamps

Hillary Clinton Warned America About Obama
Obama’s Stimulus Package Has Failed To Deliver
About Emptysuit

Your Opinion

Obama Indonesian Citizenship

Several court cases challenging Obama’s presidential eligibility have argued he gave up his U.S. citizenship in Indonesia and used an Indonesian passport to travel to Pakistan in the early 1980s. Indonesia does not allow dual citizenship. Documents released by the State Department in two separate Freedom of Information Act requests bolster evidence Barack Obama became a citizen of Indonesia when he moved to the Southeast Asian nation with his mother and stepfather in the late 1960s. In a passport amendment submitted Aug. 13, 1968, Obama’s mother, Stanley Ann Dunham, identified her son with an Indonesian surname and asked the State Department to drop him from her U.S. passport. It took place before the State Department began requiring all citizens traveling abroad, regardless of age, to obtain their own passport. Well surprise, another birth certificate of Obama’s birth in Kenya has been found.

The amendment was submitted less than a year after Dunham joined her second husband, Lolo Soetoro, in Indonesia. It requested “Barack Obama II (Soebarkah)” be removed from her U.S. passport, No. 777788. A letter from Lolo Soetoro to immigration officials in Hawaii pleading for an extension of his student visa, because anti-American sentiments in Indonesia could endanger his family, offers a possible reason for seeking Indonesian citizenship for Obama. An Indonesian school registration card that surfaced during the 2008 presidential campaign presents evidence Obama was an Indonesian citizen during his time in the country as a child. WND reported in August 2008 the Associated Press published a photograph purportedly of Obama’s registration card at Indonesia’s Francis Assisi school. The card showed he was enrolled as “Barry Soetoro” and listed as an Indonesian citizen whose official religious identification was Muslim.

This is the reason Obama feels comfortable not saluting the American Flag:

Philip J Berg, attorney, filed a complaint in Federal Court in Philadelphia on August, 21, 2008. In the complaint against Obama, Mr. Berg states “Obama does not meet the qualifications to be President of the United States.” Philip Berg also states the following:

“Senator Obama:

1. Is not a natural-born citizen; and/or
2. Lost his citizenship when he was adopted in Indonesia; and/or
3. Has dual loyalties because of his citizenship with Kenya and Indonesia.

Berg stated: “I filed this action at this time to avoid the obvious problems that will occur when the Republican Party raises these issues after Obama is nominated.” In Philip Berg’s case, Hollister v Soetoro, we see some Indonesian laws cited.

Here’s the first Indonesian law reference from Hollister: 27 Indonesia did not allow foreign students to attend their public schools in the late 1960’s or 1970’s, and any time a child was registered for a public school, their name and citizenship status was verified through the Indonesian Government. See Constitution of Republic of Indonesia (Undang-Undang Dasar Republik Indonesia 1945), Chapter 13, Law No. 62 of 1958 (all citizens of Indonesia have a right to education). The school record, attached hereto as Exhibit “B”, indicates that Soetoro’s name is “Barry Soetoro;” his nationality is “Indonesia;” and his religion as “Islam”. There was no way for Soetoro to have attended school in Jakarta, Indonesia legally unless he was an Indonesian citizen, as Indonesia was under tight rule and was a Police State. See Constitution of Republic of Indonesia (Undang-Undang Dasar Republik Indonesia 1945), Law No. 62 of 1958. These facts indicate that Soetoro is an Indonesian citizen, and therefore he is not eligible to be President of the United States.

  1. Indonesia did not allow foreign students to attend their public schools in the late 1960’s or 1970’s
  2. any time a child was registered for a public school, their name and citizenship status was verified through the Indonesian Government
  3. There was no way for Soetoro to have attended school in Jakarta, Indonesia legally unless he was an Indonesian citizen

Under Indonesian law, when a male acknowledges a child as his son, it deems the son, in this case Soetoro, an Indonesian State citizen. Constitution of Republic of Indonesia, Law No. 62 of 1958 concerning Immigration Affairs and Indonesian Civil Code (Kitab Undang-undang Hukum Perdata) (KUHPer) (Burgerlijk Wetboek voor Indonesie).

(1)A foreign child of less than 5 years age who is adopted by a citizen of the Republic of Indonesia acquires the citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia, if such an adoption is declared legal by the Pengadilan Negeri [state court] at the residence of the person adopting the child. However, Obama was over 5 years old when he went to Indonesia so it does not apply. Law No. 62 says nothing about a child 5 years or older acquiring citizenship.

A child cannot acquire Indonesian citizenship if it would create dual citizenship unless the child is able to renounce said citizenship (which an American child is unable to do). A child outside a marriage of a mother who is a citizen of the Republic of Indonesia or a child out of a legal marriage, but who has in a case of divorce been assigned to the care of its mother, a citizen of the Republic of Indonesia, who follows the nationality of the father, a foreigner, may present a petition to the Minister of Justice in order to acquire the citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia, if, after, having acquired the citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia, it possesses no other nationality or states at the same time to have released another nationality according to the procedure stipulated by the legal provisions of the country of origin and/or according to the procedure stipulated by the agreement on the settlement of the bi-nationality between the Republic of Indonesia and the country in question.

Article 7.

(1)A foreign woman married to a citizen of the Republic of Indonesia, acquires the citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia, if and when she makes a statement as to that effect within 1 year after contracting said marriage, except in case when she acquires the citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia she possesses still another nationality, in which case the statement may not be made.

(2)With the exception as mentioned in para 1 the foreign woman who marries a citizen of the Republic of Indonesia also acquires the citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia one year after the marriage has been contracted, if within that one year her husband does not make a statement as to release his citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia.

Said statement may only be made and only results in the loss of the citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia if by such a loss the husband does not become stateless.

(3)If one of the statements mentioned in para 1 and 2 have been made, the alternative statement may not be made.

(4)The statements mentioned above shall be made to the Pengadilan Negeri or the Representation of the Republic of Indonesia at the residence of the person making such a statement.

Article 9.

(1)The citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia acquired by a husband is automatically valid for his wife, except if, after the citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia has been acquired, the wife possesses still another nationality.

(2)The loss of the citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia by a husband affects automatically his wife, except if the wife will become stateless.

The Indonesian citizenship law was designed to prevent apatride (stateless) or bipatride (dual) citizenship. Indonesian regulations recognized neither apatride nor bipatride (stateless or dual) citizenship. Since Indonesia did not allow dual citizenship; neither did the United States (since the United States only permitted dual citizenship when ‘both’ countries agree); and since Soetoro was a “natural” citizen of Indonesia, the United States would not step in or interfere with the laws of Indonesia. Hague Convention of 1930.

It has long been suspected that Obama used a foreign passport to travel to Pakistan during his college years because Americans were restricted from travel there at that time by order of the State Department, yet Obama visited with no trouble, which could only have been done if he were traveling on a foreign passport.Lolo Soetoro’s letter to Immigration and Naturalization officials in the Department of Justice in Hawaii explained his wife’s U.S. citizenship could be a problem in the turbulent politics of Indonesia in the mid-1960s. “My wife, Ann Soetoro, is a citizen of the United States and has resided here all her life,” Soetoro wrote the immigration officials, pleading hardship should he be forced to return to his Indonesian home. “It is presently impossible for my wife to return to Indonesia with me.” Soetoro argued “anti-American feeling has reached a feverish pitch under the direction of the Indonesian communist party, and I have been advised by both family and friends in Indonesia that it would be dangerous to endeavor to return with my wife at the present time.”

The newly released State Department records show Obama and his mother traveled to Indonesia to join her husband in October 1967, with Obama listed on her passport as her son and an American citizen. When Obama’s mother returned to the U.S. Oct. 20-21, 1971, she entered with State Department forms allowing her to travel with the passport she used in 1967 to go to Indonesia, even though it had expired. The expired passport contained no reference to Barack Obama, although he had traveled with his mother on the October 1967 flight from the United States to Indonesia. The only known testimony that Obama returned home from Indonesia alone and on a U.S. passport is his own account in his autobiography, “Dreams from My Father.” That source, however, has proved to be unreliable in various material aspects.

See the movie Obama does not want you to see: Own the DVD that probes this unprecedented presidential-eligibility mystery!

Join Emptysuit On Twitter

Click On Links
Obama’s Kenyan Birth Certificate
Rush Limbaugh: The Obamas Party Like Royalty

The House Negro And The Field Negro
The Clintons, Jews And Niggers
Barack Obama A Muslim
Hillary Clinton Warned America About Obama
Obama And Baghdad Suicide Bombers
Michelle Obama On Beach In SpainGlenn Beck: Planet Of The Apes Remarks
Obama The Devil
About Emptysuit

Your Opinion

WikiLeaks Classified Military Documents

Below are a selection of the reports from a six-year archive of classified military documents published by WikiLeaks. These examples provide an unvarnished, ground-level picture of the war in Afghanistan. Some of the documents suggest that the Pakistani military and its spy agency have been unspoken allies of the Afghan insurgency. Some names and details have been redacted by The Times to conceal suspects’ identities, or because they might put people in danger or reveal key tactical military capabilities.

  • Jan. 5, 2009 Working Two Sides

(THREAT REPORT) IED THREAT RPT Sorobi
INS MEET TO PLAN AN SVBIED ATTACK

Organization(s) Involved: FOREIGN FIGHTERS,INTER-SERVICES INTELLIGENCE DIRECTORATE,OPPOSING MILITANT FORCES

14 JAN 2009, TF CASTLE INTSUM 4311, NSI

(SECRET//REL TO USA, ISAF, NATO) AAF MOVE BLUE JINGLE TRUCK VBIED TO SAROBI DISTRICT

ON 5 JANUARY 2009, FROM 2100 TO 2300 HOURS LOCAL TIME, AAF COMMANDERS ((NAZIR)), ((HALLIMULLAH)), ((MALANG)) BASED IN WANA, SOUTH WAZIRISTAN AGENCY (SWA), FEDERALLY ADMINISTERED TRIBAL AREAS (FATA), PAKISTAN, HELD A MEETING TO DISCUSS THEIR PLANS TO AVENGE THE DEATH OF ZAMARAI. THE MEETING WAS CONDUCTED AT THE RESIDENCE OF ——— ————— IN WANA. ALSO IN ATTENDANCE WERE THREE UNIDENTIFIED OLDER ARAB MALES, WHO WERE CONSIDERED IMPORTANT. (SOURCE COMMENT: THE ARABS WERE BELIEVED TO BE IMPORTANT BECAUSE THEY HAD A LARGE SECURITY CONTINGENT WITH THEM.) AT LEAST ONE OF THE THREE UNIDENTIFIED ARABS IN ATTENDANCE WAS PROFICIENT IN THE PASHTUN LANGUAGE AND THE ARABS WERE ACCOMPANIED BY APPROXIMATELY 20 ARAB BODYGUARDS. ((HAMID GUL)), A FORMER MEMBER OF PAKISTAN’S INTER-SERVICES INTELLIGENCE (ISI), WAS IN ATTENDANCE AT THE MEETING ALSO. HAMID GUL WAS DESCRIBED AS BEING AN OLDER MAN AND A VERY IMPORTANT PERSON FROM ISI. (COMMENT: HAMID GUL WAS DIRECTOR GENERAL OF ISI FROM 1987-1989 AND, ACCORDING TO ISI, HAS NOT BEEN AN OFFICIAL WITH ISI SINCE THAT TIME. IT WAS NOT KNOWN WHETHER HAMID GUL WAS ACTING WITH THE KNOWLEDGE OR CONSENT OF ISI, OR WHETHER ANY PORTIONS OF ISI WERE AWARE OF HIS ACTIVITIES.)

THE MEETING ATTENDEES WERE SADDENED BY THE NEWS OF ZAMARAI’S DEATH AND DISCUSSED PLANS TO COMPLETE ZAMARAI’S LAST MISSION BY FACILITATING THE MOVEMENT OF A SUICIDE VEHICLE-BORNE IMPROVISED EXPLOSIVE DEVICE (SVBIED) FROM PAKISTAN TO AFGHANISTAN THROUGH THE KHAN PASS, VARIANT: KHAND PASS. (COMMENT: THE KHAN PASS IS LOCATED IN SWA AND HAS BEEN FREQUENTLY USED BY AAF AND ARAB FORCES IN THE PAST.) THE SVBIED WAS DESCRIBED AS A DARK BLUE MAZDA JINGA TRUCK WITH A GRAYISH WHITE HOOD. AS OF 3 JANUARY, THE SVBIED WAS LOCATED IN AZAM WARSAK, SWA. DURING THE MEETING, THE ATTENDEES FORMULATED THE PLAN TO MOVE THE SVBIED, DRIVEN BY AN UNIDENTIFIED ARAB, ON 10 JANUARY 2009 THROUGH THE KHAN PASS. THE MILITANTS PLANNED TO TARGET SAROBI, AFGHANISTAN, WITH THE SVBIED. (COMMENT: SAROBI IS LIKELY A REFERENCE TO SAROBI DISTRICT, PAKTIKA PROVINCE.) HAMID GUL ENCOURAGED THE AAF LEADERS TO FOCUS THEIR OPERATION INSIDE OF AFGHANISTAN IN EXCHANGE FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF PAKISTAN’S SECURITY FORCES TURNING A BLIND EYE TO THE PRESENCE OF AAF COMMANDERS AND FIGHTERS IN PAKISTAN (NFI). ADDITIONALLY, THE AAF LEADERS APPROVED A PLAN TO SEND 50 ARAB AND 50 WAZIRI FIGHTERS TO GHAZNI PROVINCE, AFGHANISTAN IN EARLY FEBRUARY 2009. ACCORDING TO HAMID GUL, THE AERIAL THREATS IN THE AREA WERE CONTROLLED FROM THE AIRPORT IN WANA.

  • Dec. 18, 2006 Suicide Training

(THREAT REPORT) IED THREAT RPT Kabul
POSSIBLE IED ATTACKS IN KABUL

Organization(s) Involved:

24 DEC 2006, ISAF CJ2X INTSUM 06100, NIS

(—— —) RC CAPITAL – Possible suicide attack in KABUL. (C?3)

DOI: 18 Dec 06; OHR: RO FHT/1929.

(—— —) A network of both Afghani and Pakistani terrorists has been planning and executing suicide attacks in KABUL City starting with unknown date. They are carrying out these sorts of operations in present. The entire process runs cyclically.

The process includes: training of suicide attackers, reconnaissance of operation area, operation planning, transport and hosting of suicide attackers and the execution of the attacks.

Generally responsible (but in an unknown manner) for suicide operations in KABUL City is ——— ——— —— — ——— ———— ——— ————— ———— / PAKISTAN. He is an ISI member in ———— — ——— (Intelligence Service —————) office in ————— and part of his job is ————— ————— —————. (OPR COMMENT: Source was unable to further specify this job function. ENDS.) He graduated DAR AL ULOM-E HAQQANIA (religious school) having ————— ——— —— as one of his teachers.

Training: The suicide attackers are trained in GHALANI CAMP MOHMAND GHAR and MAULANA Jalaluddin HAQQANI’S camp located in northern WALERISTAN.

Reconnaissance, planning and transportation: Responsible for reconnaissance of the area, planning and transporting the suicide attackers from PAKISTAN to AFGHANISTAN is ——— ——— ——— —— — ——— ————. First, before bringing the attackers, ——— ——— ——— travelled to KABUL in order to check the local situation and to get specific information from ——— and ———, two police officers working in ————— branch of KABUL City Police. After getting the necessary information, he returned to PAKISTAN and started making plans supervised by AL ZAWAHIRI, ——— ———— ———— and ————— ————— ——— —————. ——— ——— ——— —— ——— — ————— Village ———— —— ————— ——— ——— ————— ———— ————— but presently he lives in ————— ——— ———— —————.

Hosting: At the completion of the planning process, ——— ——— ——— started bringing the suicide attackers to KABUL and delivering them to ——— locals. These ——— are: ————— — —— ———— ——— ——— —— ——— ——— —— ——— ——— ——— ——— ————— ——— ——— —— ——— are involved in weapons and drug smuggling. They have links with PD— police and PD — and PD — NDS and Anti-terrorism Department of MOI. These ——— people harbour the suicide attackers inside their houses.

Execution: After arriving to KABUL, the suicide attackers reconnoitred the area in order to find a suitable place for their attacks. Once a suitable place is found the attackers perform their attacks.

This information MUST NOT be disseminated to the GoA.

  • Dec. 20, 2006 Festival of Sacrifices

(THREAT REPORT) IED THREAT RPT Kabul
PLANNED ATTACKS AGAINST NATO

Organization(s) Involved: HEZB E ISLAMI GULBUDDIN

23 DEC 2006, —————-——-—/— —

It is reported that; ————— ——— (loyal to HIG and Kashmir KHAN, NFI) took the delivery of one suicide attacker from “Madrasa of Hashimiye” which is a training school for suicide attackers and located in Peshawer district of Pakistan, by the orders of Kashmir KHAN (HIG Commander) and Abu IHLAS (AQ Commander). After that, ——— went to Jalalabad district of NANGARHAR with the suicide attacker and bought a car to prepare it as a SVBIED. SVBIED is a Toyota Corolla SW, in light yellow color, 1996 model, and its license plate number is Jalalabad ———.

After preparing the Toyota Corolla as a SVBIED, they intruded into Pol-e Charki region of KABUL on the night of 20 Dec 2006. The name of the suicide attacker is ——— ———. He is 22-24 years old and one of the Pashtuns of Pakistan.

He is planning to conduct SVBIED attack against US and ISAF/NATO vehicles on Route White and Route Violet in KABUL until the Muslim Festival of Sacrifices (between 31 Dec 06 and 03 Jan 07). (NFDK).

CTC Comment: 95% of the suicide attackers are trained in the “Madrasa of Hashimiye” which is located in Peshawer district of Pakistan. Monthly, the former Chief of ISI – General Hamid GUL is visiting this madrasa.

FHT Comment: NIL.

COMMENTS

1. This report is in response to RCC PIR 1A.

2. CTC re-contactable.

G2X COMMENT

There are some reasons to consider this info as a real threat warning:

- info is covering the essential ———:

- the mentioned timing of the attack – Muslim Festival of Sacrifice make us think the threat is more likely;

- insurgent’s plan could be to take advantage of season’s feast IOT obtain a magnified media impact.

  • July 1, 2008 Embassy Attack

(THREAT REPORT) ATTACK THREAT RPT Kabul
TB THREAT TO INDIAN EMBASSY

Organization(s) Involved: TALIBAN CENTER

01 JUL 2008, ———— —— ———— ———— ————— ——

FROM: ———— ——

TO: ISAF HQ CJ2 CJOC REP

SOURCE: —— —— ——— ————

DATE OF INFORMATION: 30JUN08

DATE OF REPORT: 01JUL08

NUMBER OF REPORT: 75010708

TOPIC: Security situation in KABUL

Taliban are planning to carry out an attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul. TB designated an engineer ———— ————— ————— to take this action. He intends to use stolen ANA/ANP car, and wears stolen uniform. He speaks Dari with distinct Iranian accent. Allegedly, he is the owner of a ————— company.

INS are planning to divide into two groups: first will attack Indian embassy building, whilst the second group will engage security posts in front of MOI, IOT give possibility to escape attackers from the first group.

Budget for this action is about 120 000 USD. The main goal of this operation is to show TB’s abilities to carry out attack on every object in Kabul /IO/. /NFI/

  • Oct. 3, 2009 Fighters Breach Outpost Keating

(ENEMY ACTION) DIRECT FIRE RPT (HMG,Small Arms,RPG) TF DESTROYER : 8 CF KIA 23 CF WIA 1 HNSF KIA 9 HNSF WIA 2 UE KIA
Tier Level 1

***** SALTUR FOLLOWS *****

SIZE: 175-200aaf

ACTIVITY: B-10 SAF

L:F: YE: 1143 2254 KEATING L:E:YE 104 225

TIME: 0130z

UNIT: B TROOP 3-61 CAV

RESPONSE: RETURNING WITH 120MM AND SAF

***** END REPORT *****

WHY: Conducting Normal COP and OP operations

[01:33] < BlackKnight_TOC > FRI AND KEA IN HEAVY CONTACT

[01:33] < BlackKnight_TOC > Requesting Air Tic Be opened

01:32] < Keating2OPS > we need it now we have mortars pinned down and fire coming form everywhere

01:33] < Keating2OPS > fritsche is taking heavy machine gun fire as well

[01:33] < BlackKnight_TOC > wee need something

[01:37] < TF_DESTROYER_BTL_CPT > [01:33] < BlackKnight_TOC > fri and kea still taking heavy contact

[01:33] < BlackKnight_TOC > fri and kea still taking heavy contact

[01:40] < Keating2OPS > we are taking contact from diving board, switchbacks, putting green and b-10 position

[01:40] < Keating2OPS > we are taking heavy saf and rpgs

[01:40] < Keating2OPS > rpgs from the north face

[01:35] < BlackKnight_TOC > still taking IDF

[01:35] < BlackKnight_TOC > need something our mortors cant get upo

[01:35] < BlackKnight_TOC > we are taking casiltys

[01:35] < BlackKnight_TOC > GET SOMETHING UP!

[——]< TF_DESTROYER_BTL_CPT > BK DUDE 25 enroute No eta yet

[——] < TF_PALEHORSE_BTL_CPT > NEGATIVE, AH ARE BEING ALERTED TIME NOW

[——] <

TF_PALEHORSE_BTL_CPT > ITS A 40 MINUTE FLIGHT

[——] < Keating2OPS > whats the status of air

[——] < TF_DESTROYER_BTL_CPT > CAS 5 minutes

[——] < Keating2OPS > we are taking fire from inside urmul village

[01:48] < Keating2OPS > our mortars are still pinned down unable to fire

[01:50] < Keating2OPS > we need cas

[01:50] < Keating2OPS > still taking heavy rpgs and machine gun fire

[01:51] < Keating2OPS > at both locations fritsche and keating taking heavy contact

[01:52] < Keating2OPS > the switchbacks from urmul the diving board and north face

[01:52] < Keating2OPS > at keating and fritsche is surrounded as wel

[01:53] < Keating2OPS > multiple enemies running through the anp station and fire coming from the mosque in urmu

[01:54] < Keating2OPS > priority is switchback and putting green

[01:54] < Keating2OPS > asg is attacking op fritsche att

[——] < Keating2OPS > we are still taking effective rpgs at keating from the anp station everyone at the police station is shooting at us

[——] < Keating2OPS > asg has given up there op at fritsche enemy is 50 meters from the wiere on the high ground

[——] < Keating2OPS > asg has given up there op at fritsche enemy is 50 meters from the wiere

[——] < BlackKnight_TOC > we just lost sac com is we lose mirc we are blacked out!!!

[——] < Keating2OPS > jsut took another casualty

[——] < TF_DESTROYER_BTL_NCO > right now

[——] < TF_DESTROYER_BTL_CPT > What type of injury

[——] < Voodoo_7 > need injury type when possible

[——] < Keating2OPS > they are taking them to the aid station and we will get the updatesd

[——] < TF_PH_RTO > KAMDESH TIC RESPONSE ————— ————— W/U JAF ——

[——] < DestroyerS2OPS > Be advised that Keating and Fritsche are in heavy contact att, previous reporting stated that AAF were planning major coordinated attacks agains Keating, Lowell, and possibly Mace IOT allow FOM of fighters moving on Barge Matal

[——] DUDE 25/26 on station darkknight 34 sending 9 line for bomb drop

[——] < TF_PH_RTO > MM(E)10-03A FL08(070) DO25(944) W/U JAF ——

[——] < Keating2OPS > thats the biggest spot right now ANP Station

[——] < Keating2OPS > they are locked onto the trucks with rpgs

[02:11] < Keating2OPS > op fritsche is about to pop claymores at op fritsche

[02:11] < Keating2OPS > they are that close to the wire

[02:12] < Keating2OPS > we still cant get cas up on cag

[02:14] < Keating2OPS > thats up at fritsche and they are almost in the wire there i dont think they are monitoring that but jam freq ———— —— — —— ———— ——

[02:15] < Keating2OPS > our mortars are still pinned down

[02:16] < OP_MACE > AAF ACTIVLEY TALKING ABOUT BREECHING WIRE FREQ ————— —— —— ——

[02:18] < Keating2OPS > we need aaf is attemtping to breech ana side of keating

[02:19] < Keating2OPS > aaf took one of the ana

[02:19] < Keating2OPS > according to the ana commander

0218z Fritsche is 100% equipment and personel

[02:19] < Keating2OPS > enemy in the wire at keating

[02:20] < BlackKnight_TOC > ENEMUY IN THE WIRE ENEMY IN THE WIRE!!!

[02:21] < Keating2OPS > how long until cca

[02:21] < Keating2OPS > we need support

[02:22] < Keating2OPS > we have enemy on the cop

0223z Enemy in the wire at COP keating they breached from the ANA side of the COP to the West

—— Dude Dropping 2X GBU 38

—— Lost Blackknight on MIRC.

TACSAT only means of communication

—— COP Keating is at thier last fighting postion they are getting over ran and need cas as much as possible.

