Iowa Senator Tom Harkin is calling for the U.S. Defense Secretary to step down or be fired, blaming Donald Rumsfeld for the abuse of Iraqi prisoners of war. Widely published photos of smiling U.S. soldiers beside naked, hooded Iraqi prisoners have sparked outrage in the Arab world and in the U.S. Harkin says “Secretary Rumsfeld and his policies in running the Department of Defense has led to this and I don’t think anything short of his prompt dismissal will suffice. It is time for Mr. Rumsfeld to be given the boot.” Harkin says the photos of gloating soldiers standing over stacked Iraqis have been the most damaging event for the United States’ image during the war. Harkin says “If Mr. Rumsfeld doesn’t quit forthwith, then the President outta’ fire him. The policies, the pronunciations, the attitude of the Secretary of Defense that started a couple of years ago has filtered down to the lowest ranks of the military. It’s inexcusable.” Harkin says the photos from the Iraqi prison looked rather familiar. He says the pictures reminded him of the so-called “tiger cages” that were used in a U.S.-run South Vietnamese prison in the 1970s. The President is expected to soon approach Congress, asking for more money for the military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Harkin says the money will be there for the troops, but there should be more accountability in where it’s being spent, given what’s going on in the Iraqi prisons. Harkin says “You got a lotta’ Rambos over there right now in these prisons, civilians, that are unaccountable. They’re not accountable to our military, they’re not accountable to the State Department, they’re not accountable to anyone. Who are these people and how much money are they making?”
