Iraq War: Questions on Reconstruction Hiring

As Democrats continue their oversight of the Iraq War, reconstruction spending has become a focal point (see Calif. Dem. Rep. Henry Waxman’s 2/7 post on the topic). In this clip, Ambassador L. Paul Bremer, former Administrator of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) in Iraq, answers questions about reconstruction contractors before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

Bremer responds to Rep. John Tierney (D-Mass.) on the CPA’s hiring practices. Many critics of the reconstruction process have accused the CPA’s contractors of inefficiency and waste; here Bremer defends the competence of high level reconstruction contractors, while stating that the Pentagon, not the CPA, was responsible for hiring them.