—— Fritsche reports they are shooting 120MM mortors at COP Keating they are no longer taking contact from the south they are supporting keatings last battle position

[——] < Mace_LLVI > Gist: Keep in contact with your guys up there. I cant reach them from down here. There are 3 injured and one killed.

[——] < Mace_LLVI > OP Comments:

—— destroyer main puts all COPS OP”S and FOB at 100% Force pro defensive positions

—— Blackknight Xray wants to engage everything from West ECP to thier TOC

—— blackknight Xray reports that anything outside the wire is hostile and needs to be engaged

—— there is another Weapons team and medevac bird enroute from BAF will be waiting when birds go to FARP they will take off to provide overwatch

[——] < TF_PH_RTO > KAMDESH TIC RESPONSE WN20(221) WN16(194) ON STATION KEA/FRI AT ——

—— OP Fritsche is no longer taking contact from south they are monitoring the souith and getting Javalins out

—— SITREP from Blackknight 7.

2 US KIA, 1 US WIA URGENT, 6 ANA WIA at COP KEATING >

[——] < Destroyer_EWO > EWO on station jamming ICOMs in Keating ———— — ————— and anything else active

—— AH 64s are giving dismounts cover to get to the Mortor PIT to get thier Guns operational.

—— OP Fritsche reports that they have an RPG stuck in a hesco that didnt explode request that EOD is informed for when they do The retrograde

—— reporting sitrep on Casualties is 2 US KIA 3 US WIA 6x ANA WIA at COP KEATING.

— —— at OP FRITSCHE

——: COP Keating recieving SAF RPG, HAF from Mosque at YE 1121 2248.

——: DUDE drops 2 x GBU 38 on grid YE 1134 2217.

0332z: OP Fritsche reports negative contact. Support COP Keating with mortars.

0336 Red 1 rpts the OMLT and ANA are working to clear ANA compoound. Are working on taking the maint building. Believe that is last postions of aaf within keating

——: AWT W/D BOSTICK FOR FARP.

—— OP FRI rpts sporadic fire returning saf and still spting Keating with 120mm

——: AWT FARP COMPLETE, W/U BOSTICK ANROUTE TO KEATING.

—— OP FRI rpts neg contact att still spting KEA with 120mm

—— OP FRI rpts saf from south att returning with .50 cal

——: OP FRI Reports neg contact ATT.

0419z Keating rpts ANA compound a total loss, burnedt to ground. Unable to retake att. AWT is clearing outer perimieter. Still have no contact with security towers, working on retaking cop.

0427 Keating rpts one AWT was hit by safire and is turning to Bostick, WN 13 —— —— ————— to Keating to replace other wn

0432z Keating rpts more WIA coming in at least 12 more from minor shrapnel

0440 OP FRI rpts all wounded at FRi are superficial and do not require medevac att. all minor grazing wounds.

0520 Keating rpts have retaken another bldg, cant’ push any further due to lack of manpower.

0541 Keating rpts heavy effective fire from the village outside cop vic grid YE 11197 22430.

0554z Keting rpts 2 add heros and one more wia with gsw to chest,

0556z RR rpts icom traffic of aaf wanting to overrun keating. working with cas to drop on aaf positions

0559 Bostick has recieved intel that aaf will try to hit hlz woth all the a/c

0602 upadate to KIA only 3 Heros att

0618 Keating still taking fire and working with cas on aaf postions.

—— also getting llvi traffic on mtr attack for bostick,

0638 FRI neg contact att, keating is taking sporadic fire att, cf is reconsolidating have 5 total heros att, with about 8 WIA

—— Keating rpts neg reinforcing postions, COP still split att. QRF is w/u att to ftitsche

—— ICOM traffic states aaf are adjusting idf on bostick, 1 rnd impacted 300 m west of FOB.

—— W/U qrf bos to fri

—— QRF w/d fri

—— l/u wiht chosin

—— w/d bos

—— w/u bos

—— Keating rpts trying to secure cop with cas and wpns. mvmnt dificult, every move draws enemy fire.

—— Keating rpts more sporadic contact still trying to get acc of all personnel

—— Keating rpts locating one more missing US, Hero att.

0839 BK 6 rpts that most of the contacts are between fri and keating. Working bomb drops along route for movmnt to Keating. AWT rpted DSHKA site vic grid YE 1185 2178, working with Bone to drop on site.

[——] 6 X GBU 38 YE 11850 21780 ONE AT THAT GRID THE OTHER 5 WERE DROP WITHIN A HUNDRED METERS IN A CIRCULAR FORMATION AROUND THAT GRID. @ 1325L

—— Keating rpts sporadic saf from south. working with bone to drop on susp aaf pos.

—— Bone Winchestered and is rtb, dropped on swithbacks. Currently working with Hawg to suppress positions north of Keating

—— BK reports TOC is on fire and moving to alt cp

—— qrf lift 3 w/u turn 1

—— qrf w/d fri

—— qrf w/d b bost

—— BK6 (— pax)w/ qrf flt YE 112 215

1033 Keating rpts still taking sporadic fire, only one building left that is not on fire. Have consolidated all casualties at that location.

—— qrf lift 2 w/u bos to fri

—— qrf lift 2 w/d fri

—— qrf w/u fri

—— qrf w/d bos

—— flt for bk6 ye 116 217

—— Keating rpts neg contact att. Holding in last remaing bldg. Bk 6 is still moving in from the south att flt YE 116 218

—— qrf w/u bostic to fri

1145 keating rpts recieving b-10 fire from vic ye 1257 2184, moving sijan to look in that area, also the urgent cas is deteriating

—— qrf w/d fri

1158 flt for bk6 ye 114 218

1200 Combat 16 flt ye 118 215 had an rpg shot at them landed 200m from them continueing msn

1227 BK 6 in contact at vic grid ye 113 219 near ambush, saf and rpg, bk 6 rpts 2 EKIA att, no friendly cas

1231 FLT for Combat 16 YE 1157 2182

1236 Keating rpts neg contact , still holding alt cp not in danger of burning att, cas are holding up

1309 FLT BK642SYE 11200 21900 and FLT for C16 42SYE 11300 21900

1344 flt for bk6 and c16 is ye 113 222

1404 BK6 is continueing down mnt, has eyes on keating and is has fm coms with elements on keating. BK7 is still consolidating pos waiting on relief ptl

1408 BK6 is in a SBF ye 114 224 near keating while C16 is moving down att. workign in a bounding overwatch mvmnt.

1432z BK6 and C16have reached btm of mtn and are entering keating from the south att.

1452 BK6 is in keating and conducting clearing ops att, nothing to rpt att

0532 keating rpts founding lost US, is hero. Loading critical casualties att.

—— DustOff is W/D at Keating HLZ loading the 3 litre Patients

—— Dustoff w/u Enroute to Bostick

—— Dustoff is w/d at FOB Bostick with patients

[15:54] < BOS_HLZ_OIC > DESTROYER 6 MOVE AND MEDEVAC EXFIL FL08(07z0) FL77(069) W/U BOS ——

[——] < TF_PH_RTO > KEA AREA SECURITY WN14(185) WN15(191) W/U JAF ——

—— LZ security is set walking wounded are making thier way out to the HLZ

—— UH 60s are w/d at keating downloading pax and picking up WIA

—— Birds W/U keating enroute to FOB Bostick With 6 WIA

—— 2nd UH 60 W/D keating uploading Pax WIA and KIA

[16:19] < #TF_MTN_WARRIOR_MEDEVAC > 0 TF_MTN_WARRIOR_MEDOPS : tf mtn wr approves F msn. ROF: —————

—— 2nd UH 60 W/U enroute to bostick with hero’s still have 5 ANA wounded to move

—— Medevac Exfill inbound 3 HEROS and WIA

—— FL 77 w/d keating picking up hero’s need another turn to keating

—— w/u Keating with 4 heros

—— dustoff 23 w/u patient transfer

—— FL 74 W/U Bostick to keating with Speedballs backhaul 5 ANA Walking wounded

—— FL 74 W/D Keating picking up 5 ana walking wounded and dropping off speedballs

—— FL 74 w/u with 5 ana walking wounded and 1 Hero not sure if he is US or ANA

—— FL 74 W/D Bostick with 5 ANA W/W and 1 Hero

[18:06] < ABAD_TOC > MM(E)10-03F DO23(928) PH45(001) PH47(561) transitioning north att

—— BT52(706) AND BT53(010) W/U JAF ISO TF DESTROYER

—— OD44(181) AND OD45(193) W/U JAF ISO TF DESTROYER

—— DESTROYER PAX MOVEMENT FX50(025) FX65(704) OD45(193) W/U JAF ——

—— DESTROYER PAX MOVEMENT BT52(706) BT53(010) OD44(181) W/D BOS ——

——: DESTROYER PAX MOVEMENT FX50(025) FX65(704) OD45(193) W/D BOSTICK ——

[——] < TF_DESTROYER_BTL_CPT > PAX COUNT BT —— — PAX/ BT —— —PAX/ FX — —PAX/ FX — — PAX W/U enroute to OP Fritsche.

[——] < TF_DESTROYER_BTL_CPT > FX50(025) FX65(704) —— OP Fritsche —— ——

[——] < TF_DESTROYER_BTL_CPT > DESTROYER PAX MOVEMENT BT52(706) BT53(010) W/D OP Fritsche

DESTROYER PAX MOVEMENT BT52(706) BT53(010) W/D OP Fritsche ——

[——] < BOS_HLZ_OIC > BT52(706) BT53(010) W/U BOS —— RTB W/ HEROS

[——] < BOS_HLZ_OIC > FX50/65 W//U BOS —— RTB with 1xANA HERO.

[——] < BOS_HLZ_OIC > FL77 W/U BOS —— TO KEA

[——] < TF_LIFT_BFT > DESTROYER PAX MOVEMENT BT52(706) BT53(010) OD44(181) W/D BAF MC

[——] < TF_DESTROYER_BTL_CPT > FL 77 dropping sling COP Keating

[——] < TF_DESTROYER_BTL_CPT > OD 44/45 FL 77 W/D Bostick

—— OD 44/45 W/U enroute to OP Fritsche

03:05] < TF_DESTROYER_BTL_CPT > OD 44/45 Off station OP Fritsche trans South att

[03:06] < TF_DESTROYER_BTL_CPT > Commandos started movement from OP Fritsche

[03:10] < TF_DESTROYER_BTL_CPT > ANA/ASG moving 350m East of COP Keating

0542 had two medevacs for WIA from yesterday, 2 ASG, from keating, and on ANA from fri. Neg contact att

0601 ANA/ASG ptl is back at keating att, neg contact continueing to observe

0818 During the ANA ptl they recovered the two ASG WIA as well as two additional ANA KIA, have id numbers and passing to OMLT at bostick att

1021 Knight xray rpts neg contact, holding defensive postions around Keating while prepping for backhaul, RR is rpting icom traffic that the aaf are possibly prepping for another attack this afternoon. Info passed to Keating

*******SALTUR******

S: 5-10 AAF

A: SAF

L: F: 42S YE 11632 21011

E: YE 12083 20307

T: 1029

U: 3/B/3-61

R: SAF/IDF

******SALTUR********

WHY OP OPs

1030 Guns Hot FRI

1031 FRI rpts contact with DSHKA from the south

!!!!! FIRE MISSION!!!!!

TIME: 1030

FU LOC: 120mm / YE 118 209 / OP FRITSCHIE

OBS LOC: RED 1F

TGT LOC: KE 4572

MAX ORD: 15000 FT MSL

GTL AZ: 2120 MILS 120 DEG

TOF: 32 SEC

CAN DROP: N/A

MISSION TYPE:IMM SUP

TGT DESC: TIC

ROZ: BATTLEKING

!!!!! FIRE MISSION!!!!!

1033 fri rpts contact with mtrs and rpg. working with jtac at keating for bomb drop.

1035 fri rpts all friendlies in the wire att

—— FRi rpts neg contact att, working with dude to drop on dshka

1101 FRI obs pax moving north and south of op, neg PID att, working with DUDE to observe

1110 Recieved LLVI traffic from OP Mace states the aaf intent to take keating. Have passed intel to FRI and KEA att.

1129 FRI rpts neg contact att. continuing to obsv.

1151 FRI rpts neg contact. CCA engaging historical POO sites att.

1153 FRI rpts CCA recieved saf, A10′s conducting gun runs att.

1230 FRI rpts neg enemy contact att, still working with cas att

1302: COP KEATING Reports SAF VIC the YE 109 224. Returning with mortars and direct fire.

1320: Cop Keating Reports NEG enemy contact ATT. Continuing to observe.

[——] < TF_DESTROYER_BTL_CPT > NQRF PRE-POSITION AT BOS: WN13(191) WN16(194) W/D JAF ——

********05 OCT 09 *********

0428 Keating rpts neg enemy contact. Exfilled 16 ANA and one OMLT to JAF last night as well as 2 ANA KIA.

0625 Keating rpts neg contact att. FRI rpts village elders from Kamdish are going to move down to KEA to collect the two ASG Heros. Have passed info ot Kea and coordinating instructions for the approach of village elders.

0915 Destroyer 6 rpts ned contact att. Had local security ptl to Urmul to clear village. Located several AAF KIA but no wpns. AAF collected wpns and exfilled.

1239 Keating rpts neg contact att. Still prepping for exfill,

1354 kEATING RPTS NEG CONTACT ATT, conducting calibration msn with 155 in prep for exfil

******06 OCT 09**********

0439z Keating rpts neg contact att. Had 9LN and 9ASG eveacuated last night from Keating. Commo pck was dropped at keating and FRI to further supplement the COP and OP. As rpted by D6 they will try and start the demo of three 1151s in prep for exfil.

0726 FRI rpts Commandos will conduct ptls to the north and south to clear historical aaf pos. Also, compiling acurate list of WIA, Keating rpts they have 14 WIA with superficial wounds due to the attack on 2 OCT. List has been passed to D7 and S-1 for formal notification of families

0901z FRI rpts commandos found 2 EKIA vic YE 1134 ————— during ptling probably same aaf engaged by BK 6 during intial QRF push from FRI. Also have eyes on 8 pax vic grid YE 09087 20233 as well as DUDE rpting pos aaf vic grid YE 08710 19988. Working with DUDE and FRI mtrs to possibly engage.

1830: OP FRI Reports that one of the earlier Commando patrols Reported finding a small cache at grid YE 11832 21555. containing US CLASS I.

07 OCT 09

0328 Keating backhaul and closure complete, with demo accomplished with CAS. All Soldiers accounted for at Bostick att. AH 10,13,14 remain at FRI and conduct security operations ISO of FRI.

0630Z event closed. It is now listed as a child of OP Mountain Descent

*************************

SUMMARY:

Complex attack on COP Keating and OP Fritsche with HAF, SAF, IDF, RPG.

8x US KIA

23x US WIA

3x ANA KIA

10 x ANA WIA

2 x ASG

2 EKIA

1X US SOLDIER was deemed non injured is at FOB Bostick 5X US WIA superficial wounds at OP Fritche does not need IMMEDIATE MEDEVAC ATT.

GSW

11 x GBU 31

26 x GBU 38

1 x Hellfire

3 x 20mm strafing runs.

19x 105 (AC-130)

  • Feb. 17, 2008 Threatening Calls

(THREAT REPORT) OTHER RPT Qalat
ANA MAJOR THREATENED BY TB

Organization(s) Involved: AFGHAN NATIONAL ARMY,TALIBAN SOUTH

19 FEB 2008, TFZ INTSUM 568, GCTF

(SECRET//REL TO USA, ISAF, NATO) ANA BDE CDR is Threatened by TB: On 17FEB2008 at 2240L, the 205th ANA BDE Commander MG Jamaladin received a call from Taliban Commander Mullah Ezat. Mullah Ezat told the ANA CDR to surrender and offered him $100,000(US) to quit working for the Afghan Army. Ezat also stated that he knows where the ANA CDR is from and knows his family. The BDE CDR called the number that Mullah Ezat had called from but there was no answer (Source Comment- this phone call has instilled fear into the new ANA BDE commander and made him much more cautious. It is unlikely that the TB will follow through with their threats; they are likely testing the new CDR).

  • May 9, 2009 Recruiting Civilians

(THREAT REPORT) ATTACK THREAT RPT Gehazi Abad
MULLAH JUMA KHANS ACTIVITY IN GHAZIABAD

Organization(s) Involved: OPPOSING MILITANT FORCES

09 MAY 2009, TF DUKE INTSUM 285, NSIGCTF

(S//REL TO USA, GCTF, ISAF, NATO) Insurgent Leader Mullah Juma Khan Went To The House Of ——— ———— In ———, Ghaziabad District, To Pay Respects To A Dead Insurgent Fighter. Mullah Juma Khan Spoke About Current Events In Helgal Valley, Ghaziabad District And Recruited People At The Memorial To Become Insurgent Fighters (08MAY09). On 05 May 2009, Mullah ((Juma)) Khan went to the house of ——— ————— //——— —————// in ——— //——— —————//, Ghaziabad District, Konar Province, Afghanistan. (Field Comment-For more information and overhead imagery of ——— ————— house refer to —— — —— ——— — dated 28 December 2008.) Juma traveled to ———, Ghaziabad District from Helgal //MGRS: 42SYD112962//, Ghaziabad District. Juma made this visit to pay respects for a dead insurgent fighter. The dead insurgent was ————— ———. On 03 May 2009, ——— was killed by a mortar during the attack against the Tsunel Vehicle Patrol Base (VPB) East Observation Post (OP), Ghaziabad District. (Field Comment-For more information on this attack REFER to Task Force (TF) Raider INTSUM 291 dated 03 May 2009.) ——— was skilled with using mortar tubes and rocket propelled grenade launchers. Juma brought with him 40 insurgent fighters carrying weapons. The weapons included three //Zekuwak// heavy machine guns, one DSHK heavy machine gun and one mortar tube. (Comment-The weapons were bundled in blankets to make backpacks. Juma said this is what was in them.) The fighting group traveled with Juma to prevent themselves and their weapons from being destroyed or captured by Coalition Forces (CF) and Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) operating in Helgal Valley, Ghaziabad District. (Field Comment-Helgal Valley is the valley from Abragal //——— —————//, Ghaziabad District to Helgal, Ghaziabad District.) Also present at ————— House was ——— ———— and 40 other unknown guests from the Gojer Tribe to pay respect to ———. Juma gave a speech to motivate the people to continue fighting against CF and ANSF.

(S//REL TO USA, GCTF, ISAF, NATO) Juma first promised he will give orders to the village elders of Helgal, Ghaziabad District to release the prisoners to CF. (Field Comment-Report is referring to the prisoners taken in the 01 May 2009 attack on OP Bari Alai. For more information refer to TF Raider INTSUM 289 dated 01 May 2009.) The residents of Helgal Valley, Ghaziabad District asked Juma to have the prisoners released so CF would stop hunting for the prisoners in Helgal Valley. From 01 May 2009 to 05 May 2009, more than 30 residents of Helgal Valley, Ghaziabad District were killed. According to Juma those killed included insurgent leaders Hajji ((Said)), Hajji ((Daim)) and Hajji ((Khwashah)). (Comment-The Taliban are trying to keep the actual number quiet. There was a lot of new unmarked graves in Helgal when I traveled through there.) Juma cried while telling the people an unnamed woman and her baby were killed while the woman was nursing the baby. (Comment-He did not say exactly how, when or where.) Juma then told the people they needed to be angry at CF and ANSF for causing this tragedy.

(S//REL TO USA, GCTF, ISAF, NATO) Juma plans to destroy the Tsunel VPB. Juma invited everyone who wants to fight to join the fighters who traveled with him. On the evening of 05 May 2009, ——— ———— planned to lead these fighters to ——— //——— —————//, Ghaziabad District. Juma stated he is in communication with the insurgent leaders in ———— //——— —————//, Ghaziabad District; Arzigal //——— —————//, Naray District, Konar Province; and —— //——— —————//, Naray District. Juma and the other insurgent leaders are planning an attack against the Tsunel VPB from the north and south sides of the Konar River, Ghaziabad District. (Comment-He did not talk about the exact plan or when the fight will occur.) On 05 May 2009, 25 members of the Gojer Tribe present at the memorial decided to fight with ———— and agreed to travel with him.

(S//REL TO USA, GCTF, ISAF, NATO) There is one fighter named (—————) in ———— who keeps trying to attack the ———— VPB East OP by himself. On 04 May 2009, the unnamed brother of ——— was killed while trying to recover their unnamed cousins body from the mountain the ———— VPB East OP, Ghaziabad District is built on. (Comment-Someone at the memorial said he activated a mine.) On 03 May 2009, the unnamed cousin was killed during the attack on the ———— VPB East OP, Ghaziabad District. Juma said not to be like ——— who will be killed without getting his revenge because he fights by himself. (Comment-He meant he was the Taliban leader in Ghaziabad District and not to fight without his order.) ——— has a FPK rifle. The other remaining fighters from previous attacks against ———— VPB East OP, Ghaziabad District are in ———, Ghaziabad District taking shelter in the forrest waiting for orders.

  • March 6, 2008 Kidnapping and Murder

TF 3 Fury reports Zurmat LN kidnappings and execution
On or about 06 MAR 08, INS kidnapped ——— ————— and his Nephew ————— from their home in Tutakhel, Zormat District. On the night of 08 MAR 08, ——— ————— was killed. ——— was blindfolded and he was shot in the chest approximately 16 times with an AK-47. The body along with AK-47 shells were dumped in the village of Chawni to make it look like ——— was executed there. ANP assessed that the execution did not take place in Chawni because they interviewed all the personnel living in the area where the body was dumped and no one claimed to hear any gunfire. ———’s nephew ————— is still being held hostage by insurgents. No new information exists to —————’s whereabouts and no ransom has been demanded by INS. ——— and ————— were reportedly kidnapped because ———’s older brother, ——— —————, is an AUP patrolman.NFTR.

  • Nov. 20, 2006 Suicide Truck Bombs

(THREAT REPORT) IED THREAT RPT Kabul
TB TO USE ANA TRUCKS AS SVBIEDS

Organization(s) Involved: TALIBAN

20061210-CJ2X INTSUM -(N/I C)

RC CAPITAL – TALIBAN captured Four ANA trucks to be used as SVBIEDs in KABUL City, KABUL Province. (B?2)

DOI: 20 Nov 06; OHR: CIINTREP-ADET-IX-480-06

(N/I C) 1. The TALIBAN has transported four captured ANA pick-up trucks to KABUL District, KABUL Province for use as SVBIEDs. They intend to use the pick-up trucks to target ANA compounds, ISAF and GOA convoys, as well as high-ranking GOA and ISAF officials. The four pick-up trucks are described as standard sand-coloured ANA FORD RANGER pick-up trucks; license plates are unknown. The four trucks were also accompanied by an unknown quantity of ANA uniforms to facilitate carrying out the attacks.

2. The four trucks were captured during an attack on an ANA convoy in SHAJOY District (GRID NOT AVAILABLE), ZABUL Province. The attack took place sometime during the week of 20 to 26 Nov 06, resulting in the deaths of two TALIBAN fighters. However, the remaining TALIBAN elements were able to capture a total of six ANA FORD RANGERs and some uniforms prior to fleeing. Four of the pick-ups were sent to KABUL District while the remaining two were sent to PARWAN, KAPISA, or GHAZNI Province, no further information.

3. The Afghan Ministry of Defence (MOD) is aware of the vehicles capture and plate numbers. However, they are keeping all information related to the six vehicles quiet, while MOD and Afghan National Police (ANP) search for them. The four pick-ups supposedly entered KABUL District. This is not yet confirmed; however, the MOD and ANP are aggressively searching for them in KABUL City area.

4. In addition, on approximately 28 Nov 06, ANP forces seized 20 BM-1 rockets in the MOSAHI District (GRID NOT AVAILABLE), KABUL Province. The 20 rockets were set up and positioned to be fired at KABUL City; however, no one was found in the area, NFI. The area in which the rockets were found has been used in the past by HIG Commander DERVISH to conduct rocket attacks on KABUL City. It is possible that these rockets belonged to DERVISH, but this has not been confirmed.

This information MUST NOT be disseminated to AFG authorities.

  • March 17, 2007 Attacks on Afghan Drivers

D4 170855Z SAF AND RPG ATK ON LN TRUCKS VIC KAMU COMBAT OUTPOST (mod)
170855Z LN trucks leaving the Kamu Combat Outpost (heading East, returning to Naray after delivering CL I supplies) were ambushed by an enemy element at an illegal check point (being reported by the LN truck drivers as approximately 50x enemy pax), approximately 1km east of the Kamu Combat Outpost. Once the LN vehicles were disabled, the LN drivers were attacked individually by the enemy pax (2 of the driver’s ears were cut off, and 1x driver had shrapnel in his thigh from the initial attack). TF Titan sent a US/ANA QRF element to the location of the attack, and received SAF as they were approaching the ambush site. TF Titan returned SAF, and CAS and CCA were diverted to support. The enemy broke contact, and TF Titan moved to the LN trucks and their drivers. The 3x LN wounded walked themselves to the Kamu Outpost, and TF Titan continued to provide medical assistance. At 1130Z TF Titan updates there is a suspicious compound near the ambush site, with 3x pax in BDU uniforms around the compound. One of the LN drivers that was wounded indicated the men who attacked them were located at the same suspicious compound prior to the attack, and were also wearing BDUs. TF Titan did not take any action on the compound at this time, but have taken 6x road workers back to the Kamu Combat outpost who were witnesses to the attack. All elements are RTB at the kamu COP, and TF Titan is continuing to develop a COA to remove the 3x trucks that were attacked (and are currently burning and blocking the road). NFTR ATT. ISAF 03-361

1419Z All 3 Casualties currently at Camp Keating, 2 Adults with severed ears, 1 with minor Shrapnal injury to right leg. all 3 are stable. All thee casualties are beibg evaluated by medical personnel. The 2 LN’s with missing ears are refussing higher medical care att

  • June 17, 2007 Botched Raid

172100Z TF 373 OBJ Lane
NOTE: The following information (TF-373 and HIMARS) is Classified Secret / NOFORN. The knowledge that TF-373 conducted a HIMARS strike must be kept protected. All other information below is classified Secret / REL ISAF.

