"I am not my brother’s keeper"
"And he said, I know not: [Am] I my brother’s keeper?" (Genesis 4:9)
American values in action, brotherly love, and killing for money.
State Department Inspector General Howard J. Krongard recused himself today from investigating the Blackwater Worldwide security firm after a House panel confronted him with evidence that his brother is a strategic adviser for the company, whose guards have been under scrutiny for the deadly shootings of Iraqi civilians.Krongard’s admission of his brother’s connection came as the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee probed allegations that Krongard has impeded State Department probes in Iraq, including those involving Blackwater, and had hurt working conditions in his office with a mercurial management style.
Blackwater security personnel are under contract to the State Department to protect diplomats in Iraq.
Krongard initially said that he had spoken to his brother, former CIA official Alvin "Buzzy" Krongard, just five weeks ago and had been assured that he was not involved with Blackwater. But then House Democrats produced e-mails and documents showing that Buzzy Krongard had been invited in July by Blackwater chief executive Erik Prince to join the Blackwater Worldwide Advisory Board and was attending a meeting of the company’s board in Williamsburg this week.
After a break, Howard Krongard informed the committee that he had called his brother and had confirmed his involvement with Blackwater. "I had not been aware of that," Krongard said. "I want to state on the record right now that I hereby recuse myself from any matters having to do with Blackwater."
Republicans had mounted a spirited defense of Krongard, denouncing many of the allegations as "gossip," but Krongard’s admission appeared to deflate them. "He has done you a tremendous damage," Rep. Christopher Shays (R-Conn.) told Krongard. "I don’t know what kind of conversation you had with him, but I would have been one pretty unhappy guy."
Asked whether he had a difficult relationship with his brother, Howard Krongard said no, but he added that they tried not to be too knowledgeable about each other’s business. "I am not my brother’s keeper," he said.
A family acquaintance, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Krongard brothers have had a tense and difficult relationship for many years.
During the hearing, Krongard emphatically denied that he had a political bias or had tried to thwart investigations. He said he had to work with a relatively small staff and budget. He insisted that many of the complaints about his management style were the result of a vigorous effort to reform an office that was dysfunctional and produced poor work.
"I know I was being too hard," he said. "I know I was expecting too much."
Panel Confronts Investigator on Brother’s Ties to Blackwater
Indexed under: Mercenaries