Gina and Mike explain how US Secretary of State Donald Rumsfeld put in motion the growing influence and use of military contractors the day before the Sept. 11, 2001, hijacking attacks on New York and Washington DC.
This episode introduces Judge Royce Lamberth, chief of the US District Court for the Washington DC circuit and head of the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA) that allowed law enforcement to spy on US citizens.
Meanwhile, Dustin, Evan, Paul and Nick deployed to find the conflict, US preparedness and the people they encountered markedly different from what they expected.
And Blackwater Worldwide founder Erik Prince describes how his military contracting company morphed from a battlefield supply service to a finely honed, superbly equipped diplomatic protection squad and quick reaction force to meet growing violence across war-torn Iraq.
FOR MORE:
RUMSFELD INTERVIEW
Donald Rumsfeld's 9/11 story
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haCq-WS-VXU
LAMBERTH INTERVIEW
Judge Reflects after 9/11, 'Bloodcurdling' Briefings
https://www.npr.org/2013/07/11/198329788/fisa-court-judge-reflects-after-sept-11-bloodcurdling-meetings-and-briefings
SKATING ON STILTS
Book by Stewart Baker
https://www.skatingonstilts.com/