(S) Mission: O/O SOTF conducts kinetic strike followed with HAF raid to kill/capture ABU LAYTH AL LIBI on NAI 2.

(S)Target: Abu Layth Al Libi is a senior al-Qaida military commander, Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG) leader. He is based in Mir Ali, Pakistan and runs training camps throughout North Waziristan. Collection over the past week indicates a concentration of Arabs IVO objective area.

Result: 6 x EKIA; 7 x NC KIA, 7 x detainees

(S) Summary: HAF departed for Orgun-E to conduct link-up and posture to the objective immediately after pre-assault fires. On order, 5 rockets were launched and destroyed structures on the objective (NAI 2). The HAF quickly inserted the assault force into the HLZ. ISR reported multiple UIMs leaving the objective area. The assault force quickly conducted dismounted movement to the target area and established containment on the south side of the objective. During the initial assault, dedicated air assets engaged multiple MAMs squirting off the objective area. GFC assessed 3 x EKIA squirters north and 3 x EKIA squirters south of the compound were neutralized from air asset fires. The assault force quickly maneuvered with a SQD element on the remaining squirters. The squirter element detained 12 x MAMs and returned to the objective area. GFC passed initial assessment of 7 x NC KIA (children). During initial questioning, it was assessed that the children were not allowed out of the building, due to UIMs presence within the compound. The assault force was able to uncover 1 x NC child from the rubble. The MED TM immediately cleared debris form the mouth and performed CPR to revive the child for 20 minutes. Due to time restrictions, TF CDR launched QRF element to action a follow-on target (NAI 5). They quickly contained the objective and initiated the assault. The objective was secured and the assault force initially detained 6 x MAMs. The GFC recommended that 7 MAMs be detained for additional questioning. The TF CDR assessed that the assault force will continue SSE. The local governor was notified of the current situation and requests for assistance were made to cordon the AO with support from ANP and local coalition forces in search of HVI. A PRT is enroute to AO.

1) Target was an AQ Senior Leader

2) Patterns of life were conducted on — ——— from ——— ——— (strike time) with no indications of women or children on the objective

3) The Mosque was not targeted nor was it struck initial reports state there is no damage to the Mosque

4) An elder who was at the Mosque stated that the children were held against their will and were intentionally kept inside

UPDATE: 18 0850Z June 07

- Governor Khapalwak has had no success yet in reaching President Karzai (due to the Presidents busy schedule today) but expects to reach him within the hour (PoA reached later in the afternoon ~ 1400Z)

- The Governor conducted a Shura this morning, in attendance were locals from both the Yahya Yosof Khail & Khail Districts

- He pressed the Talking Points given to him and added a few of his own that followed in line with our current story

- The atmospherics of the local populous is that they are in shock, but understand it was caused ultimately by the presence of hoodlums

- the people think it is good that bad men were killed

- the people regret the loss of life among the children

- The Governor echoed the tragedy of children being killed, but stressed this couldve been prevented had the people exposed the presence of insurgents in the area

- The Governor promised another Shura in a few days and that the families would be compensated for their loss

- Tthe Governor was asked what the mood of the people was and he stated that “the operation was a good thing, and the people believe what we have told them”

- Additionally, the people accused the Yahya Khail Chief of Police and his officers of corruption and collusion with TB in the area

- The Governor and the Provincial NDS Chief relieved the CofP and his officers, disarmed them, and they are currently detained and enroute to Sharana at this time unknown as to total numbers detained (MTF on this incident)

  • April 6, 2008 Outnumbered

(ENEMY ACTION) DIRECT FIRE RPT CJTF-82 : 0 INJ/DAM
At 0258Z, TF Bushmaster reported receiving small arms fire from an unknown number of AAF at 42S XE 248 042 IVO FOB Bella. (Conducting offensive operation Commando Wrath.) Elements in heavy contact on objective, with casualties, decided medevac on station as part of assault package. At 0337Z, TF Bushmaster requested an urgent and priority MEDEVAC for 2x US MIL WIA. 1x patient has gunshot wound to ankle and leg, 2x patient has gunshot wound to the arm. Total BDA at this time is 2x US MIL WIA and 1x LN Terp KIA. At 0348Z, TF Bushmaster requested additional CCA. At 0347Z, TF Bushmaster reported PID 2x insurgents moving toward OBJ Patriot, friendly forces engaged them and no further contact ATT, also a lot of VHF COMMS coming from the back side of the ridge to the west of Kendal. At 0356Z, TF Bushmaster reported an additional 2x US MIL WIA. At 0358Z, TF Bushmaster reported receiving small arms fire from high ground around their LOC. At 0417Z, TF Bushmaster reports effective sniper fire from a building roof north of their position at this time. At ———, PROFET 72 reports ARF inserted at ———, unable to pick up any casualties ATT. At ———, TF Bushmaster reported CDO is preparing to clear MOSQUE and adjoining buildings, the rest of OBJ Panther is securing at 0435Z. At ———, PROFET 72 reports ARF is engaged with INS, SAF and sniper fire from buildings, working CAS at this time. AT ———, Hawg-51 is rotating off station, Hawg,-53 coming on station at this time. At ———, TF Bushmaster reported possible grid for MEDEVAC as 42S XE 285 008. At 0503Z, TF Bushmaster reports they are pinned down by sniper fire north of their position. At ———, TF Bushmaster reports they are combat ineffective and request reinforcement at this time. At ———, TF Bushmaster reports they are going to break COMMS at this time and relay COMMS through ARF. At ———, TF Bushmaster reported MEDEVAC HLZ 42S XE 2850 0050; 6 x WIA located there; precedence and type unknown ATT; HLZ is not secure ATT. At 0513 TF Bushmaster reported that there are 50-100 insurgents moving to reinforce against Bushmaster elements from the SW. At ———, TF Bushmaster requested MEDEVACs for 4x US MIL WIA, and 2x ANA WIA. At ———, TF Bushmaster reported they have established a defensive position in a small building. At ———, TF Bushmaster reported HLZ is clear to receive MEDEVAC at this time. At ———, INTEL reports TF Busmaster has correct compound for Ghafour at this time and are continuing to clear at ———. At ———, TF Bushmaster reported consolidating forces at north end of Wadi, assessing number of casualties ATT and reporting insurgents on high ground all around their location, requesting CAS to engage insurgents location. At ———, TF Bushmaster reports that there are 9 total casualties; status of 3 new ones unknown ATT. At ———, Dustoff-34 reports recieving fire. At 0609Z, TF Bushmaster reports SSE continuing, found multiple weapons, mortars and small arms. At 0616Z, TF Bushmaster reported receiving fire from all around their position ATT, working to link up with GR 10 and 12 and move to initial HLZ at ———. At 0618Z, TF Bushmaster reports using CAS at this time to engage insurgents and need more suppression from CAS ATT. At ———, TF Bayonet MEDOPS reports tracking 6 WIA were picked up from HLZ/POI, and are enroute to JAF ATT. At ———, TF Bushmaster reported remaining CDOS at JAF are consolidating to PZ posture ATT. Prepping to L/U and reinforce, staging at PRT Kalagush. Number of available CDOs at JAF are 55x PAX now available. At ———, TF Bushmaster reports 6 casualties at their location, and requesting a MEDEVAC at this time. At ———, TF Bushmaster reported their consolidated location as 42S XE 2855 0070. At 0639Z, TF Bushmaster reported 1x US MIL WIA with gunshot wound to the pelvis and arm, 1x ANA with broken femur and assessing the 4x remaining ANA WIA. At ———, TF Bushmaster reported 8 detainees for Exfil. At ———, TF Bushmaster reported slash on 2 targets with GBUs. BDA 4x US MIL WIA, 5x ANA WIA, 1x ANA KIA, and 1x LN TERP KIA. ISAF Tracking # 04-149.

  • March 8, 2008 Plea for Guns and Boots

Office Call between the Director General of National Directorate of Security and Commander of Regional Command-East
ATTENDEES:

Amrullah Saleh Director General, National Directorate of Security

Major General David Rodriguez Commander, Regional Command-East, ISAF

Mr. Hasas Director of Intelligence, National Directorate of Security

Robert Maggi Foreign Policy Advisor, Regional Command-East, ISAF

—— ——— ————— Command Linguist, Regional Command-East, ISAF

Captain ————— ———— Recorder, Regional Command-East, ISAF

Sergeant ——— ———— CJ2 Analyst, Regional Command-East, ISAF

SUMMARY:

Security in Afghanistan

o The greatest concern for Director Saleh is security along the highways, particularly in Ghazni and Zabul, where he believes government officials cannot travel without security. He believes that the shift in Taliban focus from attacks on district centers to attacks along the highways is attracting recruits who are not actually Taliban but use the name to gain legitimacy, increasing the perception of the size, scope and strength of the insurgency and demonstrating GIRoA weakness.

o Saleh believes that there has been noticeable progress in Wardak, but it will be temporary unless it is extended to Ghazni and Zabul, as well as other areas.

o Director Saleh’s second major concern is for attacks in the major population centers of Kabul, Herat, Kandahar, Jalalabad, and Masar-e-Sharif.

o MG Rodriguez reported that there have been over 100 small drug labs destroyed in Nangarhar, primarily in Achin, with no complaint from the locals, and that the 101st brought an additional helicopter battalion that would assist with efforts there.

o Saleh reported that the #1 priority for the Afghan government is to fix the Ministry of Interior, indicating that the leadership was involved in considerable corruption. He remarked that it would be up to the US to fix it. He said he proposed to the British that they provide management classes.

Tag Ab

o Director Saleh says that BG Razaq will serve well over Tagab and is a good commander. At the suggestion of putting an ANA force in Tagab, MG Rodriguez acknowledged the possibility of using the —————.

o Saleh acknowledged that the ———— Governor is active HiG, indicating concern.

o Saleh noted that ——— ————— ————— —— ———— were all previously HiG who have turned Taliban, are not reconcilable, and must be “taken out”. MG Rodriguez noted that there would be a meeting with the ———— NDS to determine how to approach this issue.

Pakistan

o Saleh believes that Hekmatyar is a reemerging figure being pushed to become more politically active, and expects he will be more influential in 2008 and 2009. Saleh believes that it is in the best interest of Afghanistan for Hekmatyar to remain in his current position, and that his capture or reconciliation would destabilize Afghanistan, based on his influence in Wardak and parts of Kapisa. They gave Hekmatyar’s last known address to ISI, but they did not action it and Saleh expects them to facilitate Hekmatyar’s move to another location.

o Saleh observed several actions by the Pakistan Military indicating their lack of will to commit to security operations in the FATA:

They have forces stationed at the port, where there is no immediate threat forces that could better serve along the border.

Following an ambush on a PAKMIL unit crossing the tunnel into North Waziristan about six weeks ago, the commander called Maulawi Ahmadjan to broker a peace with the insurgent force.

They lost control of Alizai last month and are not attempting to retake it because it is not in their interest, even though it is in their country.

They have asked the US to allow them time to clear each insurgent group, one by one, hoping that they will be allowed unlimited time in which the insurgents’ focus will turn away from Pakistan and toward Afghanistan.

They know where ————— ——— (travels to Miram Shah and Peshawar) and ——— ———— are, but will not go after them.

o Saleh assessed that Pakistan ISI and the Army will work to ensure that a weak Prime Minister is installed to preclude conflict with Musharraf. He described the wide-ranging control that the Army had throughout the government and industry, leaving little under the responsibility of the civilian government. He noted that there would be little change until a civilian government had real control.

Saleh predicts that General Kiyani will take a more active leading role as he realizes the breadth of his power.

o Saleh sees potential for the Quetta Shura to weaken and noted that the Miram Shah shura has turned toward criminality.

“Enemies of Afghanistan” flip-book

o MG Rodriguez provided the prototype “Enemies of Afghanistan” targets booklet to Director Saleh, describing that it would be provided to ANP and that it could be updated in the future. When asked if it should only include higher tier targets or all targets, Saleh said that it would be good to start with this version.

Secure Communication

o Saleh reported that he has discussed the ———— ———— ————— ———— with GEN McNeill and MG Champoux and that ISAF is supposed work on it next week.

Logar NDS Chief

o MG Rodriguez reported that the new Logar NDS chief is working well with coalition and working to build trust with the ANA and ANP.

Release Requests

o Director Saleh reported that the Ministry of Defense and Ministry of Justice had confirmed that ————— —————, who had been in US custody for 4 years and was reported to have been recently turned over to the ANDF, was not in Afghan custody, implying that he must still be in US custody. MG Rodriguez said we would figure it out.

o MG Rodriguez reported that ———— ————— would remain in US custody for further questioning. Saleh had little reaction and did not seem concerned.

o Director Saleh asked that ——— ——— be released to the NDS in Kabul, rather than in Nangarhar, and said that he would personally take responsibility.

Request for Support

o Director Saleh reported that the Afghan government has taken responsibility for the NDS budget, previously handled by the CIA, which would likely result in a 30% cut in the coming year. Saleh asked that, if possibly, RC-East provide AK, 9mm, and PKM ammunition; any other supplies, such as boots; and construction materials. He said that if this was possible, he would send officers from the NDS logistics office to facilitate.

  • Dec. 9, 2008 Hammer vs. Fly

(EXPLOSIVE HAZARD) INTERDICTION RPT (Components) TF 2-2 : 1 UE KIA 1 UE WIA 7 UE DET
ISAF # 12-0374

At 1850Z, TF 2-2 using PREDATOR (UAV) PID insurgents emplacing IEDs at 41R PR 9243 0202, 2.7km NW of FOB Hutal, Kandahar. TF 2-2 using PREDATOR engaged with 1x Hellfire missile resulting in 1x INS KIA and 1x INS WIA. ISAF tracking #12-374

UPDATE 100127D:

TF 2-2 DEPLOYED TO COMPOUND THAT THE WOUNDED INS FLED TO. FF HAVE CAPTURED THE INJ INS AND ARE CURRENTLY PURSUING OTHER INS THAT FLED THE COMPOUND.

UPDATE 100300D: TF 2-2 DETAINED A TOTAL OF 8X PAX TO INCLUDE THE 1X WOUNDED INS FROM EARLIER PREDATOR HELLFIRE STRIKE.

UPDATE 100402D:

A SECOND QRF TEAM IS NOW EXPLOITING THE IMPACT SITE. 5X DETAINEES HAVE BEEN TAKEN TO FB HUTAL AND 3X HAVE BEEN TAKEN TO THE DC.

UPDATE 100512D:

FF EXPLOITED THE IMPACT POINT AND FOUND 1X SHOVEL AND 1X PRYBAR. ALL FF ARE RTB.

BDA: 1X KILLED INS

1X WOUNDED INS

7X DETAINED LNs/POSS INS

EVENT CLOSED AT 0049Z

  • Sept. 13, 2009 Lost Reaper Drone

(NON-COMBAT EVENT) EQUIPMENT FAILURE RPT ISAF HQ : 0 INJ/DAM
An F15 was ordered to shoot down a REAPER UAV that had lost its control link in the south of Afghanistan. All efforts were made to re-establish the link before a decision was made to shoot the UAV down prior it crossing into TAJIKISTAN. The CAOC selected an unpopulated area over which to down the aircraft. An F15 fired on the REAPER and it destroyed its engine, however the link was re-established and the controller was able to guide it into a mountain in RAGH District. The GRID of the downed REAPER is Lat ————— Long ————— // Keypad: ———. There were no sensitive items on board the REAPER but it did go down with its ordnance (Hellfire and GBU-12). NFTR.

***Event closed at 140210D*

  • March 10, 2008 Investigating Police Extortion

031300z TF 3 Fury reports Illegal Taxing of jingle trucks investigation IVO Stogun checkpoint, Zurmat District
On 03 March 2008 at approximately 1300 hours, while working with —— —— —————, ANCOP ETT Team Chief, we received information from an Afghan truck driver that he had just been required to pay a bribe to a Zormat ANP patrolman at Stogan Check Point in Zormat District in order to pass through the check point. I had my interpretor take the driver’s statement and translate it into english, read the statement back to the driver and had him sign and thumb print the statement. —— ————— and I ask the driver if he would follow us back to Stogan Checkpoint and identify the patrolman he paid the bribe to and he agreed. We drove to Stogan Checkpoint where approximatley six trucks were lined up waiting to pass through the checkpoint. I had one of my interpretors ask each driver waiting in line to exit their vehicles and asked them if they had been required to pay any amount of money to pass through the checkpoint. All six drivers stated that they had been required to pay various amounts of money to pass through. —— ————— contacted MAJ Hussain, the ANCOP Chief of Police in Zormat, informed him of the situation and requested he come to Stogan Checkpoint.

While waiting for MAJ Hussain, I asked the seven patrolmen we detained to sit and relax while we sorted through a problem without ever mentioning why they were being detained. Three of the patrolman responded by saying that they had only taken money from the truck drivers to buy fuel for their generator.

When MAJ Hussain arrived, he was accompanied by CPT ————, Operations Officer for the Zormat AUP. MAJ Hussain took written statements from the seven truck drivers claiming they were required to pay a bribe to pass through the checkpoint as they identified the patrolmen that they had paid the bribe to and stated how much money each was required to pay. He then had his ANCOP search the person of each of the seven patrolmen being detained and found cash that was suspected to have been paid as a bribe on one or more of the patrolmen. MAJ Hussain collected the statements and cash, arrested the seven suspected patrolmen and returned to the Zormat Police District Center, and lodged the seven suspects in the detention cells. —— ————— and I contacted —— ——— ————— and —— ——— ————— to notify them of what had occurred.

—— ————— contacted —— ————— and I the next morning to notify us that special investigator from Paktia Provincial Headquarters were coming to Zormat to investigate. On 05 March 2008, after the ANCOP / Zormat AUP TOA had occurred and MAJ Hussain and the ANCOP had departed Zormat, the special investigators were preparing to go back to Gardez, —— ————— asked them what action they were going to take in the Stogan Checkpoint Police Corruption investigation. They stated that they could take no action due to having no evidence. At that time, —— ————— contact MAJ Hussain by phone and asked him what he had done with the truck driver witness statements. MAJ Hussain stated that he had turned the witness statements over to the Zormat AUP Detention Officer when he handed over custody of the suspected patrolment to him. When the Detention Officer was asked what he had done with the witness statements, he claimed he never received them.

  • Dec. 4, 2009 Fighting Between Afghan Army and Police

(ENEMY ACTION) DIRECT FIRE RPT ANA / ANP : 4 HNSF WIA 1 CIV KIA 6 CIV WIA
————————————————————————————————————

STORY REWRITTEN:

A shooting incident occurred between ANA and ANP in TARIN KOWT CITY. TFU OPS is informing OCCP, OMLT and POLAD to mediate and conduct an investigation. More to follow.

As a result of the fire exchange, 1 x was killed (DOW – a family member of MAULLAHDAD, a KUCHI tribal leader), and a total of 6 x LN’s were wounded.

The wounded were evacuated and treated in both civillian and ISAF medical facitlites. First investigations by ANP reveal that ANA & ANP had an altercation over a car accident. The arguement esclated and ANA & ANP started to shoot at each other.

After the incident, the Deputy Governor of Uruzgan ordered MATIULLAH KHAN (Kandak Amniante Uruzgan militia) to re-establish order in TK. KAU elements subsequently took over all check points in TK, waiting for the ANP to relieve them in place.

Deputy Minister of Interior Mangal flew an investigation team led by ANP Brigadier General Mirawais to TK with RC(S) aviation assets. It is still not known if ANA will be part of the investigation board. RC(S) Comd or DCOM will join the investigation team in the afternoon.

BDA: 1 x ANA WIA, 3 x ANP WIA, 6 x LN WOUNDED, 1 x LN DOW

This Incident closed by RC (S) at: 050238D*DEC2009

  • Sept. 3, 2009 Bloody Mistake

(FRIENDLY ACTION) CAS RPT (Bomb) KDZ JTAC, F-15S : 56 UE KIA
031542ZAUG09, OCC-P KDZ REPORTED 2X FUEL TRUCKS WERE STOLEN BY UNK NUMBER OF INS. INS INTENDED TO CROSS KDZ RIVER AT A FORD TO BRING THE FUEL TO CHAHAR DARREH DISTRICT. AT 1730Z, PRT KDZ JTAC OBSERVED KDZ RIVER AND REPORTED THAT IT DISCOVERED THE TRUCKS AS WELL AS UP TO 70X INS AT 42SVF8903852017, ON THE FORD ON THE RIVER. THE TRUCKS WERE STUCK IN THE MUD. COM PERT KDZ LINKED UP WITH JTAC AND, AFTER ENSURING THAT NO CIVILIANS WERE IN THE VICINITY, COM PRT KDZ AUTHORIZED AN AIRSTRIKE. AT 2119Z, AN F-15 DROPPED 2X GBU 38 BOMBS. AT 2158Z, BDA CONDUCTED BY F-15/ROVER WAS THAT 56X INS KIA (CONFIRMED) AND 14X INS FLEEING IN NE DIRECTION. THE 2X FUEL TRUCKS WERE ALSO DESTROYED.

UPDATE:

041134D: 100X ANP WERE ON SCENE READY TO LINK UP WITH PRO COY AT PRT TO INVESTIGATE SCENE.

1213D: PRO COY STARTED TO MARCH TO AREA OF AIRSTRIKE AND ARRIVED ON SCENE AT 1234D. COY REPORTED THAT THEY HAD STARTED THEIR INVESTIGATION AND THAT THERE WERE A LOT OF ANA AND ANP AT THE AREA OF THE AIRSTRIKE.

1309D: PRO COY WAS ATTACKED WITH SAF FROM WESTERN DIRECTION. PRO COY RETURNED FIRE WITH SA. ENEMY FIRE STOPPED, SO COY CONTINUED WITH THEIR INVESTIGATION. AT 1322D, THE INVESTIGATION WAS COMPLETED. MEANWHILE, A LUNA (UAV) DISCOVERED SEVERAL PICKUPS AND PERSONS IN RAHMAT BAY (VF 879 523), SO PRT KDZ FIRED 2X 120MM ILLUMINATION MORTAR ROUNDS IN THEIR DIRECTION AT 1327D, TO PREVENT FURTHER ACTIVITIES OF POSSIBLE INS.

1353D: PRO COY MOVED BACK TO PRT KDZ AND ARRIVED AT 1423D.

UPDATE 041120D*

At 0900 hrs International Media reported that US airstrike had killed 60 civilians in Kunduz. The media are reporting that Taliban did steal the trucks and had invited civilians in the area to take fuel.

ISAF HQ commenced CIVCAS procedures and conducted a brief over VTC with COMD RC-N.

Mitigation proceudres have commenced and liaison with GIRoA officials in KABUL and in KUNDUZ are a priority.

The Governor of KUNDUZ is commenting that most of the casualties were Taliban.

RC-N and PRT KDZ are gathering more facts.

UPDATE 1314D*

041134D* ANP was with 100 policemen on scene and prepared to link up with PROTECTION COY (PRO COY), which will leave PRT for investigations ASAP. 041213D* PRO COY started march to area of air strike for investigation. 041218D* PRO COY arrived at HAJI SAKI DED BY (VF 903 526). 041234D* PRO COY was at (VF 888 522) reported about a lot of ANP and ANA at the area of the air strike. PRO COY starts with investigation. NFI.

UPDATE

041353D* PRO COY moves back to PRT KDZ.

041423D* PRO COY back at PRT KDZ.

Investigations ongoing.

NFI.56 Killed None(None) Insurgent

  • March 5, 2007 Checkpoint Lessons

(FRIENDLY ACTION) ESCALATION OF FORCE RPT JOINT CONTRACTING COMMAND : 1 CIV KIA
[DELAYED REPORT]

AT 050600ZMAR07 TF 2Fury reports that ANP shot a local national trying to drive through a check point. The ANP had a check point established on MSR Ohio, near the AB Band district center Vic of 42S VB 0066 5249. A car approached the check point at a high rate of speed. All ANP fled the check point except one. As the car passed the cp it knocked the lone ANP officer down, as the car passed the ANP fired at the vehicle, suspecting it to be a Suicide VIED. The driver of the vehicle was killed; the ANP was detained in Ghazni questioned and released shortly after. No IED was found and vehicle was destroyed. NFTR

Assessment ANP escalation of force was appropriate. Effects on the enemy demonstrate the ANP support of IO themes. Effects on populace clearly identify the importance of stopping at check points.

Future acts Continued training and assessment from Vigilent Archer

  • March 21, 2007 Shooting a Deaf and Mute Civilian

210000Z TF Catamount reports Escalation of Force in AO(mod)
Catamount

shooting of a Local National 21 March 2007

3. Delayed report from TF Catamount

S- 1 LN

A- Fled and failed to respond to escalation of force

L- Malekshay Village 42S WB 30529 08120

T- 21 Mar 07

U- OGA

R- Escalation of force, warning shots, wounding shot to leg.

LN was a deaf mute unable to hear the warnings or warning shots. Ran out of fear and confusion.

Information gained from SHURA to TF Catamount about Element operation

Details: OGA operating in TF Catamount sector moved into Malekshay for operation. LN ——— ——— ran at the sight of the approaching CF’s. CF utilized the escalation of force doctrine and shouted to stop, fired warning shots and then fired to wound. The LN was hit in the ankle and treated by Element medics on scene. It was determined through discussions with local Elders that the man was a deaf mute that was nervous of the CF operation. Solatia was made in the form of supplies and the Element mission progressed.

  • Nov. 13, 2009 Escalation of Force

(FRIENDLY ACTION) ESCALATION OF FORCE RPT (HMG) JHFA UG55 : 0 INJ/DAM
JHFA UG55 reported that INS engaged with SAF onto FF IVO SZD. INTEL suggested they were going to be fired upon again during their extraction. UG55 fired 40x 30mm wanring shots to deter any furhter engagement from the INS.

BDA: No battle damage.

BDAR1-132307D*

AH-64 (UG-55) fired 20 x 30mm warning shots into an open field at GR 41R PR 2305 0465. The terrain was considered rurally open and there were no CIV PID IVO the target within reasonable certainty. There was no damage to infrastructure. BDA redcording conducted by AH-64 Gun Tape. No follow up required. The next higher command was consulted. The enemy engaged presented, in the opinion of the ground forces, an imminent threat. Engagement is under ROE Card A. Higher HQ have been informed.

BDA: No battle damage.

This Incident closed by RC S at: 132311D*NOV2009

  • Nov. 28, 2006 Orphanage Opens

PROJECT CLOSEOUT
Gardez Orphanage Ribbon Cutting

Theme of Ceremony: GoA and CF Support for Afghan Citizens

PRT Involvement? How? – The PRT provided transportation for the Governor from his office to the ceremony site

- In cooperation with the ANP, the PRT secured the event site. 3BSTB provided a QRF staged at the Gardez

airfield behind the event site

- The PRT Commander gave a speech about how honored we were to help the orphans and presented a leather jacket to the man who runs the orphanage. The jacket was donated by a friend of the commander in the United States with instructions to give it to someone special. The commander stated that she could think of no one more deserving then someone who cared for orphans

- In the Governor’s speech he thanked the PRT for their work on the orphanage and mentioned numerous other projects the PRT is working on. He also announced the funding of a school project in Ahmad Abad. After his speech, the governor presented 50K Afghani to the orphanage, enough for 500 Afghani per child. This money was his own personal money, not GoA funds.

- Other personnel making speeches were the Director of Social Services, a PC member and a respected elder from Ahmad Abad. All speeches were very positive

- Special recognition was given to the contractor who built the Orphanage, Engineer ————— ————, who was kidnapped by the Taliban in early Nov and released after 17 days of being held prisoner. Everyone expressed their thanks that he survived the ordeal and was able to attend the ceremony

- PRT CA provided blankets, scarves, coats, toys and HA food items to the orphans. They also handed out radios to the ANP who helped provide security

- Local media attended, as did a representative from AFN

  • Dec. 20, 2006 Missing Orphans and Money

MTG – DEVELOPMENT
Meeting with Individual’s Name:————— ———— Individual’s Title:———— —————

Discussion Items:

- Discussed how the weather will likely affect our helicopter flight to Jaji and Chamkani scheduled for tomorrow morning. We anticipate at least a delay, if not cancellation. We will keep him advised. If it does not happen we discussed the possibility of a two day ground trip so he can stop at villages along the way and talk with people. We also discussed taking one day trips to other districts and he is very interested in this.

- The PRT CDR informed him that his concerns about not being informed, nor coordinated with concerning the operation in Jaji have been sent up the chain of command. He stated he is now willing to go to Jaji and talk to the people and ask them to cooperate with the searches for enemy personnel. He would like MGen Khaliq to be there as well.

- In addition, some leaders from Jaji met with —— today here in Gardez. They stated that there were tractors that have started leveling some land in the district and the villagers did not know why. The ————— asked us if this was one of our projects. We told him it was not a PRT project, but we would

check to see if other CF units may be doing something. Apparently the land is disputed and construction should stop until ownership is resolved.

- We showed him the list of large projects we are considering focusing on developing proposals for and/or lobbying for funds for over the next few months and asked his opinion. The projects were:

– Armored vehicle(s) for the governor

– Hydro-Electric Plant in Ahmad Abad

– Chormate mine in Zormat

– Security wall for the Gardez University

– Paving the Gardez-Chamkani-Patan-Pakistan road

– Road clearing/maintenance equipment

– Radio station in Zormat

– Robat school near Gardez

– Government motorpool

– He stated that he would also like us to look into finding a way to get the radio station in Chamkani to reach into Jaji

– He agreed with all the projects on the list, but felt that the mine would be very difficult and complicated and would take a lot to develop the infrastructure and processes to make it projective. He would prefer we concentrate on something which will benefit the people sooner. We told him our main goal of the mine project was to create long-term jobs. He said he would discuss the issue with the people of Zormat and other districts to see if they had some ideas for projects that could create a lot of this type of jobs.

– Discussed how it may be easier to get funding if we did the Gardez Pakistan road in phases, with the first phase being from Gardez to Sayed Karam. He said this was a critical road because the majority of the provinces population lived along it so most would benefit from the project. He also felt that its construction would give hope to the people because they would see the government and CF working for their benefit.

– When prompted, he said his priorities from the list would be first the university security wall, then the hydro-electric plant, then the paving of the at least the first phase of the road. He did not rank the others, but did mention that we should consider adding a clinic in Laji Mongal. He also stated that he would prefer we spend the money on helping the people instead of protecting ——— (note: he is being humble and showing his concern for ——— people over himself; however it is this attitude that makes us want to do whatever we can to help keep him alive).

- —— ———— stated that he has requested ——— ———— be replaced due to corruption and ineffectiveness. While we were there he received a list of potential replacements, but only their names were provided. He knows nothing about the men, so he wasnt sure how useful the list was going to be in regards to ——— recommending a replacement. He gave several examples of ineffectiveness:

– The suicide bomber who struck the ANA/ETT convoy on 15 Dec sat on the bridge for some time waiting for a target of opportunity. There is a police checkpoint on the Gardez side of the bridge, but they never checked out the vehicle

– The police search all the vehicles that come up to the checkpoint on the north side of town, but do not search vehicles at the other main entrances to the city even through there are supposed to be checkpoints there. At the one where they do search, they also charge a fee/bribe

– The ————— told ——— ———— to activate the checkpoints on all main roads leading into the city due to intel indicating that suicide bombers were heading for Gardez. This order was given on 14 Dec. The checkpoints were not manned and the attack happened the following day. Still, most of them are not active.

- He stated he would get a letter from the MoPW pledging support for fuel and operator salaries regarding the road clearing/maintenance equipment.

- He is currently working with TLO to initiate a project in Ahamd Abad involving agriculture. They hope this project will provide a lot of long-term jobs.

- We presented the HA pre-positioning plan for Paktya and explained where we were in stocking the supply points. He was pleased with this effort and suggested that once the ANA base was built in Jaji, this would be another good place to pre-position supplies.

- We told him that some people had come to our gate claiming to be returnees living in tents over by the prison and that they were in need of HA. He stated he had no knowledge of a returnee camp there and suspects that they were just looking for handouts. He stated there were only two returnee camps, Bonozai and Robat. We told him that we had a lot of clothing nd other items that have been donated by friends and family of service members back in the states. We would like to take these items and other DoD provided HA supplies out to a returnee camp after the Christmas Holiday. He said he would like to join us when we go and he would like to take the time to sit down and talk to them while we were there. We agreed this would be best.

- We expressed our concern that when we conducted a follow-up check of the orphanage that we opened a couple weeks ago, we found very few orphans living there and could not find most of the HA we had given them. He stated he was also concerned about what was going on over there and has no idea what they did with the money that he gave during the ribbon cutting which was supposed to be divided among the orphans. He does not believe they got any benefit from the funds. He also stated that he had only seen about 30 orphans, not the 102 that the orphanage director said lived there. He said he would have the Director of Social Affairs follow-up.

- —— ———— asked us if we had anything we could bring with us tomorrow to give to the people we meet with. We decided to bring some prayer rugs and Korans that we have on hand. He then … Remarks are continued in the comments section …

  • Oct. 16, 2007 Orphans Gone

161620Z PRT GARDEZ DAILY SUMMARY REPORT
UNIT: PRT GARDEZ DTG: 16OCT20072000Z

LAST 24: SUMMARY OF ACTIVITIES

POLITICAL: The Paktya Governor conducted a meeting with the PRT Commander, 3 Fury 5, and 3 Fury 3 at the Governors Office. He had concerns with the basic function of the Provincial Communications Center at CP Thunder. Currently that entity is not functional with little or no communications flow coming out of the center. The 3 Fury 5 stated that he will put major effort towards getting that center functional very shortly. The previously Gardez Mayor was fired due to cronyism according to the Governor as he had given people land near Banizia that were not entitled to it. ————— ———— ——— said that the Jani Khel and Dan Wa Patan Governors had both been replaced with new officials..

INFRASTRUCTURE: The PRT Logar Engineers met with officials from the Department of Public Works and the Puli Alam Municipality today to discuss work on the Logar Motor Pool. At the moment, the work at the site was placed on hold due to the Governor requesting a work modification and the need to created a water diversion system so the building will not flood. While all agree to this need, a bill payer has not been determined for the water diversion system, an situation that will need to be resolved at the PRT Commander and Governor level.

MILITARY: — —— ——— has arrived in Afghanistan and is currently at Bagram Air Field awaiting early morning transportation to Salerno, then onwards to Gardez later tomorrow afternoon to begin his PDSS trip.

ECONOMIC: NSTR

SECURITY: There were reports of rocket fire in the general area of FOB Gardez, but the only reported damage was that a local Qalat was struck with minor damage, no injuries reported.) Gen Khaliq of the ANA Corps Commander is reported to be in Germany receiving medical attention for a heart problem.

SOCIAL: The PRT visited the Gardez Orphanage to conduct an assessment and drop HA and toys to the center. There are currently no orphans at the facility due to the Holiday (note: orphans are defined has having no father, but may still have mother and a family structure that will have them home for holidays.) Governor ———— states that the Red Crescent fund raiser (donation tickets) for winter relief has begun in the Province and will be collecting funds to aid the unfortunate during severe winter weather.

INFORMATION: The PRT and 3 Fury have discussed a IO Anti IED Reporting Plan with a IED Hotline put into effect. This will allow the AO to have a central reporting location that will allow for citizens to call the PCC or another agency with suspicious activity. Combined with 3 Fury, the PRT is planning a post Zormat security shura at the conclusion of major operations in that district.

PROJECT STATUS: NSTR

SCHEDULED IO EVENT:

DC/PCC UPDATES:

ANP STATUS

CURRENT CLASS #s: Paktya: 0 Logar: 0

TOTAL TRAINED: Paktya: —— Logar: ——

REMAINING TO TRAIN: Paktya: — Logar: —

NEXT 96 HOURS: (WHY?)

17 Oct

M1 PRT Secures the Gardez Airfield in order to support the transportation of personnel and mail to and from BAF.

M2 PRT Engineer attends a conference with the Chief of USAF Engineers MG Eulberg in order to share information on PRT Engineer management.

M3 PDSS begins for —— ———, incoming PRT ———— —————, in order to facilitate information sharing for the incoming team.

M4 Engineers conduct a QA/QC of the Koshi Hydro Project in order ensure that the scope of work is abided by and there is quality work conducted.

M5 Civil Affairs travels to Ahmad Khel in order to conduct a AUP location check and secure signatures on the right of entry. Additionally conduct a Winter and athletics HA Drop.

18 Oct

M1 CAT A Team Logar travels to Sayed Karam in order to conduct assessments in preparation of the winter season, evaluate current school status and check on the AUP status.

M2- USAID meets with the Paktya Department of Transportation in order to deconflict the Gardez transportation master plan.

M3 USAID meets with LBG and 4/73rd in order to discuss the KG Pass master plan.

M4 CAT A Team drops HA at the Gardez Orphanage in order to support the unfortunate and destitude.

M5 PRT Medic evaluate the CP Lightning medical staff during a MASCAL exercise to assess the ANA medical staffs ability during a crisis.

M6 – PDSS continues for —— ———, incoming PRT ———— —————, in order to facilitate information sharing for the incoming team.

19 Oct

M1 The PRT Security Forces Platoon conducts soldier training for the PRT as a whole to ensure that they are current on tactical training and weapons shooting.

M2 PRT Commander calls in to the PRT Commanders Conference Call with FURY 6 to update current operations, projects, and concerns.

M3 PRT Drivers and TCs conduct weekly PMCS on all vehicles to ensure that they are fully mission capable.

M4 – PDSS continues for —— ———, incoming PRT ———— —————, in order to facilitate information sharing for the incoming team.

20 Oct

M1 The PRT Security Forces Platoon Leader meets with the ODA team at CP Lightning in order to discuss mutual training possibilities, especially use of the mounted weapons system range.

M2 The PRT Commander and the Governor travel to Liga Mangal in order to attend a shura to discuss issues and concerns in the newly formed district.

M3 CA/CE meet with the Logar Government Motorpool contractor and the Puli Alam Public Works Department in order to discuss location, water mitigation issues, and other concerns.

M4 Civil Affairs meets with the Kharwar School Contractor to discuss issues of completion of the building, to ensure a good quality product is turned over to the students of that district.

M5 – PDSS continues for —— ———, incoming PRT ———— —————, in order to facilitate information sharing

  • Sept. 24, 2007 Democracy Blamed

240830Z Gardez PRT Paktya Provincial Council visit to Gardez PRT
The Paktya provincial council visited FOB Gardez and the following was discussed:

THREATS TO THE PROVINCIAL COUNCIL (PC) MEMBERS

The provincial council stated the following related to several threats they have received: A month and a half ago a hand grenade was thrown in their compound downtown Gardez. One month ago a night letter was left in Jani Khel stating that the provincial council, parliament members, and the Chamkani senator should stop working and supporting the government. The letter was stamped with the Taliban mark.

They have received information that there are many ACMs in the Chamkani mountains. The Kushis see them frequently. The border of Chamkani and Jani Khel is a stronghold of the Taliban.

PROVINCIAL COUNCIL LACK OF RESOURCES/OPERATIONAL FUNDS

The provincial council does not have operational funds that allow them to move freely and do their work properly. They depend on vehicles on loan and gas that they pay out of pocket. This limits greatly their capability to promote the government of Afghanistan with the local people and find out about the peoples concerns.

CORRUPTION IN THE AFGHAN GOVERNMENT

The Chamkani Chief of Police and the Danwa Patan District Commissioner are fighting for the control (earnings) of illegal checkpoints.

The people of Afghanistan keep loosing their trust in the government because of the high amount of corrupted government officials. The general view of the Afghans is that the current government is worst than the Taliban.

Question to the PC members:

If the corruption in Afghanistan is so big, when did it all start and how far back in history?

Answer:

Note: One PC member that was not actively participating decided to answer this question. This member appears to be the oldest in the group.

That is an excellent question. When the Russians were here the corruption did not exist. Later, when the Taliban took control of Afghanistan corruption did not exits. During none of the previous government in the whole history of Afghanistan this concept ever existed. The corrupted government officials are a new concept brought to Afghanistan by the AMERICANS.

This same PC member did the following question: Is this DEMOCRACY? or Is this the DEMOCRACY that the AMERICANS bring to Afghanistan?. This question was answered with a: NO, a corrupted government is not democracy.

The PC member continued explaining that previously in Afghanistan it was a shame to do something wrong like: theft, kill, and any other immoral act. Now everything depends on the amount of money you have. Years ago, if someone committed something immoral it was a shame to the whole family, now if you have money it does not matter. You can get to jail but it does not matter. You just have to pay the right people, the right amount and you will be out in a couple of days. With the Taliban if you did something wrong you pay for it, the money did not help you or exempt you from the right thing. This is what the people of Afghanistan see that the Americans brought to Afghanistan. This is the DEMOCRACY that they are living.

Question to the PC members:

Does corruption exist in Kabul?

Answer:

Kabul is the root of the corruption. Is the most corrupted placed in Afghanistan but, because the government pays more attention to the capital the people live in a better condition. Kabul has corruption and development and the people live in better conditions than the other areas of the country. To give an example of how the corruption works from the higher levels to the lower levels: To obtain a provincial government position (District Commissioner, ANP Chief, etc.) the officials pay for that position. Then they work their way to re-coup the money they pay and make additional profit. There are no consequences of doing things wrong. These because of the DEMOCRACY and HUMAN RIGHTS. If people go to jail is it just a matter of paying to get out. Better than that, if you are corrupted they move you to other province/place/position. You did wrong in Paktya, lets move you to Khwost.

The peoples view of President Karzai if that he is a puppet of the Americans. So, if the Afghan government does things wrong the peoples blame the Americans. The people see that most of the government officials are repatriates coming from other countries and whenever things get bad they will leave. Some of these government officials came with no government experience at all and with the only interest of making their own profit/benefit in Afghanistan.

—— ———, CONCLUSION:

This is the general feeling of the common Afghan people or at least the common Pashtum. The majority of the Afghans are not wealthy people, if the people keep identifying DEMOCRACY as a system that is worst than the Taliban government. The people will support the Anti-Coalition forces and the security condition will degenerate. This is a current important issue that should be work from the higher levels of the coalition government/forces.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

DO an Information Operation campaign explaining the Afghan people: What DEMOCRACY is? How a democratic systems works? What they can do to report wrong doing? (The last only if there will be real consequences to the wrong doing, if not the confidents/narrators will be squash by the system).

Create an organization that investigates public corruption. This could be work by either the Department of Justice or an Office of Inspector General.

Create a budget for the Provincial Council and give them the support needed to work against corruption. The PCs are the elected members that must be able to do direct contact with the people.

If someone is identified as corrupted take him completely out of the public service. Do not move him/move the problem to other location.

CA, Gardez PRT PPO

Join Emptysuit On Twitter

Click On Links
Michael Steele Blames Obama For War In Afghanistan
NATO Airstrike Accidentally Kills Afghan Troops

Gen. Stanley McChrystal Article In Rolling Stone
U.S. Military Death Toll In Afghanistan Past 1,000
UK Military Death Toll In Afghanistan Past 260
Obama Illegal Afghanistan War
Impeach Obama
The Afghanistan War
Military Deaths In Afghanistan
Obama Afghanistan Plan?
Liberal’s Anti-War Hypocrisy.?
Obama’s Keeps Silent About The Afghanistan War
Obama Repeatedly Said He Would Reinforce US Troops
Obama Ignore Soldiers Dying In Afghanistan
The Afghanistan Problem
U.S. Afghanistan Raid Gone Bad
Taliban Attack
Bush Billboard, Miss Me Yet?
About Emptysuit
Your Opinion
Obama Gun Control
Taliban Attack
Iraq Car Bombing Kill 147, Wound Over 700
Six Bomb Blasts In Baghdad Kills 95 Wound 536
Peshawar Car Bomb Kills 91

TSA Block “Controversial Opinion” On The Web

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is blocking certain websites from the federal agency’s computers, including halting access by staffers to any Internet pages that contain a “controversial opinion.”

The email was sent to all TSA employees from the Office of Information Technology on Friday afternoon. It states that as of July 1, TSA employees will no longer be allowed to access five categories of websites that have been deemed “inappropriate for government access.”

The categories include:

Chat/Messaging

Controversial opinion

Criminal activity

Extreme violence (including cartoon violence) and gruesome content

Gaming

The email does not specify how the TSA will determine if a website expresses a “controversial opinion.” If you noticed, ‘PORN’ is not on the list.

There is also no explanation as to why controversial opinions are being blocked, although the email stated that some of the restricted websites violate the Employee Responsibilities and Conduct policy.

Join Emptysuit On Twitter

Click On Links:
Supreme Court Extends Gun Rights To States ‎
Utah Gun Permit For 30+ States
Elin Nordegren Gets $100 Million From Tiger
Obama Gun Control
Rush Limbaugh’s Wedding
Michelle Obama Chimp Image On Google
Impeach Obama
Bush Billboard, Miss Me Yet?
Scott Baio Michelle Obama Joke
About Emptysuit
Your Opinion

Independence Day / Declaration of Independence

In the United States, Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. Independence Day is commonly associated with fireworks, parades, barbecues, carnivals, fairs, picnics, concerts, baseball games, political speeches and ceremonies, and various other public and private events celebrating the history, government, and traditions of the United States. Independence Day is the national day of the United States. During the American Revolution, the legal separation of the American colonies from Great Britain occurred on July 2, 1776, when the Second Continental Congress voted to approve a resolution of independence that had been proposed in June by Richard Henry Lee of Virginia. After voting for independence, Congress turned its attention to the Declaration of Independence, a statement explaining this decision, which had been prepared by a Committee of Five, with Thomas Jefferson as its principal author. Congress debated and revised the Declaration, finally approving it on July 4. A day earlier, John Adams had written to his wife Abigail:

The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.

The United States Declaration of Independence is a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain were now independent states, and thus no longer a part of the British Empire. Written primarily by Thomas Jefferson, the Declaration is a formal explanation of why Congress had voted on July 2 to declare independence from Great Britain, more than a year after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War. The birthday of the United States of America—Independence Day—is celebrated on July 4, the day the wording of the Declaration was approved by Congress.

After finalizing the text on July 4, Congress issued the Declaration of Independence in several forms. It was initially published as a printed broadside that was widely distributed and read to the public. The most famous version of the Declaration, a signed copy that is usually regarded as the Declaration of Independence, is on display at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. Although the wording of the Declaration was approved on July 4, the date of its signing has been disputed.

Historians have long disputed whether Congress actually signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4, even though Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin all later wrote that they had signed it on that day. Most historians have concluded that the Declaration was signed nearly a month after its adoption, on August 2, 1776, and not on July 4 as is commonly believed.

Text: Declaration of Independence

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.

Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such disolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

Jobless Claims Rise To 472,000

U.S. Department of Labor
Office of Public Affairs
Washington, D.C.

EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION USDL 10-888-NAT
Program Contact: TRANSMISSION OF MATERIAL IN THIS
Scott Gibbons (202) 693-3008 RELEASE IS EMBARGOED UNTIL
Tony Sznoluch (202) 693-3176 8:30 A.M. (EDT), THURSDAY
Media Contact : July 1, 2010
(202) 693-4676

In the week ending June 26, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 472,000, an increase of 13,000 from the previous week’s revised figure of 459,000. The 4-week moving average was 466,500, an increase of 3,250 from the previous week’s revised average of 463,250.

The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 3.6 percent for the week ending June 19, unchanged from the prior week’s revised rate of 3.6 percent.

The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending June 19 was 4,616,000, an increase of 43,000 from the preceding week’s revised level of 4,573,000. The 4-week moving average was 4,567,500, a decrease of 25,250 from the preceding week’s revised average of 4,592,750.

The fiscal year-to-date average of seasonally adjusted weekly insured unemployment, which corresponds to the appropriated AWIU trigger, was 5.077 million.

UNADJUSTED DATA

The advance number of actual initial claims under state programs, unadjusted, totaled 438,305 in the week ending June 26, an increase of 14,867 from the previous week. There were 559,857 initial claims in the comparable week in 2009.

The advance unadjusted insured unemployment rate was 3.4 percent during the week ending June 19, unchanged from the prior week. The advance unadjusted number for persons claiming UI benefits in state programs totaled 4,311,264, an increase of 3,471 from the preceding week. A year earlier, the rate was 4.5 percent and the volume was 6,078,254.

Extended benefits were available in Alaska, Arizona, California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Georgia, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin during the week ending June 12.

Initial claims for UI benefits by former Federal civilian employees totaled 2,083 in the week ending June 19, a decrease of 64 from the prior week. There were 2,381 initial claims by newly discharged veterans, a decrease of 118 from the preceding week.

There were 18,082 former Federal civilian employees claiming UI benefits for the week ending June 12, an increase of 245 from the previous week. Newly discharged veterans claiming benefits totaled 34,334, a decrease of 2,589 from the prior week.

States reported 4,515,499 persons claiming EUC (Emergency Unemployment Compensation) benefits for the week ending June 12, a decrease of 217,513 from the prior week. There were 2,503,379 claimants in the comparable week in 2009. EUC weekly claims include first, second, third, and fourth tier activity.

The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending June 12 were in Puerto Rico (6.6 percent), Alaska (5.1), Oregon (4.9), California (4.4), Nevada (4.4), Pennsylvania (4.4), Wisconsin (4.1), Connecticut (4.0), North Carolina (4.0), New Jersey (3.9), and South Carolina (3.9).

The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending June 19 were in Pennsylvania (+3,460), New Jersey (+1,708), Iowa (+1,494), Maryland (+1,404), and Michigan (+1,251), while the largest decreases were in Illinois (-3,711), California (-3,629), New York (-3,566), Georgia (-1,921), and South Carolina (-1,565).


UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE DATA FOR REGULAR STATE PROGRAMS


Advance Prior1
WEEK ENDING June 26 June 19 Change June 12 Year

Initial Claims (SA) 472,000 459,000 +13,000 476,000 604,000
Initial Claims (NSA) 438,305 423,438 +14,867 444,172 559,857
4-Wk Moving Average (SA) 466,500 463,250 +3,250 464,250 604,500
Advance Prior1
WEEK ENDING June 19 June 12 Change June 5 Year

Ins. Unemployment (SA) 4,616,000 4,573,000 +43,000 4,593,000 6,501,000
Ins. Unemployment (NSA) 4,311,264 4,307,793 +3,471 4,308,561 6,078,254
4-Wk Moving Average (SA) 4,567,500 4,592,750 -25,250 4,608,250 6,504,500

Ins. Unemployment Rate (SA)2 3.6% 3.6% 0.0 3.6% 4.9%
Ins. Unemployment Rate (NSA)2
3.4% 3.4% 0.0 3.4% 4.5%

INITIAL CLAIMS FILED IN FEDERAL PROGRAMS (UNADJUSTED)


Prior1
WEEK ENDING
June 19
June 12
Change
Year

Federal Employees 2,083 2,147 -64 1,574
Newly Discharged Veterans 2,381 2,499 -118 2,095

PERSONS CLAIMING UI BENEFITS IN FEDERAL PROGRAMS (UNADJUSTED)


Prior1
WEEK ENDING
June 12
June 5
Change
Year

Federal Employees 18,082 17,837 +245 17,018
Newly Discharged Veterans 34,334 36,923 -2,589 28,356
Railroad Retirement Board 5,000 5,000 0 10,000
Extended Benefits 405,081 563,236 -158,155 480,298
EUC 20083 4,515,499 4,733,012 -217,513 2,503,379

FOOTNOTES
SA – Seasonally Adjusted Data
NSA – Not Seasonally Adjusted Data
1 – Prior year is comparable to most recent data.
2 – Most recent week used covered employment of 128,298,468 as denominator.
3 – EUC weekly claims include first, second, third, and fourth tier activity.

UNADJUSTED INITIAL CLAIMS FOR WEEK ENDED 06/19/2010


STATES WITH A DECREASE OF MORE THAN 1,000


State Change State Supplied Comment
IL -3,711 Fewer layoffs in the trade and service industries.
CA -3,629 No comment.
NY -3,566 Fewer layoffs in the construction, real estate, rental and leasing, and manufacturing industries.
GA -1,921 Fewer layoffs in the construction, service, and manufacturing industries.
SC -1,565 Fewer layoffs in the manufacturing industry.
IN -1,543 No comment.
KY -1,399 No comment.
NC -1,334 Fewer layoffs in the construction, furniture, paper, and textile industries.
WA -1,157 No comment.
OR -1,093 No comment.
TX -1,063 Fewer layoffs in the service, finance, and manufacturing industries.

STATES WITH AN INCREASE OF MORE THAN 1,000


State Change State Supplied Comment
MI +1,251 No comment.
MD +1,404 No comment.
IA +1,494 Layoffs in the manufacturing industry.
NJ +1,708 Layoffs in the transportation, warehousing, service, and manufacturing industries.
PA +3,460 No comment.

State Detail Prior Week
UI Claims Series 1967 to current

Join Emptysuit On Twitter

Click On Links:
Obama Job Loss

Financial Reform Summary

Executive Order 13544, Socialized Health Care

Summary: Financial Regulatory Reform
Summary: Health Care Reform Bill H.R. 4872
The Jones Act And Gulf Oil Spill
New Patients Bill of Rights
Copenhagen Climate Treaty Summary
Health Care Insurance And Health Care Benefits
H.R. 3962 Summary
H.R. 3962 Tax Hikes

Audio: Gore Sex Assault

Police in Portland, Oregon released audio recordings of a 2009 interview with masseuse Molly Hagerty, who claims former Vice-President Al Gore sexually assaulted her. Hagerty made went public in giving an interview to the National Enquirer.

Join Emptysuit On Twitter

Click On Links:
Al Gore Accused of Sex Crime

Tiger Woods Text Messages To Joslyn James

Obama Cheating With Campaign Aide Vera Baker
Tiger Woods’ Nike Commercial

David Letterman Applauded For Having Sex
Tiger Wood’s Apology Transcript
Tiger Woods Girlfriends
Tiger Woods Bare Chest On Magazine
Wang Zifei, Obama Girl In Black
Earl Woods AFFAIR? Tiger’s Father Cheated Too
Michelle Obama’s Chimp Faces
Obama, Looking at woman in Italy
Obama Female Golfing Buddy
The “Real” Ted Kennedy
Easy As Taking Cells From An Embryo
John Edwards Is The Father
Obama’s Brother, Samson Obama Accused Of Sex Attack

Supreme Court Extends Gun Rights To States ‎

The Second Amendment’s guarantee of an individual right to bear arms applies to state and local gun control laws, the Supreme Court ruled on Monday, June 28, in 5-to-4 decision. The Second Amendment, like the rest of the Bill of Rights, originally restricted only the power of the federal government. The Supreme Court later ruled that most but not all of the protections of the Bill of Rights applied to the states under the due process clause of the 14th Amendment, one of the post-Civil War amendments. Obama was not one of the 55 senators (including Wisconsin Democratic Sen. Russell Feingold and eight other Democrats) who signed a brief arguing the 2nd Amendment protects an individual right and that the DC gun ban was unconstitutional.

Here’s the Chicago Tribune, October 8, 2004:

In 2001, Obama was one of just nine senators to vote against a bill that toughened penalties for violent crimes committed during gang activity. Obama said the law did not clearly define a gang member and he questioned why lawmakers were targeting Hispanics and blacks for stiffer sentences.

Two years earlier, after the Columbine High School shootings in Colorado, Obama voted “present” on a bill requiring juveniles to be prosecuted as adults for firing a firearm on or near school property.

Obama also voted against a bill permitting gun owners to claim self-defense when using a gun in their homes if the local community bans the use of handguns. Obama said municipalities should control local gun regulations, not the state.

“That law eviscerated anti-handgun ordinances in some communities,” Obama said. “The way I feel, Wilmette should not determine Mattoon’s firearms ordinances and Mattoon should not determine Wilmette’s.”

Associated Press, Sept. 11, 2004:

-Voted ‘No’ on letting people claim a self-defense protection in court for using a gun in their homes despite local weapons bans. (SB2165, 2004)

-Voted ‘Yes’ on letting retired police and military police carry concealed weapons. (SB2188, 2004)

Chicago Tribune, August 20, 2004:

Last week, Obama won the endorsement of the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police. Union officials cited Obama’s longtime support of gun-control measures and his willingness to negotiate compromises on bills backed or opposed by the FOP.

Support for gun control in America has been steadily dropping. Currently, the American public strongly opposes attempts to ban gun ownership, and is divided on attempts to limit gun ownership. A 2008 Gallup poll revealed that 28% of the population supported a total ban on handguns — the lowest level since the poll was first taken in 1959 (when support for a total ban was 60% of the population). This same poll revealed that 49% of Americans in 2008 preferred more restrictive gun laws, compared to 78% when the question was first asked in the 1990 version of the poll. About 10,000 murders are committed using firearms annually.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_politics – cite_note-49.

The right to keep and bear arms, often referred as the right to bear arms or the right to have arms, is the assertion that people have a personal right to “weapon(s)” for individual use, or a collective right to bear arms in a militia, or both. In this context, “arms” refers to a variety of weapons and armor and to “bear arms” meant to wage war. The Second Amendment of the United States Constitution is a federal provision. Each of the fifty states also has its own state constitution. Forty-four states have chosen to explicitly embody a right to bear arms into its state constitution. Regarding the state interpretations of these state and the federal constitutional rights to bear arms, state courts have addressed the meaning of these specific rights in considerable detail. Two different models have emerged from state jurisprudence: an individual right and a collective right.

Follow Emptysuit On Twitter

Click On Links:
Obama Extremist Amy Bishop Kill Three In Alabama

Gen. Stanley McChrystal Article In Rolling Stone
Obama Gun Control
Man Eats His Bank Robbery NOTE While Being Frisked
Obama Kool Aid Drinkers
The Race Card
Impeach Obama
Bush Billboard, Miss Me Yet?
Obama The Devil
Fort Hood Shooting; 12 Dead, 31 Injured
Liberal’s Anti-War Hypocrisy.?
The House Negro And The Field Negro
About Emptysuit
Your Opinion

Financial Reform Summary

Calendar No. ll A BILL

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NEW BILL

Consumer Protections with Authority and Independence: Creates a new independent watchdog, housed at the Federal Reserve, with the authority to ensure American consumers get the clear, accurate information they need to shop for mortgages, credit cards, and other financial products, and protect them from hidden fees, abusive terms, and deceptive practices.

Ends Too Big to Fail: Ends the possibility that taxpayers will be asked to write a check to bail out financial firms that threaten the economy by: creating a safe way to liquidate failed financial firms; imposing tough new capital and leverage requirements that make it undesirable to get too big; updating the Fed’s authority to allow system-wide support but no longer prop up individual firms; and establishing rigorous standards and supervision to protect the economy and American consumers, investors and businesses.

Advanced Warning System: Creates a council to identify and address systemic risks posed by large, complex companies, products, and activities before they threaten the stability of the economy.

Transparency & Accountability for Exotic Instruments: Eliminates loopholes that allow risky and abusive practices to go on unnoticed and unregulated – including loopholes for over-the-counter derivatives, asset-backed securities, hedge funds, mortgage brokers and payday lenders.

Federal Bank Supervision: Streamlines bank supervision to create clarity and accountability. Protects the dual banking system that supports community banks.

Executive Compensation and Corporate Governance: Provides shareholders with a say on pay and corporate affairs with a non-binding vote on executive compensation.

Protects Investors: Provides tough new rules for transparency and accountability for credit rating agencies to protect investors and businesses.

Enforces Regulations on the Books: Strengthens oversight and empowers regulators to aggressively pursue financial fraud, conflicts of interest and manipulation of the system that benefit special interests at the expense of American families and businesses.

STRONG CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION WATCHDOG
The new independent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will have the sole job of protecting American consumers from unfair, deceptive and abusive financial products and practices and will ensure people get the clear information they need on loans and other financial products from credit card companies, mortgage brokers, banks and others.
American consumers already have protections against faulty appliances, contaminated food, and dangerous toys. With the creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, they’ll finally have a watchdog to oversee financial products, giving Americans confidence that there is a system in place that works for them – not just big banks on Wall Street.

Why Change Is Needed: The economic crisis was driven by an across-the-board failure to protect consumers. When no one office has consumer protections as its top priority, consumer protections don’t get the attention they need. The result has been unfair and deceptive practices being allowed to spread unchallenged, nearly bringing down the entire financial system.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
· Independent Head: Led by an independent director appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate.
· Independent Budget: Dedicated budget paid by the Federal Reserve Board.
· Independent Rule Writing: Able to autonomously write rules for consumer protections governing all entities – banks and non-banks – offering consumer financial services or products.
· Examination and Enforcement: Authority to examine and enforce regulations for banks and credit unions with assets of over $10 billion and all mortgage-related businesses (lenders, servicers, mortgage brokers, and foreclosure scam operators) and large non-bank financial companies, such as large payday lenders, debt collectors, and consumer reporting agencies. Banks with assets of $10 billion or less will be examined by the appropriate bank regulator.
· Consumer Protections: Consolidates and strengthens consumer protection responsibilities currently handled by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Office of Thrift Supervision, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Federal Reserve, National Credit Union Administration, and Federal Trade Commission.
· Able to Act Fast: With this bureau on the lookout for bad deals and schemes, consumers won’t have to wait for Congress to pass a law to be protected from bad business practices.
· Educates: Creates a new Office of Financial Literacy.
· Consumer Hotline: Creates a national consumer complaint hotline so consumers will have, for the first time, a single toll-free number to report problems with financial products and services.
· Accountability: Makes one office accountable for consumer protections. With many agencies sharing responsibility, it’s hard to know who is responsible for what, and easy for emerging problems that haven’t historically fallen under anyone’s purview, to fall through the cracks.
· Works with Bank Regulators: Coordinates with other regulators when examining banks to prevent undue regulatory burden. Consults with regulators before a proposal is issued and regulators could appeal regulations if they believe would put the safety and soundness of the banking system or the stability of the financial system at risk.

ADDRESSING SYSTEMIC RISKS

The Financial Stability Oversight Council
The newly created Financial Stability Oversight Council will focus on identifying, monitoring and addressing systemic risks posed by large, complex financial firms as well as products and activities that spread risk across firms. It will make recommendations to regulators for increasingly stringent rules on companies that grow large and complex enough to pose a threat to the financial stability of the United States.

Why Change Is Needed: The economic crisis introduced a new term to our national vocabulary – systemic risk. In July, Federal Reserve Governor Daniel Tarullo, testified that “Financial institutions are systemically important if the failure of the firm to meet its obligations to creditors and customers would have significant adverse consequences for the financial system and the broader economy.” In short, in an interconnected global economy, it’s easy for some people’s problems to become everybody’s problems. The failures that brought down giant financial institutions last year also devastated the economic security of millions of Americans who did nothing wrong – their jobs, homes, retirement security, gone overnight.

The Financial Stability Oversight Council
· Expert Members: A 9 member council of federal financial regulators and an independent member will be Chaired by the Treasury Secretary and made up of regulators including: Federal Reserve Board, SEC, CFTC, OCC, FDIC, FHFA, the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The council will have the sole job to identify and respond to emerging risks throughout the financial system.
· Tough to Get Too Big: Makes recommendations to the Federal Reserve for increasingly strict rules for capital, leverage, liquidity, risk management and other requirements as companies grow in size and complexity, with significant requirements on companies that pose risks to the financial system.
· Regulates Nonbank Financial Companies: Authorized to require, with a 2/3 vote, nonbank financial companies that would pose a risk to the financial stability of the US if they failed be regulated by the Federal Reserve. With this provision the next AIG would be regulated by the Federal Reserve.
· Break Up Large, Complex Companies: Able to approve, with a 2/3 vote, a Federal Reserve decision to require a large, complex company, to divest some of its holdings if it poses a grave threat to the financial stability of the United States – but only as a last resort.
· Technical Expertise: Creates a new Office of Financial Research within Treasury to be staffed with a highly sophisticated staff of economists, accountants, lawyers, former supervisors, and other specialists to support the council’s work by collecting financial data and conducting economic analysis.
· Make Risks Transparent: Through the Office of Financial Research and member agencies the council will collect and analyze data to identify and monitor emerging risks to the economy and make this information public in periodic reports and testimony to Congress every year.
· Oversight of Important Market Utilities: Identifies systemically important clearing, payments, and settlements systems to be regulated by the Federal Reserve.
· No Evasion: Large bank holding companies that have received TARP funds will not be able to avoid Federal Reserve supervision by simply dropping their banks. (the Hotel California Provision)

ENDING TOO BIG TO FAIL BAILOUTS

Preventing another crisis where American taxpayers are forced to bail out financial firms requires strengthening big financial companies to better withstand stress, putting a price on excessive growth or complexity that poses risks to the financial system, and creating a way to shutdown big financial firms that fail without threatening the economy.

Why Change Is Needed: As long as giant financial firms (and their creditors) believe the government will prop them up if they get into trouble, they only have incentive to get larger and take bigger risks, believing they will reap any rewards and leave taxpayers to foot the bill if things go wrong. Since the crisis began, a number of financial institutions previously considered “too big to fail” have only grown bigger by acquiring failing companies, leaving our country with the same vulnerabilities that led to last year’s bailouts.

Limiting Large, Complex Financial Companies and Preventing Future Bailouts
· Discourage Excessive Growth & Complexity: The Financial Stability Oversight Council will monitor systemic risk and make recommendations to the Federal Reserve for increasingly strict rules for capital, leverage, liquidity, risk management and other requirements as companies grow in size and complexity, with significant requirements on companies that pose risks to the financial system.
· Volcker Rule: Requires regulators to implement regulations for banks, their affiliates and bank holding companies, to prohibit proprietary trading, investment in and sponsorship of hedge funds and private equity funds, and to limit relationships with hedge funds and private equity funds. Nonbank financial institutions supervised by the Federal Reserve will also have restrictions on their proprietary trading and hedge fund and private equity investments. Regulations will be developed after a study by the Financial Stability Oversight Council and based on their recommendations.
· Extends Regulation: The Council will have the ability to require nonbank financial companies that pose a risk to the financial stability of the United States to submit to supervision by the Federal Reserve.
· Funeral Plans: Requires large, complex companies to periodically submit plans for their rapid and orderly shutdown should the company go under. Companies will be hit with higher capital requirements and restrictions on growth and activity, as well as divestment, if they fail to submit acceptable plans. Plans will help regulators understand the structure of the companies they oversee and serve as a roadmap for shutting them down if the company fails. Significant costs for failing to produce a credible plan create incentives for firms to rationalize structures or operations that cannot be unwound easily.
· Orderly Shutdown: Creates an orderly liquidation mechanism for the FDIC to unwind failing systemically significant financial companies. Shareholders and unsecured creditors will bear losses and management will be removed.
· Liquidation Procedure: Requires Treasury, FDIC and the Federal Reserve all agree to put a company into the orderly liquidation process. A panel of 3 bankruptcy judges must convene and agree – within 24 hours – that a company is insolvent.
· Costs to Financial Firms, Not Taxpayers: Charges the largest financial firms $50 billion for an upfront fund, built up over time, that will be used if needed for any liquidation. Industry, not the taxpayers, will take a hit for liquidating large, interconnected financial companies. Allows FDIC to borrow from the Treasury only for working capital that it expects to be repaid from the assets of the company being liquidated. The government will be first in line for repayment.
· Limits & Disclosure for Federal Reserve Lending: Updates the Federal Reserve’s 13(3) lender of last resort authority to allow system-wide support for healthy institutions or systemically important market utilities with sufficient collateral to protect taxpayers from loss during a major destabilizing event, but not to prop up individual institutions. The Board must begin reporting within 7 days of extending loans, periodically thereafter, and disclose borrowers, collateral, amounts borrowed unless doing so would defeat the purpose of the support. Disclosure may be delayed 12 months if it would compromise the program or financial stability.
· Bankruptcy: Most large financial companies are expected to be resolved through the normal bankruptcy process.
· Limits on Debt Guarantees: To provide protection against bank runs, the FDIC can guarantee debt of solvent insured banks and thrifts and their holding companies only if the meet a series of serious checks: the Board and the Council determine that there is a threat to financial stability; the Treasury Secretary approves terms and conditions and determines a cap on overall guarantee amounts; the President must activate an expedited process for Congressional review of the amount and use of the guarantees; and fees are set to cover all expected costs and losses are recouped from users of the program.

IMPROVING BANK REGULATION
The bill will streamline bank supervision with clear lines of responsibility, reducing arbitrage, and improve consistency and accountability. For the first time there will be clear lines of responsibility among bank regulators.

Why Change Is Needed: Today, we have a convoluted system of bank regulators created by historical accident. There are 4 federal banking agencies that oversee large systemically significant and small local national and state banks and federal and state thrifts.
Experts agree that no one would have designed a system that looked like this. For over 60 years, administrations of both parties, members of Congress across the political spectrum, commissions and scholars have proposed streamlining this irrational system.
· Clear Lines of Responsibility: Replaces confusing regulation riddled with dangerous loopholes, with clear lines of responsibility.
· FDIC: will regulate state banks and thrifts of all sizes and bank holding companies of state banks with assets below $50 billion.
· OCC: will regulate national banks and federal thrifts of all sizes and the holding companies of national banks and federal thrifts with assets below $50 billion. The Office of Thrift Savings is eliminated, existing thrifts will be grandfathered in, but no new charters for federal thrifts.
· Federal Reserve: will regulate bank and thrift holding companies with assets of over $50 billion, where the Fed’s capital market experience will enhance its supervision. As a consolidated supervisor, the Federal Reserve can see risks whether they lie in the bank holding company or its subsidiaries. They will be responsible for finding risk throughout the system. The Vice Chair of the Federal Reserve will be responsible for supervision and will report semi-annually to Congress.
· Dual Banking System: Preserves the dual banking system, leaving in place the state banking system that governs most of our nation’s community banks.

CREATING TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY FOR DERIVATIVES
Today’s bill largely reflects the November draft. Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Judd Gregg (R-NH) are working on a substitute amendment to this title that may be offered at full committee.
Under today’s proposal, common sense safeguards will protect taxpayers against the need for future bailouts and buffer the financial system from excessive risk-taking. Over-the-counter derivatives will be regulated by the SEC and the CFTC, more will be cleared through centralized clearing houses and traded on exchanges, un-cleared swaps will be subject to margin requirements and swap dealers and major swap participants will be subject to capital requirements, and all trades will be reported so that regulators can monitor risks in this large, complex market.

Why Change Is Needed: The over-the-counter derivatives market has exploded- from $91 trillion in 1998 to $592 trillion in 2008. During the financial crisis, concerns about the ability of companies to make good on these contracts and the lack of transparency about what risks existed caused credit markets to freeze. Investors were afraid to trade as Bear Stearns, AIG, and Lehman Brothers failed because any new transaction could expose them to more risk. Over-the-counter derivatives are supposed to be contracts that protect businesses from risks, but they became a way for traders to make enormous bets with no regulatory oversight or rules and therefore exacerbated risks. Because the derivatives market was considered too big and too interconnected to fail, taxpayers had to foot the bill for Wall Street’s bad bets. Those bad bets linked thousands of traders, creating a web in which one default threatened to produce a chain of corporate and economic failures worldwide. These interconnected trades, coupled with the lack of transparency about who held what, made unwinding the “too big to fail” institutions more costly to taxpayers.

Bringing Transparency and Accountability to the Derivatives Market
· Closes Regulatory Gaps: Provides the SEC and CFTC with authority to regulate over-the-counter derivatives so that irresponsible practices and excessive risk-taking can no longer escape regulatory oversight. Uses the Administration’s outline for a joint rulemaking process with the Financial Stability Oversight Council stepping in if the two agencies can’t agree.
· Central Clearing and Exchange Trading: Requires central clearing and exchange trading for derivatives that can be cleared and provides a role for both regulators and clearing houses to determine which contracts should be cleared. Requires the SEC and the CFTC to pre-approve contracts before clearing houses can clear them.
· Safeguards for Un-Cleared Trades: Requires margin for un-cleared trades in order to offset the greater risk they pose to the financial system and encourage more trading to take place in transparent, regulated markets. Swap dealers and major swap participants will be subject to capital requirements.
· Market Transparency: Requires data collection and publication through clearing houses or swap repositories to improve market transparency and provide regulators important tools for monitoring and responding to risks.

HEDGE FUNDS
Hedge funds that manage over $100 million will be required to register with the SEC as investment advisers and to disclose financial data needed to monitor systemic risk and protect investors.

Why Change Is Needed: Hedge funds are responsible for huge transfers of capital and risk, but some operate outside the framework of the financial regulatory system, even as they have become increasingly interwoven with the rest of the country’s financial markets.
No regulator is currently able to collect information on the size and nature of these firms or calculate the risks they pose to the broader economy. The SEC is currently unable to examine unregistered hedge funds’ books and records.

Raising Standards and Regulating Hedge Funds
· Fills Regulatory Gaps: Ends the “shadow” financial system in which hedge funds operate by requiring that they provide regulators with critical information.
· Register with the SEC: Requires hedge funds to register with the SEC as investment advisers and provide information about their trades and portfolios necessary to assess systemic risk. This data will be shared with the systemic risk regulator and the SEC will report to Congress annually on how it uses this data to protect investors and market integrity.
· Greater State Supervision: Raises the assets threshold for federal regulation of investment advisers from $25 million to $100 million, a move expected to increase the number of advisors under state supervision by 28%. States have proven to be strong regulators in this area and subjecting more entities to state supervision will allow the SEC to focus its resources on newly registered hedge funds.

INSURANCE

Office of National Insurance: Creates a new office within the Treasury Department to monitor the insurance industry, coordinate international insurance issues, and requires a study on ways to modernize insurance regulation and provide Congress with recommendations.
Streamlines the regulation of surplus lines insurance and reinsurance through state-based reforms.

CREDIT RATING AGENCIES
Establishes a new Office of Credit Rating Agencies at the Securities and Exchange Commission to strengthen regulation of credit rating agencies. New rules for internal controls, independence, transparency and penalties for poor performance will address shortcomings and restore investor confidence in these ratings.

Why Change Is Needed: Rating agencies market themselves as providers of independent research and in-depth credit analysis. But in this crisis, instead of helping people better understand risk, they failed to warn people about risks hidden throughout layers of complex structures.
Flawed methodology, weak oversight by regulators, conflicts of interest, and a total lack of transparency contributed to a system in which AAA ratings were awarded to complex, unsafe asset-backed securities – adding to the housing bubble and magnifying the financial shock caused when the bubble burst. When investors no longer trusted these ratings during the credit crunch, they pulled back from lending money to municipalities and other borrowers.

New Requirements and Oversight of Credit Rating Agencies
· New Office, New Focus at SEC: Creates an Office of Credit Ratings at the SEC with its own compliance staff and the authority to fine agencies. The SEC is required to examine Nationally Recognized Statistical Ratings Organizations at least once a year and make key findings public.
· Disclosure: Requires Nationally Recognized Statistical Ratings Organizations to disclose their methodologies, their use of third parties for due diligence efforts, and their ratings track record.
· Independent Information: Requires agencies to consider information in their ratings that comes to their attention from a source other than the organizations being rated if they find it credible.
· Conflicts of Interest: Prohibits compliance officers from working on ratings, methodologies, or sales.
· Liability: Investors could bring private rights of action against ratings agencies for a knowing or reckless failure to conduct a reasonable investigation of the facts or to obtain analysis from an independent source.
· Right to Deregister: Gives the SEC the authority to deregister an agency for providing bad ratings over time.
· Education: Requires ratings analysts to pass qualifying exams and have continuing education.
· Reduce Reliance on Ratings: Requires the GAO study and requires regulators to remove unnecessary references to NRSRO ratings in regulations.

EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Strengthening Shareholder Rights
Giving shareholders a say on pay and proxy access, ensuring the independence of compensation committees, and requiring public companies to set policies to take back executive compensation based on inaccurate financial statements are important steps in reining in excessive executive pay and can help shift management’s focus from short-term profits to long-term growth and stability.

Why Change Is Needed: In this country, you are supposed to be rewarded for hard work.
But Wall Street has developed an out of control system of out of this world bonuses that rewards short term profits over the long term health and security of their firms. Incentives for short-term gains likewise created incentives for executives to take big risks with excess leverage, threatening the stability of their companies and the economy as a whole.

Giving Shareholders a Say on Pay and Creating Greater Accountability
· Vote on Executive Pay: Gives shareholders a say on pay with the right to a non-binding vote on executive pay. This gives shareholders a powerful opportunity to hold accountable executives of the companies they own, and a chance to disapprove where they see the kind of misguided incentive schemes that threatened individual companies and in turn the broader economy.
· Nominating Directors: Gives the SEC authority to grant shareholders proxy access to nominate directors. Also required directors to win by a majority vote in uncontested elections. These can help shift management’s focus from short-term profits to long-term growth and stability.
· Independent Compensation Committees: Standards for listing on an exchange will require that compensation committees include only independent directors and have authority to hire compensation consultants in order to strengthen their independence from the executives they are rewarding or punishing.
· No Compensation for Lies: Requires that public companies set policies to take back executive compensation if it was based on inaccurate financial statements that don’t comply with accounting standards.
· SEC Review: Directs the SEC to clarify disclosures relating to compensation, including requiring companies to provide charts that compare their executive compensation with stock performance over a five-year period.

SEC AND IMPROVING INVESTOR PROTECTIONS
Every investor – from a hardworking American contributing to a union pension to a day trader to a retiree living off of their 401(k) – deserves better protections for their investments. Investors in securities will be better protected by improving the competence of the SEC.

Why Change Is Needed: The Madoff scandal demonstrated just how desperately the SEC is in need of reform. The SEC has failed to perform aggressive oversight and is unable to understand some of the very companies it is supposed to regulate. And investors have been used and abused by the very people who are supposed to be providing them with financial advice.

SEC and Beefed Up Investor Protections
· Encouraging Whistleblowers: Creates a program within the SEC to encourage people to report securities violations, creating rewards of up to 30% of funds recovered for information provided.
· SEC Management Reform: Mandates an annual assessment of the SEC’s internal supervisory controls and a GAO study of SEC management.
· Investment Advice: Requires a study on whether brokers who give investment advice should be held to the same fiduciary standard as investment advisers – should be required to act in their clients’ best interest.
· New Advocates for Investors: Creates the Investment Advisory Committee, a committee of investors to advise the SEC on its regulatory priorities and practices as well as the Office of Investor Advocate in the SEC, to identify areas where investors have significant problems dealing with the SEC and provide them assistance.
· Funding: The self-funded SEC will no longer be subject to the annual appropriations process.

SECURITIZATION
Companies that sell products like mortgage-backed securities are required to retain a portion of the risk to ensure they won’t sell garbage to investors, because they have to keep some of it for themselves.

Why Change Is Needed: Companies made risky investments, such as selling mortgages to people they knew could not afford to pay them, and then packaged those investments together, called asset-backed securities, and sold them to investors who didn’t understand the risk they were taking. For the company that made, packaged and sold the loan, it wasn’t important if the loans were never repaid as long as they were able to sell the loan at a profit before problems started. This led to the subprime mortgage mess that helped to bring down the economy.

Reducing Risks Posed by Securities
· Skin in the Game: Requires companies that sell products like mortgage-backed securities to retain at least 5% of the credit risk, unless the underlying loans meet standards that reduce riskiness. That way if the investment doesn’t pan out, the company that packaged and sold the investment would lose out right along with the people they sold it to.
· Better Disclosure: Requires issuers to disclose more information about the underlying assets and to analyze the quality of the underlying assets.

MUNICIPAL SECURITIES
Municipal securities will have better oversight through the registration of municipal advisers and increased investor representation on the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board.

Why Change Is Needed: Financial advisers to municipal securities issuers have been involved in “pay-to-play” scandals and have recommended unsuitable derivatives for small municipalities, among other inappropriate actions, and are not currently regulated.

Better Oversight of Municipal Securities
· Registers Advisors and Brokers: Requires SEC registration for municipal financial advisers, swap advisers, and investment brokers – unregulated intermediaries who play key roles in the municipal bond market. Subjects financial advisers, swap advisers, and investment brokers to rules issued by the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board and enforced by the SEC or a designee.
· Puts Investors First on the MSRB Board: Gives investor and public representatives a majority on the MSRB to better protect investors in the municipal securities market where there has been less transparency than in corporate debt markets.

STRENGTHENING THE FEDERAL RESERVE
The Federal Reserve will oversee the larger, more complex holding companies with assets over $50 billion and other systemically significant financial firms, where their expertise in capital markets will come into play. With this new role will come new responsibilities, but also new transparency and efforts to eliminate conflicts of interest.

Strengthening the Federal Reserve
· Transparency: GAO will have authority to audit any emergency lending facility set up by the Federal Reserve under section 13(3) of the Federal Reserve Act.
· Financial Stability Function: The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve will now have a formal responsibility to identify, measure, monitor, and mitigate risks to U.S. financial stability.
· Oversight Accountability: Creates a Vice Chairman for Supervision, a member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve designated by the President, who will develop policy recommendations regarding supervision and regulation for the Board, and will report to Congress semi-annually on Board supervision and regulation efforts.
· Eliminates Conflicts of Interest in Reserve Bank Governance: No company, subsidiary or affiliate of a company that is supervised by the Federal Reserve Board will be allowed to vote for directors of Federal Reserve Banks; and their past or present officers, directors and employees cannot serve as directors. Currently the member banks elect directors, who choose the Federal Reserve Board president. Federal Reserve supervisory functions are carried out through the Federal Reserve Banks.
· Increases Accountability at the New York Federal Reserve Bank: The president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank will be appointed by the President of the United States, with the advice and consent of the Senate. The New York Federal Reserve president is a permanent member of the Federal Open Market Committee, the Bank executes open market operations and is an important source of information on capital markets, and the Bank supervises many important bank holding companies. However, the president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank is currently chosen by the Bank’s directors, 6 of whom are elected by member banks in that district.
!@!@!@!@
Here is a summary of the The Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, the long-awaited financial reform overhaul that passed out of conference committee at 5:39 a.m this morning.
Both the House and Senate are expected to pass the conference report next week so that it is on President Obama’s desk by the July 4th recess.

Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection:
House conferees agreed to the Senate language that creates a bureau within the Federal Reserve to regulate consumer financial products like mortgages and credit cards. The bureau would also oversee payday lenders and check cashing businesses. Auto dealers and pawnbrokers are exempt from the bureau’s regulation even though the Department of Defense wanted auto dealers included because of past instances of exploiting members of the military. House members originally wanted this watchdog to be a freestanding agency.

The Power to Unwind:
The FDIC would have the authority to liquidate failing firms while the Treasury Department fronts the money to do so. There would also be a repayment plan so that taxpayers are guaranteed to get the money back.

Financial Stability Oversight Council:
The council would monitor systemic risk across the entire financial system and make recommendations to the Federal Reserve to alleviate that risk. The ten-member council would include the heads of the federal financial agencies.

Fannie/Freddie:
Republicans biggest beef with the whole bill is that it does nothing to address the problems, and sustainability, of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

No Resolution Fund:
The House wanted to create a $150 billion fund to pay for any future bailouts. The fund would be paid for by the banks. This provision was gutted. Conferees agreed that this could only be created after a massive collapse. This is the fund that Republicans successfully painted as a permanent bailout fund when Democrats in the Senate tried to include a similar, but only $50 billion, fund.
Volcker Rule:
Mostly prohibits banks from proprietary trading and investing in private equity firms or hedge funds. Conferees agreed to weaken this by allowing some stronger banks to invest up to three percent of their capital in private equity groups or hedge funds.

Derivatives:
One of the thorniest issues, and the final compromise that led to passage of the conference report, was whether, and how, to allow banks to trade derivatives. Under the agreement, banks would be forced to spinoff some derivative trades to a subsidiary so that they are not in the same pot as federally insured deposits. They would not be allowed to trade in some of the most risky derivatives. Banks could still trade some swaps to legitimately hedge risk. Most swaps would have to be cleared and traded on exchanges.

Credit Rating Agencies:
Credit rating agencies like Moody’s, Standard and Poor’s and Fitch took a lot of heat after the financial crisis for giving AAA ratings to some of the most toxic mortgage-backed securities. As lawmakers made an effort to understand what led to the 2008 financial crisis, they saw that an inherent conflict of interest since the agencies are paid by the companies for the ratings. Under the conference agreement, there will be a two-year study, but then the SEC must create a board that will assign credit ratings agencies to issuers of asset-backed securities. That’s unless the SEC study reveals a better way to eliminate the conflict of interest.

Credit/debit Card fees:
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) championed this provision that would regulate the $20 billion interchange fee system. It would require that the fees banks charge businesses for processing debit card transactions be “reasonable and proportional to the cost incurred in processing the transaction” according to Durbin’s summary of the provision. The Federal Reserve would be required to issue new rules on the fees.

Mortgages:
Lenders must verify that borrowers are able to repay the loans that they issue. Lenders would pay penalties for irresponsible lending.

Government Accountability Office Study of the Federal Reserve:
The GAO will be able to do a full audit of the Federal Reserve. This is still a major provision, but conferees did not accept the more strict language in the House bill that would require an audit every year.

Assessments:
Financial firms with over $50 billion in assets and hedge funds with over $10 billion have to pay a fee to pay for the costs of the bill.

New Consumer Protection Agency

A Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, an independent regulator housed within the Federal Reserve, would consolidate oversight of a wide variety of financial products, including mortgages, credit cards and payday loans. Responsibility for these areas is currently scattered across a variety of government agencies, and experts say that creating a single supervisor will help make financial products easier to understand and not take unfair advantage of borrowers.

“The creation of this consumer bureau is really important,” says Ellen Bloom, director of Federal Policy at Consumers Union. “Consumers have suffered plenty during this financial crisis and now they have an entity that’s watching out for them.”

Free Credit Scores

If you get turned down for a loan because of your credit score, or are offered an interest rate you deem too high, you would have the right to see the score your lender is working with, for free. Consumers Union’s Bloom says consumers may currently see their report, but don’t have access to their score. She adds this provision will help consumers understand whether their lenders’ concerns are legitimate.

Why does it matter? “Credit scores tell you how much you should be paying for a loan,” says CRL’s Calhoun. “It’s creates transparency.”

Stricter Morgtage Practices

A hodge podge of state regulations on mortgages will be brought under a national yardstick.
Among the changes: consumers with adjustable-rate mortgages and other complicated mortgage products would no longer have to pay pre-payment penalties if they want to pay off their mortgage early. Consumers currently pay penalties that make it more expensive – and sometimes impossible – for them to switch out of their loans if they feel they have been given a bad deal. Consumers say current practices stifle competition and give lenders an incentive to sell unfair ARMs.

In addition, the bill will prohibit brokers and bankers from earning bonuses based on the type of loan they sell, which would reduce the incentive to write higher-risk loans.

New Debit Card Rules

Merchants have complained for years that Visa and MasterCard’s rules about debit cards put them at a disadvantage. The reform would address many of these complaints, giving store owners a victory over card issuers, and to some extent over consumers.

Store owners would be allowed to set minimums on credit card transactions – up to $10 — which they are currently not allowed to do. For consumers, this likely means no more $1.50 packs of gum, which can cost the vendor more than $2 in swipe fees.

“Consumers may feel some sympathy on this issue, but if you take away their ability to use their cards anywhere, anytime, they’re not going to be happy,” says Gerri Detweiler, a credit advisor at Credit.com.

The bill would also allow the Federal Reserve to make sure that card issuers are charging “reasonable and proportional” fees, which is likely to bring down costs to store owners, and potentially could also reduce prices for consumers.

Tougher Auto Financing Rules

Some lawmakers had hoped to put auto lenders under the eye of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, but the agreement leaves them under the Federal Trade Commission. However, the FTC has been given more powers to “develop and enforce new rules to protect consumers from unfair and abusive auto financing transactions,” according to the Consumers Union.

Wall Street Reforms

A range of other, intricate financial regulations are meant to reform some of Wall Street’s aggressive business practices with the aim of preventing a repeat of the financial crisis.

One of the biggest changes involves the creation of an Office of Credit Ratings, which is meant to supervise rating agencies such as Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s, and prevent conflicts of interest that may sway credit ratings issued to companies. The bill also allows investors to sue credit agencies, according to the Consumers Union. The credit rating agencies attracted criticism during the crisis, for allegedly assigning positive ratings to risky investments.

Other big reforms involve stricter regulation of how CEOs are paid and forcing derivatives to be traded on public exchanges. Lax practices in those areas are widely blamed for the financial debacle of the past three years.

Join Emptysuit On Twitter

Click On Links:
Executive Order 13544, Socialized Health Care

Summary: Financial Regulatory Reform
Summary: Health Care Reform Bill H.R. 4872
The Jones Act And Gulf Oil Spill
New Patients Bill of Rights
Copenhagen Climate Treaty Summary
Health Care Insurance And Health Care Benefits
H.R. 3962 Summary
H.R. 3962 Tax Hikes

Saudi Arabia Oil

Join Emptysuit On Twitter

Click On Links:
The Jones Act And Gulf Oil Spill
Obama “Ass To Kick” Transcript
Obama’s Oval Office Address On Oil Spill Transcript
BP Removed Chief Executive Tony Hayward
Coast Guard Stop Crude-Sucking Barges
BP Chief Attends Yacht Race, Obama Plays Golf
Gulf Oil Spill Blame Game
Gulf Oil Killing Wildlife

Obama $77,051 Biggest Recipient Of BP Cash
Obama’s Oil Spill Spreads To Florida
New Orleans New Disaster, Obama’s Oil Spill

Obama Brush Aside Gulf Oil Spill, Leave It Up To BP
Underwater Footage: Gulf Of Mexico Oil Spill

New Patients Bill of Rights

A fly lands on President Barack Obama’s face as he delivers remarks on the Affordable Care Act and the New Patients Bill of Rights, Tuesday, June 22, 2010, in the East Room of the White House in Washington. Why are flies attracted to smelly places?

The White House today released this “Fact Sheet: The Affordable Care Act’s New Patient’s Bill of Rights,” the Obama administration’s summary of new regulations issued by the Department of Health and Human Services. The formatting is from the original version, as released by the administration.

A major goal of the Affordable Care Act – the health insurance reform legislation President Obama signed into law on March 23 – is to put American consumers back in charge of their health coverage and care. Insurance companies often leave patients without coverage when they need it the most, causing them to put off needed care, compromising their health and driving up the cost of care when they get it. Too often, insurance companies put insurance company bureaucrats between you and your doctor. The Affordable Care Act cracks down on the some of the most egregious practices of the insurance industry while providing the stability and the flexibility that families and businesses need to make the choices that work best for them.

Today, the Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Labor, and Treasury issued regulations to implement a new Patient’s Bill of Rights under the Affordable Care Act – which will help children (and eventually all Americans) with pre-existing conditions gain coverage and keep it, protect all Americans’ choice of doctors and end lifetime limits on the care consumers may receive. These new protections apply to nearly all health insurance plans.1

How These New Rules Will Help You

Stop insurance companies from limiting the care you need. For most plans starting on or after September 23, these rules stop insurance companies from imposing pre-existing condition exclusions on your children; prohibit insurers from rescinding or taking away your coverage based on an unintentional mistake on an application; ban insurers from setting lifetime limits on your coverage; and restrict their use of annual limits on coverage.

Remove insurance company barriers between you and your doctor. For plans starting on or after September 23, these rules ensure that you can choose the primary care doctor or pediatrician you want from your plan’s provider network, and that you can see an OB-GYN without needing a referral. Insurance companies will not be able to require you to get prior approval before seeking emergency care at a hospital outside your plan’s network. These protections apply to health plans that are not grandfathered.

Builds On Other Affordable Care Act Policies

These new protections complement other parts of the Affordable Care Act including:

– Reviewing Insurers’ Premium Increases. HHS recently offered States $51 million in grant funding to strengthen review of insurance premiums. Annual premium hikes can put insurance out of reach of many working families and small employers. These grants are a down-payment that enable States to act now on reviewing, disclosing, and preventing unreasonable rate hikes. Already, a number of States, including California, New York, Maine, Pennsylvania and others are moving forward to improve their oversight and require more transparency of insurance companies’ requests to raise rates.

– Getting the Most from Your Premium Dollars. Beginning in January, the Affordable Care Act requires individual and small group insurers to spend at least 80% and large group insurers to spend at least 85% of your premium dollars on direct medical care and efforts to improve the quality of care you receive – and rebate you the difference if they fall short. This will limit spending on overhead and salaries and bonuses paid to insurance company executives and provide new transparency into how your dollars are spent. Insurers will be required to publicly disclose their rates on a new national consumer website – HealthCare.gov.

– Keeping Young Adults Covered. Starting September 23, children under 26 will be allowed to stay on their parent’s family policy, or be added to it. Group health plans that are grandfathered plans can limit this option to adult children that don’t have another offer of employment-based coverage. Many insurance companies and employers have agreed to implement this program early, to avoid a gap in coverage for new college graduates and other young adults.

– Providing Affordable Coverage to Americans without Insurance due to Pre-existing Conditions: Starting July 1, Americans locked out of the insurance market because of a pre-existing condition can begin enrolling in the Pre-existing Condition Insurance Plan (PCIP). This program offers insurance without medical underwriting to people who have been unable to get it because of a preexisting condition. It ends in 2014, when the ban on insurers refusing to cover adults with pre-existing conditions goes into effect and individuals will have affordable choices through Exchanges – the same choices as members of Congress.

New Consumer Protections Starting As Early As This Fall

The new Patient’s Bill of Rights regulations detail a set of protections that apply to health coverage starting on or after September 23, 2010, six months after the enactment of the Affordable Care Act. They are:

– No Pre-Existing Condition Exclusions for Children Under Age 19. Each year, thousands of children who were either born with or develop a costly medical condition are denied coverage by insurers. Research has shown that, compared to those with insurance, children who are uninsured are less likely to get critical preventive care including immunizations and well-baby checkups. That leaves them twice as likely to miss school and at much greater risk of hospitalization for avoidable conditions.

- A Texas insurance company denied coverage for a baby born with a heart defect that required surgery. Friends and neighbors rallied around the family to raise the thousands of dollars needed to pay for the surgery and put pressure on the insurer to pay for the needed treatment. A week later the insurer backed off and covered the baby.2

The new regulations will prohibit insurance plans from denying coverage to children based on a pre-existing conditions. This ban includes both benefit limitations (e.g., an insurer or employer health plan refusing to pay for chemotherapy for a child with cancer because the child had the cancer before getting insurance) and outright coverage denials (e.g., when the insurer refuses to offer a policy to the family for the child because of the child’s pre-existing medical condition). These protections will apply to all types of insurance except for individual policies that are “grandfathered,” and will be extended to Americans of all ages starting in 2014.

– No Arbitrary Rescissions of Insurance Coverage. Right now, insurance companies are able to retroactively cancel your policy when you become sick, if you or your employer made an unintentional mistake on your paperwork.

- In Los Angeles, a woman undergoing chemotherapy had her coverage cancelled by an insurer who insisted her cancer existed before she bought coverage. She faced more than $129,000 in medical bills and was forced to stop chemotherapy for several months after her insurance was rescinded.3

Under the regulations, insurers and plans will be prohibited from rescinding coverage – for individuals or groups of people – except in cases involving fraud or an intentional misrepresentation of material facts. Insurers and plans seeking to rescind coverage must provide at least 30 days advance notice to give people time to appeal. There are no exceptions to this policy.

– No Lifetime Limits on Coverage. Millions of Americans who suffer from costly medical conditions are in danger of having their health insurance coverage vanish when the costs of their treatment hit lifetime limits set by their insurers and plans. These limits can cause the loss of coverage at the very moment when patients need it most. Over 100 million Americans have health coverage that imposes such lifetime limits.

- A teenager was diagnosed with an aggressive form of leukemia requiring chemotherapy and a stay in the intensive care unit. He reached his family’s plan’s $1 million lifetime limit in less than a year. His parents had to turn to the public for help when the hospital informed them it needed either $600,000 in certified insurance or a $500,000 deposit to perform the bone marrow transplant he needed.4

The regulation released today prohibits the use of lifetime limits in all health plans and insurance policies issued or renewed on or after September 23, 2010.

– Restricted Annual Dollar Limits on Coverage. Even more aggressive than lifetime limits are annual dollar limits on what an insurance company will pay for health care. Annual dollar limits are less common than lifetime limits, involving 8 percent of large employer plans, 14 percent of small employer plans, and 19 percent of individual market plans. But for people with medical costs that hit these limits, the consequences can be devastating.

- One study found that 10 percent of cancer patients reached a limit of what insurance would pay for treatment – and a quarter of families of cancer patients used up all or most of their savings on treatment.5

The rules will phase out the use of annual dollar limits over the next three years until 2014 when the Affordable Care Act bans them for most plans. Plans issued or renewed beginning September 23, 2010, will be allowed to set annual limits no lower than $750,000. This minimum limit will be raised to $1.25 million beginning September 23, 2011, and to $2 million beginning on September 23, 2012. These limits apply to all employer plans and all new individual market plans. For plans issued or renewed beginning January 1, 2014, all annual dollar limits on coverage of essential health benefits will be prohibited.

Employers and insurers that want to delay complying with these rules will have to win permission from the Federal government by demonstrating that their current annual limits are necessary to prevent a significant loss of coverage or increase in premiums. Limited benefit insurance plans – which are often used by employers to provide benefits to part-time workers — are examples of insurers that might seek this kind of delay. These restricted annual dollar limits apply to all insurance plans except for individual market plans that are grandfathered.

– Protecting Your Choice of Doctors. Being able to choose and keep your doctor is a key principle of the Affordable Care Act, and one that is highly valued by Americans. People who have a regular primary care provider are more than twice as likely to receive recommended preventive care; are less likely to be hospitalized; are more satisfied with the health care system, and have lower costs. Yet, insurance companies don’t always make it easy to see the provider you choose. One survey found that three-fourths of OB-GYNs reported that patients needed to return to their primary care physicians for permission to get follow-up care.

The new rules make clear that health plan members are free to designate any available participating primary care provider as their provider. The rules allow parents to choose any available participating pediatrician to be their children’s primary care provider. And, they prohibit insurers and employer plans from requiring a referral for obstetrical or gynecological (OB-GYN) care. All of these provisions will improve people’s access to needed preventive and routine care, which has been shown to improve the health of those treated and avoid unnecessary health care costs. These policies apply to all individual market and group health insurance plans except those that are grandfathered.

– Removing Insurance Company Barriers to Emergency Department Services. Some insurers will only pay for health care provided by a limited number or network of providers – including emergency health care. Others require prior approval before receiving emergency care at hospitals outside of their networks. This could mean financial hardship if you get sick or injured when you are away from home or not near a network hospital.

The new rules make emergency services more accessible to consumers. Health plans and insurers will not be able to charge higher cost-sharing (copayments or coinsurance) for emergency services that are obtained out of a plan’s network. The rules also set requirements on how health plans should reimburse out-of-network providers. This policy applies to all individual market and group health plans except those that are grandfathered.

Benefits of Consumer Protections

The new rules will bring immediate relief to many Americans and provide peace of mind to millions more who are only one illness or accident away from medical and financial chaos. The new ban on lifetime limits would affect group premiums by 0.5% or less and individual market premiums by 0.75% or less. The restricted annual limit policy would affect group and individual markets by roughly 0.1% or less (grandfathered individual market plans are exempt). And, the prohibition of preexisting conditions exclusions for children would affect group health plans by just a few hundredths of a percent. For new plans in the individual market, this impact would be roughly 0.5% in many states. In states with community rating, (roughly twenty states), the impact could be up to 1.0%. These costs are before taking into account benefits.

In addition, the rules will achieve greater cost savings by:

– Reducing the “hidden tax” on insured Americans: By making sure insurance covers people who are most at risk, there will be less uncompensated care and the amount of cost shifting among those who have coverage today will be reduced by up to $1 billion in 2013.

– Improving Americans’ health: By making sure that high-risk individuals have insurance, the rules will reduce premature deaths.6 Insured children are less likely to experience avoidable hospital stays than uninsured children7 and, when hospitalized, insured children are at less risk of dying.8

– Protecting Americans’ savings: High medical costs contribute to some degree to about half of the more than 500,000 personal bankruptcies in the U.S. in 2007.9 These costs borne by individuals might be assumed by insurance companies once rescissions are banned, annual limits are restricted, lifetime limits are prohibited, and most children have access to health insurance without pre-existing condition exclusions.

– Enhancing workers’ productivity: Making sure that kids with health problems have coverage will reduce the number of days parents have to take off from work to care for family members. Parents will also be freed from “job lock,” which occurs when people are afraid to take a better job because they might lose coverage for themselves or their families.10

1 Limits on pre-existing conditions and annual limits will not apply to existing “grandfathered” plans offering individual coverage. For details, see the Fact Sheet and interim final regulations released on the topic on June 14.

2 Jarvis, Jan, “Under Fire, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas Offers to Cover Medical Expenses for Crowley Baby,” Houston Star-Telegram, (March 31, 2010).

3 Girion, Lisa “Health Net Ordered to Pay $9 million after Canceling Cancer Patient’s Policy,” Los Angeles Times (2008), available at: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-insure23feb23,1,5039339.story.

4 Murphy, Tom. “Patients struggle with lifetime health insurance benefit caps,” Los Angeles Times, July 2008.

5 See “National Survey of Households Affected by Cancer.” (2006) accessed at http://www.kff.org/kaiserpolls/upload/7591.pdf

6 See, for example, Almond, Doyle, Kowalski, Williams (2010), Doyle (2005), and Currie and Gruber (1996).

7 Keane, Christopher et al. “The Impact of Children’s Health Insurance Program by Age.” Pediatrics 104:5 (1999), available at: http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/reprint/104/5/1051.

8 Bernstein, Jill et al. “How Does Insurance Coverage Improve Health Outcomes?” Mathematica Policy Research (2010), available: http://www.mathematica-mpr.com/publications/PDFs/Health/Reformhealthcare_IB1.pdf

9 David Himmelstein et al, 2009.

10 Gruber, J. and B. Madrian. “Health Insurance, Labor Supply, and Job Mobility: A Critical Review of the Literature.” (2001).

Join Emptysuit On Twitter

Click On Links:
Executive Order 13544, Socialized Health Care
Summary: Health Care Reform Bill H.R. 4872
Health Care Bill Mystery

Obama Admits He Does Not Know What’s In The Health Care Bill

Easy As Taking Cells From An Embryo
Obama Executive Order On Abortion Funding
Health Care Insurance And Health Care Benefits
Obama Forcing His View Of Health Care On America
Summary Of Obama’s Proposal For Health Care Reform
H.R. 3962 Summary
Affordable Health Care For America Act “H.R. 3962″
Obama’s Health Care, A Bad Idea
H.R. 3962 Tax Hikes
The Votes On H.R.3962
Obama Health Reform Lies
US Voters Want Congress To Drop Health
About Emptysuit
Your Opinion

Gen. Stanley McChrystal Article In Rolling Stone

This article appears in RS 1108/1109 from July 8-22, 2010, on newsstands Friday, June 25.

‘How’d I get screwed into going to this dinner?” demands Gen. Stanley McChrystal. It’s a Thursday night in mid-April, and the commander of all U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan is sitting in a four-star suite at the Hôtel Westminster in Paris. He’s in France to sell his new war strategy to our NATO allies – to keep up the fiction, in essence, that we actually have allies. Since McChrystal took over a year ago, the Afghan war has become the exclusive property of the United States. Opposition to the war has already toppled the Dutch government, forced the resignation of Germany’s president and sparked both Canada and the Netherlands to announce the withdrawal of their 4,500 troops. McChrystal is in Paris to keep the French, who have lost more than 40 soldiers in Afghanistan, from going all wobbly on him.

“The dinner comes with the position, sir,” says his chief of staff, Col. Charlie Flynn.

McChrystal turns sharply in his chair.

“Hey, Charlie,” he asks, “does this come with the position?”

McChrystal gives him the middle finger.

On the ground with the Runaway General: Photos of Stanley McChrystal at work.

The general stands and looks around the suite that his traveling staff of 10 has converted into a full-scale operations center. The tables are crowded with silver Panasonic Toughbooks, and blue cables crisscross the hotel’s thick carpet, hooked up to satellite dishes to provide encrypted phone and e-mail communications. Dressed in off-the-rack civilian casual – blue tie, button-down shirt, dress slacks – McChrystal is way out of his comfort zone. Paris, as one of his advisers says, is the “most anti-McChrystal city you can imagine.” The general hates fancy restaurants, rejecting any place with candles on the tables as too “Gucci.” He prefers Bud Light Lime (his favorite beer) to Bordeaux,
Talladega Nights

(his favorite movie) to Jean-Luc Godard. Besides, the public eye has never been a place where McChrystal felt comfortable: Before President Obama put him in charge of the war in Afghanistan, he spent five years running the Pentagon’s most secretive black ops.

The Spill, The Scandal and the President: How Obama let BP get away with murder.

“What’s the update on the Kandahar bombing?” McChrystal asks Flynn. The city has been rocked by two massive car bombs in the past day alone, calling into question the general’s assurances that he can wrest it from the Taliban.

“We have two KIAs, but that hasn’t been confirmed,” Flynn says.

McChrystal takes a final look around the suite. At 55, he is gaunt and lean, not unlike an older version of Christian Bale in Rescue Dawn. His slate-blue eyes have the unsettling ability to drill down when they lock on you. If you’ve fucked up or disappointed him, they can destroy your soul without the need for him to raise his voice.

Looting Main Street: Matt Taibbi on how the nation’s biggest banks are ripping off American cities.

“I’d rather have my ass kicked by a roomful of people than go out to this dinner,” McChrystal says.

He pauses a beat.

“Unfortunately,” he adds, “no one in this room could do it.”

With that, he’s out the door.

“Who’s he going to dinner with?” I ask one of his aides.

“Some French minister,” the aide tells me. “It’s fucking gay.”

Get more Rolling Stone political coverage.

The next morning, McChrystal and his team gather to prepare for a speech he is giving at the École Militaire, a French military academy. The general prides himself on being sharper and ballsier than anyone else, but his brashness comes with a price: Although McChrystal has been in charge of the war for only a year, in that short time he has managed to piss off almost everyone with a stake in the conflict. Last fall, during the question-and-answer session following a speech he gave in London, McChrystal dismissed the counterterrorism strategy being advocated by Vice President Joe Biden as “shortsighted,” saying it would lead to a state of “Chaos-istan.” The remarks earned him a smackdown from the president himself, who summoned the general to a terse private meeting aboard Air Force One. The message to McChrystal seemed clear: Shut the fuck up, and keep a lower profile

Now, flipping through printout cards of his speech in Paris, McChrystal wonders aloud what Biden question he might get today, and how he should respond. “I never know what’s going to pop out until I’m up there, that’s the problem,” he says. Then, unable to help themselves, he and his staff imagine the general dismissing the vice president with a good one-liner.

“Are you asking about Vice President Biden?” McChrystal says with a laugh. “Who’s that?”

“Biden?” suggests a top adviser. “Did you say: Bite Me?”

When Barack Obama entered the Oval Office, he immediately set out to deliver on his most important campaign promise on foreign policy: to refocus the war in Afghanistan on what led us to invade in the first place. “I want the American people to understand,” he announced in March 2009. “We have a clear and focused goal: to disrupt, dismantle and defeat Al Qaeda in Pakistan and Afghanistan.” He ordered another 21,000 troops to Kabul, the largest increase since the war began in 2001. Taking the advice of both the Pentagon and the Joint Chiefs of Staff, he also fired Gen. David McKiernan – then the U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan – and replaced him with a man he didn’t know and had met only briefly: Gen. Stanley McChrystal. It was the first time a top general had been relieved from duty during wartime in more than 50 years, since Harry Truman fired Gen. Douglas MacArthur at the height of the Korean War.

Even though he had voted for Obama, McChrystal and his new commander in chief failed from the outset to connect. The general first encountered Obama a week after he took office, when the president met with a dozen senior military officials in a room at the Pentagon known as the Tank. According to sources familiar with the meeting, McChrystal thought Obama looked “uncomfortable and intimidated” by the roomful of military brass. Their first one-on-one meeting took place in the Oval Office four months later, after McChrystal got the Afghanistan job, and it didn’t go much better. “It was a 10-minute photo op,” says an adviser to McChrystal. “Obama clearly didn’t know anything about him, who he was. Here’s the guy who’s going to run his fucking war, but he didn’t seem very engaged. The Boss was pretty disappointed.”

From the start, McChrystal was determined to place his personal stamp on Afghanistan, to use it as a laboratory for a controversial military strategy known as counterinsurgency. COIN, as the theory is known, is the new gospel of the Pentagon brass, a doctrine that attempts to square the military’s preference for high-tech violence with the demands of fighting protracted wars in failed states. COIN calls for sending huge numbers of ground troops to not only destroy the enemy, but to live among the civilian population and slowly rebuild, or build from scratch, another nation’s government – a process that even its staunchest advocates admit requires years, if not decades, to achieve. The theory essentially rebrands the military, expanding its authority (and its funding) to encompass the diplomatic and political sides of warfare: Think the Green Berets as an armed Peace Corps. In 2006, after Gen. David Petraeus beta-tested the theory during his “surge” in Iraq, it quickly gained a hardcore following of think-tankers, journalists, military officers and civilian officials. Nicknamed “COINdinistas” for their cultish zeal, this influential cadre believed the doctrine would be the perfect solution for Afghanistan. All they needed was a general with enough charisma and political savvy to implement it.

As McChrystal leaned on Obama to ramp up the war, he did it with the same fearlessness he used to track down terrorists in Iraq: Figure out how your enemy operates, be faster and more ruthless than everybody else, then take the fuckers out. After arriving in Afghanistan last June, the general conducted his own policy review, ordered up by Defense Secretary Robert Gates. The now-infamous report was leaked to the press, and its conclusion was dire: If we didn’t send another 40,000 troops – swelling the number of U.S. forces in Afghanistan by nearly half – we were in danger of “mission failure.” The White House was furious. McChrystal, they felt, was trying to bully Obama, opening him up to charges of being weak on national security unless he did what the general wanted. It was Obama versus the Pentagon, and the Pentagon was determined to kick the president’s ass.
Last fall, with his top general calling for more troops, Obama launched a three-month review to re-evaluate the strategy in Afghanistan. “I found that time painful,” McChrystal tells me in one of several lengthy interviews. “I was selling an unsellable position.” For the general, it was a crash course in Beltway politics – a battle that pitted him against experienced Washington insiders like Vice President Biden, who argued that a prolonged counterinsurgency campaign in Afghanistan would plunge America into a military quagmire without weakening international terrorist networks. “The entire COIN strategy is a fraud perpetuated on the American people,” says Douglas Macgregor, a retired colonel and leading critic of counterinsurgency who attended West Point with McChrystal. “The idea that we are going to spend a trillion dollars to reshape the culture of the Islamic world is utter nonsense.

In the end, however, McChrystal got almost exactly what he wanted. On December 1st, in a speech at West Point, the president laid out all the reasons why fighting the war in Afghanistan is a bad idea: It’s expensive; we’re in an economic crisis; a decade-long commitment would sap American power; Al Qaeda has shifted its base of operations to Pakistan. Then, without ever using the words “victory” or “win,” Obama announced that he would send an additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan, almost as many as McChrystal had requested. The president had thrown his weight, however hesitantly, behind the counterinsurgency crowd.

Today, as McChrystal gears up for an offensive in southern Afghanistan, the prospects for any kind of success look bleak. In June, the death toll for U.S. troops passed 1,000, and the number of IEDs has doubled. Spending hundreds of billions of dollars on the fifth-poorest country on earth has failed to win over the civilian population, whose attitude toward U.S. troops ranges from intensely wary to openly hostile. The biggest military operation of the year – a ferocious offensive that began in February to retake the southern town of Marja – continues to drag on, prompting McChrystal himself to refer to it as a “bleeding ulcer.” In June, Afghanistan officially outpaced Vietnam as the longest war in American history – and Obama has quietly begun to back away from the deadline he set for withdrawing U.S. troops in July of next year. The president finds himself stuck in something even more insane than a quagmire: a quagmire he knowingly walked into, even though it’s precisely the kind of gigantic, mind-numbing, multigenerational nation-building project he explicitly said he didn’t want.

Even those who support McChrystal and his strategy of counterinsurgency know that whatever the general manages to accomplish in Afghanistan, it’s going to look more like Vietnam than Desert Storm. “It’s not going to look like a win, smell like a win or taste like a win,” says Maj. Gen. Bill Mayville, who serves as chief of operations for McChrystal. “This is going to end in an argument.”

The night after his speech in Paris, McChrystal and his staff head to Kitty O’Shea’s, an Irish pub catering to tourists, around the corner from the hotel. His wife, Annie, has joined him for a rare visit: Since the Iraq War began in 2003, she has seen her husband less than 30 days a year. Though it is his and Annie’s 33rd wedding anniversary, McChrystal has invited his inner circle along for dinner and drinks at the “least Gucci” place his staff could find. His wife isn’t surprised. “He once took me to a Jack in the Box when I was dressed in formalwear,” she says with a laugh.

The general’s staff is a handpicked collection of killers, spies, geniuses, patriots, political operators and outright maniacs. There’s a former head of British Special Forces, two Navy Seals, an Afghan Special Forces commando, a lawyer, two fighter pilots and at least two dozen combat veterans and counterinsurgency experts. They jokingly refer to themselves as Team America, taking the name from the South Park-esque sendup of military cluelessness, and they pride themselves on their can-do attitude and their disdain for authority. After arriving in Kabul last summer, Team America set about changing the culture of the International Security Assistance Force, as the NATO-led mission is known. (U.S. soldiers had taken to deriding ISAF as short for “I Suck at Fighting” or “In Sandals and Flip-Flops.”) McChrystal banned alcohol on base, kicked out Burger King and other symbols of American excess, expanded the morning briefing to include thousands of officers and refashioned the command center into a Situational Awareness Room, a free-flowing information hub modeled after Mayor Mike Bloomberg’s offices in New York. He also set a manic pace for his staff, becoming legendary for sleeping four hours a night, running seven miles each morning, and eating one meal a day. (In the month I spend around the general, I witness him eating only once.) It’s a kind of superhuman narrative that has built up around him, a staple in almost every media profile, as if the ability to go without sleep and food translates into the possibility of a man single-handedly winning the war.

By midnight at Kitty O’Shea’s, much of Team America is completely shitfaced. Two officers do an Irish jig mixed with steps from a traditional Afghan wedding dance, while McChrystal’s top advisers lock arms and sing a slurred song of their own invention. “Afghanistan!” they bellow. “Afghanistan!” They call it their Afghanistan song.

McChrystal steps away from the circle, observing his team. “All these men,” he tells me. “I’d die for them. And they’d die for me.”

The assembled men may look and sound like a bunch of combat veterans letting off steam, but in fact this tight-knit group represents the most powerful force shaping U.S. policy in Afghanistan. While McChrystal and his men are in indisputable command of all military aspects of the war, there is no equivalent position on the diplomatic or political side. Instead, an assortment of administration players compete over the Afghan portfolio: U.S. Ambassador Karl Eikenberry, Special Representative to Afghanistan Richard Holbrooke, National Security Advisor Jim Jones and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, not to mention 40 or so other coalition ambassadors and a host of talking heads who try to insert themselves into the mess, from John Kerry to John McCain. This diplomatic incoherence has effectively allowed McChrystal’s team to call the shots and hampered efforts to build a stable and credible government in Afghanistan. “It jeopardizes the mission,” says Stephen Biddle, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations who supports McChrystal. “The military cannot by itself create governance reform.”

Part of the problem is structural: The Defense Department budget exceeds $600 billion a year, while the State Department receives only $50 billion. But part of the problem is personal: In private, Team McChrystal likes to talk shit about many of Obama’s top people on the diplomatic side. One aide calls Jim Jones, a retired four-star general and veteran of the Cold War, a “clown” who remains “stuck in 1985.” Politicians like McCain and Kerry, says another aide, “turn up, have a meeting with Karzai, criticize him at the airport press conference, then get back for the Sunday talk shows. Frankly, it’s not very helpful.” Only Hillary Clinton receives good reviews from McChrystal’s inner circle. “Hillary had Stan’s back during the strategic review,” says an adviser. “She said, ‘If Stan wants it, give him what he needs.’ ”

McChrystal reserves special skepticism for Holbrooke, the official in charge of reintegrating the Taliban. “The Boss says he’s like a wounded animal,” says a member of the general’s team. “Holbrooke keeps hearing rumors that he’s going to get fired, so that makes him dangerous. He’s a brilliant guy, but he just comes in, pulls on a lever, whatever he can grasp onto. But this is COIN, and you can’t just have someone yanking on shit.”

At one point on his trip to Paris, McChrystal checks his BlackBerry. “Oh, not another e-mail from Holbrooke,” he groans. “I don’t even want to open it.” He clicks on the message and reads the salutation out loud, then stuffs the BlackBerry back in his pocket, not bothering to conceal his annoyance.
“Make sure you don’t get any of that on your leg,” an aide jokes, referring to the e-mail.
By far the most crucial – and strained – relationship is between McChrystal and Eikenberry, the U.S. ambassador. According to those close to the two men, Eikenberry – a retired three-star general who served in Afghanistan in 2002 and 2005 – can’t stand that his former subordinate is now calling the shots. He’s also furious that McChrystal, backed by NATO’s allies, refused to put Eikenberry in the pivotal role of viceroy in Afghanistan, which would have made him the diplomatic equivalent of the general. The job instead went to British Ambassador Mark Sedwill – a move that effectively increased McChrystal’s influence over diplomacy by shutting out a powerful rival. “In reality, that position needs to be filled by an American for it to have weight,” says a U.S. official familiar with the negotiations.

The relationship was further strained in January, when a classified cable that Eikenberry wrote was leaked to The New York Times. The cable was as scathing as it was prescient. The ambassador offered a brutal critique of McChrystal’s strategy, dismissed President Hamid Karzai as “not an adequate strategic partner,” and cast doubt on whether the counterinsurgency plan would be “sufficient” to deal with Al Qaeda. “We will become more deeply engaged here with no way to extricate ourselves,” Eikenberry warned, “short of allowing the country to descend again into lawlessness and chaos.”
McChrystal and his team were blindsided by the cable. “I like Karl, I’ve known him for years, but they’d never said anything like that to us before,” says McChrystal, who adds that he felt “betrayed” by the leak. “Here’s one that covers his flank for the history books. Now if we fail, they can say, ‘I told you so.’ ”
The most striking example of McChrystal’s usurpation of diplomatic policy is his handling of Karzai. It is McChrystal, not diplomats like Eikenberry or Holbrooke, who enjoys the best relationship with the man America is relying on to lead Afghanistan. The doctrine of counterinsurgency requires a credible government, and since Karzai is not considered credible by his own people, McChrystal has worked hard to make him so. Over the past few months, he has accompanied the president on more than 10 trips around the country, standing beside him at political meetings, or shuras, in Kandahar. In February, the day before the doomed offensive in Marja, McChrystal even drove over to the president’s palace to get him to sign off on what would be the largest military operation of the year. Karzai’s staff, however, insisted that the president was sleeping off a cold and could not be disturbed. After several hours of haggling, McChrystal finally enlisted the aid of Afghanistan’s defense minister, who persuaded Karzai’s people to wake the president from his nap.
This is one of the central flaws with McChrystal’s counterinsurgency strategy: The need to build a credible government puts us at the mercy of whatever tin-pot leader we’ve backed – a danger that Eikenberry explicitly warned about in his cable. Even Team McChrystal privately acknowledges that Karzai is a less-than-ideal partner. “He’s been locked up in his palace the past year,” laments one of the general’s top advisers. At times, Karzai himself has actively undermined McChrystal’s desire to put him in charge. During a recent visit to Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Karzai met three U.S. soldiers who had been wounded in Uruzgan province. “General,” he called out to McChrystal, “I didn’t even know we were fighting in Uruzgan!”
Growing up as a military brat, McChrystal exhibited the mixture of brilliance and cockiness that would follow him throughout his career. His father fought in Korea and Vietnam, retiring as a two-star general, and his four brothers all joined the armed services. Moving around to different bases, McChrystal took solace in baseball, a sport in which he made no pretense of hiding his superiority: In Little League, he would call out strikes to the crowd before whipping a fastball down the middle.
McChrystal entered West Point in 1972, when the U.S. military was close to its all-time low in popularity. His class was the last to graduate before the academy started to admit women. The “Prison on the Hudson,” as it was known then, was a potent mix of testosterone, hooliganism and reactionary patriotism. Cadets repeatedly trashed the mess hall in food fights, and birthdays were celebrated with a tradition called “rat fucking,” which often left the birthday boy outside in the snow or mud, covered in shaving cream. “It was pretty out of control,” says Lt. Gen. David Barno, a classmate who went on to serve as the top commander in Afghanistan from 2003 to 2005. The class, filled with what Barno calls “huge talent” and “wild-eyed teenagers with a strong sense of idealism,” also produced Gen. Ray Odierno, the current commander of U.S. forces in Iraq.
The son of a general, McChrystal was also a ringleader of the campus dissidents – a dual role that taught him how to thrive in a rigid, top-down environment while thumbing his nose at authority every chance he got. He accumulated more than 100 hours of demerits for drinking, partying and insubordination – a record that his classmates boasted made him a “century man.” One classmate, who asked not to be named, recalls finding McChrystal passed out in the shower after downing a case of beer he had hidden under the sink. The troublemaking almost got him kicked out, and he spent hours subjected to forced marches in the Area, a paved courtyard where unruly cadets were disciplined. “I’d come visit, and I’d end up spending most of my time in the library, while Stan was in the Area,” recalls Annie, who began dating McChrystal in 1973.
McChrystal wound up ranking 298 out of a class of 855, a serious underachievement for a man widely regarded as brilliant. His most compelling work was extracurricular: As managing editor of The Pointer, the West Point literary magazine, McChrystal wrote seven short stories that eerily foreshadow many of the issues he would confront in his career. In one tale, a fictional officer complains about the difficulty of training foreign troops to fight; in another, a 19-year-old soldier kills a boy he mistakes for a terrorist. In “Brinkman’s Note,” a piece of suspense fiction, the unnamed narrator appears to be trying to stop a plot to assassinate the president. It turns out, however, that the narrator himself is the assassin, and he’s able to infiltrate the White House: “The President strode in smiling. From the right coat pocket of the raincoat I carried, I slowly drew forth my 32-caliber pistol. In Brinkman’s failure, I had succeeded.”
After graduation, 2nd Lt. Stanley McChrystal entered an Army that was all but broken in the wake of Vietnam. “We really felt we were a peacetime generation,” he recalls. “There was the Gulf War, but even that didn’t feel like that big of a deal.” So McChrystal spent his career where the action was: He enrolled in Special Forces school and became a regimental commander of the 3rd Ranger Battalion in 1986. It was a dangerous position, even in peacetime – nearly two dozen Rangers were killed in training accidents during the Eighties. It was also an unorthodox career path: Most soldiers who want to climb the ranks to general don’t go into the Rangers. Displaying a penchant for transforming systems he considers outdated, McChrystal set out to revolutionize the training regime for the Rangers. He introduced mixed martial arts, required every soldier to qualify with night-vision goggles on the rifle range and forced troops to build up their endurance with weekly marches involving heavy backpacks.
In the late 1990s, McChrystal shrewdly improved his inside game, spending a year at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and then at the Council on Foreign Relations, where he co-authored a treatise on the merits and drawbacks of humanitarian interventionism. But as he moved up through the ranks, McChrystal relied on the skills he had learned as a troublemaking kid at West Point: knowing precisely how far he could go in a rigid military hierarchy without getting tossed out. Being a highly intelligent badass, he discovered, could take you far – especially in the political chaos that followed September 11th. “He was very focused,” says Annie. “Even as a young officer he seemed to know what he wanted to do. I don’t think his personality has changed in all these years.”

By some accounts, McChrystal’s career should have been over at least two times by now. As Pentagon spokesman during the invasion of Iraq, the general seemed more like a White House mouthpiece than an up-and-coming commander with a reputation for speaking his mind. When Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld made his infamous “stuff happens” remark during the looting of Baghdad, McChrystal backed him up. A few days later, he echoed the president’s Mission Accomplished gaffe by insisting that major combat operations in Iraq were over. But it was during his next stint – overseeing the military’s most elite units, including the Rangers, Navy Seals and Delta Force – that McChrystal took part in a cover-up that would have destroyed the career of a lesser man.

After Cpl. Pat Tillman, the former-NFL-star-turned-Ranger, was accidentally killed by his own troops in Afghanistan in April 2004, McChrystal took an active role in creating the impression that Tillman had died at the hands of Taliban fighters. He signed off on a falsified recommendation for a Silver Star that suggested Tillman had been killed by enemy fire. (McChrystal would later claim he didn’t read the recommendation closely enough – a strange excuse for a commander known for his laserlike attention to minute details.) A week later, McChrystal sent a memo up the chain of command, specifically warning that President Bush should avoid mentioning the cause of Tillman’s death. “If the circumstances of Corporal Tillman’s death become public,” he wrote, it could cause “public embarrassment” for the president.
“The false narrative, which McChrystal clearly helped construct, diminished Pat’s true actions,” wrote Tillman’s mother, Mary, in her book Boots on the Ground by Dusk. McChrystal got away with it, she added, because he was the “golden boy” of Rumsfeld and Bush, who loved his willingness to get things done, even if it included bending the rules or skipping the chain of command. Nine days after Tillman’s death, McChrystal was promoted to major general.
Two years later, in 2006, McChrystal was tainted by a scandal involving detainee abuse and torture at Camp Nama in Iraq. According to a report by Human Rights Watch, prisoners at the camp were subjected to a now-familiar litany of abuse: stress positions, being dragged naked through the mud. McChrystal was not disciplined in the scandal, even though an interrogator at the camp reported seeing him inspect the prison multiple times. But the experience was so unsettling to McChrystal that he tried to prevent detainee operations from being placed under his command in Afghanistan, viewing them as a “political swamp,” according to a U.S. official. In May 2009, as McChrystal prepared for his confirmation hearings, his staff prepared him for hard questions about Camp Nama and the Tillman cover-up. But the scandals barely made a ripple in Congress, and McChrystal was soon on his way back to Kabul to run the war in Afghanistan.
The media, to a large extent, have also given McChrystal a pass on both controversies. Where Gen. Petraeus is kind of a dweeb, a teacher’s pet with a Ranger’s tab, McChrystal is a snake-eating rebel, a “Jedi” commander, as Newsweek called him. He didn’t care when his teenage son came home with blue hair and a mohawk. He speaks his mind with a candor rare for a high-ranking official. He asks for opinions, and seems genuinely interested in the response. He gets briefings on his iPod and listens to books on tape. He carries a custom-made set of nunchucks in his convoy engraved with his name and four stars, and his itinerary often bears a fresh quote from Bruce Lee. (“There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them.”) He went out on dozens of nighttime raids during his time in Iraq, unprecedented for a top commander, and turned up on missions unannounced, with almost no entourage. “The fucking lads love Stan McChrystal,” says a British officer who serves in Kabul. “You’d be out in Somewhere, Iraq, and someone would take a knee beside you, and a corporal would be like ‘Who the fuck is that?’ And it’s fucking Stan McChrystal.”

It doesn’t hurt that McChrystal was also extremely successful as head of the Joint Special Operations Command, the elite forces that carry out the government’s darkest ops. During the Iraq surge, his team killed and captured thousands of insurgents, including Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq. “JSOC was a killing machine,” says Maj. Gen. Mayville, his chief of operations. McChrystal was also open to new ways of killing. He systematically mapped out terrorist networks, targeting specific insurgents and hunting them down – often with the help of cyberfreaks traditionally shunned by the military. “The Boss would find the 24-year-old kid with a nose ring, with some fucking brilliant degree from MIT, sitting in the corner with 16 computer monitors humming,” says a Special Forces commando who worked with McChrystal in Iraq and now serves on his staff in Kabul. “He’d say, ‘Hey – you fucking muscleheads couldn’t find lunch without help. You got to work together with these guys.’ ”
Even in his new role as America’s leading evangelist for counterinsurgency, McChrystal retains the deep-seated instincts of a terrorist hunter. To put pressure on the Taliban, he has upped the number of Special Forces units in Afghanistan from four to 19. “You better be out there hitting four or five targets tonight,” McChrystal will tell a Navy Seal he sees in the hallway at headquarters. Then he’ll add, “I’m going to have to scold you in the morning for it, though.” In fact, the general frequently finds himself apologizing for the disastrous consequences of counterinsurgency. In the first four months of this year, NATO forces killed some 90 civilians, up 76 percent from the same period in 2009 – a record that has created tremendous resentment among the very population that COIN theory is intent on winning over. In February, a Special Forces night raid ended in the deaths of two pregnant Afghan women and allegations of a cover-up, and in April, protests erupted in Kandahar after U.S. forces accidentally shot up a bus, killing five Afghans. “We’ve shot an amazing number of people,” McChrystal recently conceded.
Despite the tragedies and miscues, McChrystal has issued some of the strictest directives to avoid civilian casualties that the U.S. military has ever encountered in a war zone. It’s “insurgent math,” as he calls it – for every innocent person you kill, you create 10 new enemies. He has ordered convoys to curtail their reckless driving, put restrictions on the use of air power and severely limited night raids. He regularly apologizes to Hamid Karzai when civilians are killed, and berates commanders responsible for civilian deaths. “For a while,” says one U.S. official, “the most dangerous place to be in Afghanistan was in front of McChrystal after a ‘civ cas’ incident.” The ISAF command has even discussed ways to make not killing into something you can win an award for: There’s talk of creating a new medal for “courageous restraint,” a buzzword that’s unlikely to gain much traction in the gung-ho culture of the U.S. military.
But however strategic they may be, McChrystal’s new marching orders have caused an intense backlash among his own troops. Being told to hold their fire, soldiers complain, puts them in greater danger. “Bottom line?” says a former Special Forces operator who has spent years in Iraq and Afghanistan. “I would love to kick McChrystal in the nuts. His rules of engagement put soldiers’ lives in even greater danger. Every real soldier will tell you the same thing.”
In March, McChrystal traveled to Combat Outpost JFM – a small encampment on the outskirts of Kandahar – to confront such accusations from the troops directly. It was a typically bold move by the general. Only two days earlier, he had received an e-mail from Israel Arroyo, a 25-year-old staff sergeant who asked McChrystal to go on a mission with his unit. “I am writing because it was said you don’t care about the troops and have made it harder to defend ourselves,” Arroyo wrote.
Within hours, McChrystal responded personally: “I’m saddened by the accusation that I don’t care about soldiers, as it is something I suspect any soldier takes both personally and professionally – at least I do. But I know perceptions depend upon your perspective at the time, and I respect that every soldier’s view is his own.” Then he showed up at Arroyo’s outpost and went on a foot patrol with the troops – not some bullshit photo-op stroll through a market, but a real live operation in a dangerous war zone.
Six weeks later, just before McChrystal returned from Paris, the general received another e-mail from Arroyo. A 23-year-old corporal named Michael Ingram – one of the soldiers McChrystal had gone on patrol with – had been killed by an IED a day earlier. It was the third man the 25-member platoon had lost in a year, and Arroyo was writing to see if the general would attend Ingram’s memorial service. “He started to look up to you,” Arroyo wrote. McChrystal said he would try to make it down to pay his respects as soon as possible.
The night before the general is scheduled to visit Sgt. Arroyo’s platoon for the memorial, I arrive at Combat Outpost JFM to speak with the soldiers he had gone on patrol with. JFM is a small encampment, ringed by high blast walls and guard towers. Almost all of the soldiers here have been on repeated combat tours in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and have seen some of the worst fighting of both wars. But they are especially angered by Ingram’s death. His commanders had repeatedly requested permission to tear down the house where Ingram was killed, noting that it was often used as a combat position by the Taliban. But due to McChrystal’s new restrictions to avoid upsetting civilians, the request had been denied. “These were abandoned houses,” fumes Staff Sgt. Kennith Hicks. “Nobody was coming back to live in them.”
One soldier shows me the list of new regulations the platoon was given. “Patrol only in areas that you are reasonably certain that you will not have to defend yourselves with lethal force,” the laminated card reads. For a soldier who has traveled halfway around the world to fight, that’s like telling a cop he should only patrol in areas where he knows he won’t have to make arrests. “Does that make any fucking sense?” asks Pfc. Jared Pautsch. “We should just drop a fucking bomb on this place. You sit and ask yourself: What are we doing here?”

The rules handed out here are not what McChrystal intended – they’ve been distorted as they passed through the chain of command – but knowing that does nothing to lessen the anger of troops on the ground. “Fuck, when I came over here and heard that McChrystal was in charge, I thought we would get our fucking gun on,” says Hicks, who has served three tours of combat. “I get COIN. I get all that. McChrystal comes here, explains it, it makes sense. But then he goes away on his bird, and by the time his directives get passed down to us through Big Army, they’re all fucked up – either because somebody is trying to cover their ass, or because they just don’t understand it themselves. But we’re fucking losing this thing.”

McChrystal and his team show up the next day. Underneath a tent, the general has a 45-minute discussion with some two dozen soldiers. The atmosphere is tense. “I ask you what’s going on in your world, and I think it’s important for you all to understand the big picture as well,” McChrystal begins. “How’s the company doing? You guys feeling sorry for yourselves? Anybody? Anybody feel like you’re losing?” McChrystal says.

“Sir, some of the guys here, sir, think we’re losing, sir,” says Hicks.

McChrystal nods. “Strength is leading when you just don’t want to lead,” he tells the men. “You’re leading by example. That’s what we do. Particularly when it’s really, really hard, and it hurts inside.” Then he spends 20 minutes talking about counterinsurgency, diagramming his concepts and principles on a whiteboard. He makes COIN seem like common sense, but he’s careful not to bullshit the men. “We are knee-deep in the decisive year,” he tells them. The Taliban, he insists, no longer has the initiative – “but I don’t think we do, either.” It’s similar to the talk he gave in Paris, but it’s not winning any hearts and minds among the soldiers. “This is the philosophical part that works with think tanks,” McChrystal tries to joke. “But it doesn’t get the same reception from infantry companies.”

During the question-and-answer period, the frustration boils over. The soldiers complain about not being allowed to use lethal force, about watching insurgents they detain be freed for lack of evidence. They want to be able to fight – like they did in Iraq, like they had in Afghanistan before McChrystal. “We aren’t putting fear into the Taliban,” one soldier says.

“Winning hearts and minds in COIN is a coldblooded thing,” McChrystal says, citing an oft-repeated maxim that you can’t kill your way out of Afghanistan. “The Russians killed 1 million Afghans, and that didn’t work.”

“I’m not saying go out and kill everybody, sir,” the soldier persists. “You say we’ve stopped the momentum of the insurgency. I don’t believe that’s true in this area. The more we pull back, the more we restrain ourselves, the stronger it’s getting.”

“I agree with you,” McChrystal says. “In this area, we’ve not made progress, probably. You have to show strength here, you have to use fire. What I’m telling you is, fire costs you. What do you want to do? You want to wipe the population out here and resettle it?”

A soldier complains that under the rules, any insurgent who doesn’t have a weapon is immediately assumed to be a civilian. “That’s the way this game is,” McChrystal says. “It’s complex. I can’t just decide: It’s shirts and skins, and we’ll kill all the shirts.”

As the discussion ends, McChrystal seems to sense that he hasn’t succeeded at easing the men’s anger. He makes one last-ditch effort to reach them, acknowledging the death of Cpl. Ingram. “There’s no way I can make that easier,” he tells them. “No way I can pretend it won’t hurt. No way I can tell you not to feel that. . . . I will tell you, you’re doing a great job. Don’t let the frustration get to you.” The session ends with no clapping, and no real resolution. McChrystal may have sold President Obama on counterinsurgency, but many of his own men aren’t buying it.

When it comes to Afghanistan, history is not on McChrystal’s side. The only foreign invader to have any success here was Genghis Khan – and he wasn’t hampered by things like human rights, economic development and press scrutiny. The COIN doctrine, bizarrely, draws inspiration from some of the biggest Western military embarrassments in recent memory: France’s nasty war in Algeria (lost in 1962) and the American misadventure in Vietnam (lost in 1975). McChrystal, like other advocates of COIN, readily acknowledges that counterinsurgency campaigns are inherently messy, expensive and easy to lose. “Even Afghans are confused by Afghanistan,” he says. But even if he somehow manages to succeed, after years of bloody fighting with Afghan kids who pose no threat to the U.S. homeland, the war will do little to shut down Al Qaeda, which has shifted its operations to Pakistan. Dispatching 150,000 troops to build new schools, roads, mosques and water-treatment facilities around Kandahar is like trying to stop the drug war in Mexico by occupying Arkansas and building Baptist churches in Little Rock. “It’s all very cynical, politically,” says Marc Sageman, a former CIA case officer who has extensive experience in the region. “Afghanistan is not in our vital interest – there’s nothing for us there.”

In mid-May, two weeks after visiting the troops in Kandahar, McChrystal travels to the White House for a high-level visit by Hamid Karzai. It is a triumphant moment for the general, one that demonstrates he is very much in command – both in Kabul and in Washington. In the East Room, which is packed with journalists and dignitaries, President Obama sings the praises of Karzai. The two leaders talk about how great their relationship is, about the pain they feel over civilian casualties. They mention the word “progress” 16 times in under an hour. But there is no mention of victory. Still, the session represents the most forceful commitment that Obama has made to McChrystal’s strategy in months. “There is no denying the progress that the Afghan people have made in recent years – in education, in health care and economic development,” the president says. “As I saw in the lights across Kabul when I landed – lights that would not have been visible just a few years earlier.”

It is a disconcerting observation for Obama to make. During the worst years in Iraq, when the Bush administration had no real progress to point to, officials used to offer up the exact same evidence of success. “It was one of our first impressions,” one GOP official said in 2006, after landing in Baghdad at the height of the sectarian violence. “So many lights shining brightly.” So it is to the language of the Iraq War that the Obama administration has turned – talk of progress, of city lights, of metrics like health care and education. Rhetoric that just a few years ago they would have mocked. “They are trying to manipulate perceptions because there is no definition of victory – because victory is not even defined or recognizable,” says Celeste Ward, a senior defense analyst at the RAND Corporation who served as a political adviser to U.S. commanders in Iraq in 2006. “That’s the game we’re in right now. What we need, for strategic purposes, is to create the perception that we didn’t get run off. The facts on the ground are not great, and are not going to become great in the near future.”

But facts on the ground, as history has proven, offer little deterrent to a military determined to stay the course. Even those closest to McChrystal know that the rising anti-war sentiment at home doesn’t begin to reflect how deeply fucked up things are in Afghanistan. “If Americans pulled back and started paying attention to this war, it would become even less popular,” a senior adviser to McChrystal says. Such realism, however, doesn’t prevent advocates of counterinsurgency from dreaming big: Instead of beginning to withdraw troops next year, as Obama promised, the military hopes to ramp up its counterinsurgency campaign even further. “There’s a possibility we could ask for another surge of U.S. forces next summer if we see success here,” a senior military official in Kabul tells me.

Back in Afghanistan, less than a month after the White House meeting with Karzai and all the talk of “progress,” McChrystal is hit by the biggest blow to his vision of counterinsurgency. Since last year, the Pentagon had been planning to launch a major military operation this summer in Kandahar, the country’s second-largest city and the Taliban’s original home base. It was supposed to be a decisive turning point in the war – the primary reason for the troop surge that McChrystal wrested from Obama late last year. But on June 10th, acknowledging that the military still needs to lay more groundwork, the general announced that he is postponing the offensive until the fall. Rather than one big battle, like Fallujah or Ramadi, U.S. troops will implement what McChrystal calls a “rising tide of security.” The Afghan police and army will enter Kandahar to attempt to seize control of neighborhoods, while the U.S. pours $90 million of aid into the city to win over the civilian population.

Even proponents of counterinsurgency are hard-pressed to explain the new plan. “This isn’t a classic operation,” says a U.S. military official. “It’s not going to be Black Hawk Down. There aren’t going to be doors kicked in.” Other U.S. officials insist that doors are going to be kicked in, but that it’s going to be a kinder, gentler offensive than the disaster in Marja. “The Taliban have a jackboot on the city,” says a military official. “We have to remove them, but we have to do it in a way that doesn’t alienate the population.” When Vice President Biden was briefed on the new plan in the Oval Office, insiders say he was shocked to see how much it mirrored the more gradual plan of counterterrorism that he advocated last fall. “This looks like CT-plus!” he said, according to U.S. officials familiar with the meeting.

Whatever the nature of the new plan, the delay underscores the fundamental flaws of counterinsurgency. After nine years of war, the Taliban simply remains too strongly entrenched for the U.S. military to openly attack. The very people that COIN seeks to win over – the Afghan people – do not want us there. Our supposed ally, President Karzai, used his influence to delay the offensive, and the massive influx of aid championed by McChrystal is likely only to make things worse. “Throwing money at the problem exacerbates the problem,” says Andrew Wilder, an expert at Tufts University who has studied the effect of aid in southern Afghanistan. “A tsunami of cash fuels corruption, delegitimizes the government and creates an environment where we’re picking winners and losers” – a process that fuels resentment and hostility among the civilian population. So far, counterinsurgency has succeeded only in creating a never-ending demand for the primary product supplied by the military: perpetual war. There is a reason that President Obama studiously avoids using the word “victory” when he talks about Afghanistan. Winning, it would seem, is not really possible. Not even with Stanley McChrystal in charge.

This article appears in in RS 1108/1109 from July 8-22, 2010, on newsstands Friday, June 25.

Join Emptysuit On Twitter

Click On Links:
U.S. Military Death Toll In Afghanistan Past 1,000
UK Military Death Toll In Afghanistan Past 260
U.S. Military Death Toll In Afghanistan Past 1,000
Obama Illegal Afghanistan War
Obama Get Serious About Terrorism!
Summary Of 2010 Budget Plan Mandatory Terminations And Reductions
Obama Announces $6B Arms Sale To Taiwan
North Korea Nuclear Program
North Korea Threatens US
Impeach Obama
Obama Call For Spending Freezes
The Audacity Of Hope Page 261
The Afghanistan War
Military Deaths In Afghanistan
Obama Afghanistan Plan?
Liberal’s Anti-War Hypocrisy.?
Obama’s Keeps Silent About The Afghanistan War
American Soldiers Depressed, Troop Morale Low
US Soldiers Shoot Bomber, Grenade Explodes In His Hands
Obama Repeatedly Said He Would Reinforce US Troops
Obama’s Keeps Silent About The Afghanistan War
Obama Ignore Soldiers Dying In Afghanistan
The Afghanistan Problem
U.S. Afghanistan Raid Gone Bad
Taliban Attack
Bush Billboard, Miss Me Yet?
About Emptysuit
Your Opinion

Executive Order 13544, Socialized Health Care

While Obama an his media team kept America focused on the Gulf Oil Spill, Obama signed Executive Order 13544 of June 10, 2010, the beginning of Socialized Health Care

Establishing the National Prevention, Health Promotion, and Public Health Council

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including section 4001 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 111-148), it is hereby ordered as follows:
Section 1. Establishment.

There is established within the Department of Health and Human Services, the National Prevention, Health Promotion, and Public Health Council (Council).

Sec. 2. Membership.

(a) The Surgeon General shall serve as the Chair of the Council, which shall be composed of:
(1) the Secretary of Agriculture;
(2) the Secretary of Labor;
(3) the Secretary of Health and Human Services;
(4) the Secretary of Transportation;
(5) the Secretary of Education;
(6) the Secretary of Homeland Security;
(7) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency;
(8) the Chair of the Federal Trade Commission;
(9) the Director of National Drug Control Policy;
(10) the Assistant to the President and Director of the Domestic Policy Council;
(11) the Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs;
(12) the Chairman of the Corporation for National and Community Service; and
(13) the head of any other executive department or agency that the Chair may, from time to time, determine is appropriate.
(b) The Council shall meet at the call of the Chair.

Sec. 3. Purposes and Duties.

The Council shall:
(a) provide coordination and leadership at the Federal level, and among all executive departments and agencies, with respect to prevention, wellness, and health promotion practices, the public health system, and integrative health care in the United States;
(b) develop, after obtaining input from relevant stakeholders, a national prevention, health promotion, public health, and integrative health-care strategy that incorporates the most effective and achievable means of improving the health status of Americans and reducing the incidence of preventable illness and disability in the United States, as further described in section 5 of this order;
(c) provide recommendations to the President and the Congress concerning the most pressing health issues confronting the United States and changes in Federal policy to achieve national wellness, health promotion, and public health goals, including the reduction of tobacco use, sedentary behavior, and poor nutrition;
(d) consider and propose evidence-based models, policies, and innovative approaches for the promotion of transformative models of prevention, integrative health, and public health on individual and community levels across the United States;
(e) establish processes for continual public input, including input from State, regional, and local leadership communities and other relevant stakeholders, including Indian tribes and tribal organizations;
(f) submit the reports required by section 6 of this order; and
(g) carry out such other activities as are determined appropriate by the President.

Sec. 4. Advisory Group.

(a) There is established within the Department of Health and Human Services an Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative and Public Health (Advisory Group), which shall report to the Chair of the Council.
(b) The Advisory Group shall be composed of not more than 25 members or representatives from outside the Federal Government appointed by the President and shall include a diverse group of licensed health professionals, including integrative health practitioners who are representative of or have expertise in:
(1) worksite health promotion;
(2) community services, including community health centers;
(3) preventive medicine;
(4) health coaching;
(5) public health education;
(6) geriatrics; and
(7) rehabilitation medicine.
(c) The Advisory Group shall develop policy and program recommendations and advise the Council on lifestyle-based chronic disease prevention and management, integrative health care practices, and health promotion.

Sec. 5. National Prevention and Health Promotion Strategy.

Not later than March 23, 2011, the Chair, in consultation with the Council, shall develop and make public a national prevention, health promotion, and public health strategy (national strategy), and shall review and revise it periodically.
The national strategy shall:
(a) set specific goals and objectives for improving the health of the United States through federally supported prevention, health promotion, and public health programs, consistent with ongoing goal setting efforts conducted by specific agencies;
(b) establish specific and measurable actions and timelines to carry out the strategy, and determine accountability for meeting those timelines, within and across Federal departments and agencies; and
(c) make recommendations to improve Federal efforts relating to prevention, health promotion, public health, and integrative health-care practices to ensure that Federal efforts are consistent with available standards and evidence.

Sec. 6. Reports.

Not later than July 1, 2010, and annually thereafter until January 1, 2015, the Council shall submit to the President and the relevant committees of the Congress, a report that:
(a) describes the activities and efforts on prevention, health promotion, and public health and activities to develop the national strategy conducted by the Council during the period for which the report is prepared;
(b) describes the national progress in meeting specific prevention, health promotion, and public health goals defined in the national strategy and further describes corrective actions recommended by the Council and actions taken by relevant agencies and organizations to meet these goals;
(c) contains a list of national priorities on health promotion and disease prevention to address lifestyle behavior modification (including smoking cessation, proper nutrition, appropriate exercise, mental health, behavioral health, substance-use disorder, and domestic violence screenings) and the prevention measures for the five leading disease killers in the United States;
(d) contains specific science-based initiatives to achieve the measurable goals of the Healthy People 2020 program of the Department of Health and Human Services regarding nutrition, exercise, and smoking cessation, and targeting the five leading disease killers in the United States;
(e) contains specific plans for consolidating Federal health programs and centers that exist to promote healthy behavior and reduce disease risk (including eliminating programs and offices determined to be ineffective in meeting the priority goals of the Healthy People 2020 program of the Department of Health and Human Services);
(f) contains specific plans to ensure that all Federal health-care programs are fully coordinated with science-based prevention recommendations by the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; and
(g) contains specific plans to ensure that all prevention programs outside the Department of Health and Human Services are based on the science-based guidelines developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention under subsection (d) of this section.

Sec. 7. Administration.

(a) The Department of Health and Human Services shall provide funding and administrative support for the Council and the Advisory Group to the extent permitted by law and within existing appropriations.
(b) All executive departments and agencies shall provide information and assistance to the Council as the Chair may request for purposes of carrying out the Council’s functions, to the extent permitted by law.
(c) Members of the Advisory Group shall serve without compensation, but shall be allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, as authorized by law for persons serving intermittently in Government service (5 U.S.C. 5701-5707), consistent with the availability of funds.

Sec. 8. General Provisions.

(a) Insofar as the Federal Advisory Committee Act, as amended (5 U.S.C App.) may apply to the Advisory Group, any functions of the President under that Act, except that of reporting to the Congress, shall be performed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services in accordance with the guidelines that have been issued by the Administrator of General Services.
(b) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:
(1) authority granted by law to an executive department, agency, or the head thereof; or
(2) functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.
(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
Signature of  Barack Obama
Barack Obama
The White House,
June 10, 2010.
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.