WASHINGTON – The US Army ordered the illegal use of psychological operations to influence US lawmakers on the Afghanistan war, Rolling Stone magazine reported on Thursday, forcing the US commander there to launch an inquiry.
The explosive article said the command of General William Caldwell, in charge of training Afghan troops, pressured US soldiers specializing in “psy-ops” that normally influence enemy behavior, to manipulate visiting US senators and congressmen — as well as other VIPs and senior foreign officials — into supporting more money and troops for the war.
The report shook Washington at a time of growing public dissatisfaction with the longest US war, with lawmakers urging a swift investigation of the “disturbing” charges. Pentagon spokesman Colonel David Lapan said war commander General David Petraeus “is preparing to order an investigation” to determine “what actions took place and if any of them was inappropriate or illegal.”
Defense Secretary Robert Gates “is aware of the allegations” in the article, and “fully supports General Petraeus’ decision to investigate this matter before drawing any conclusions,” said Pentagon spokesman Geoffrey Morrell. The report says an army lieutenant colonel told the magazine he had been repeatedly ordered by Caldwell’s staff to target senators including 2008 Republican presidential nominee John McCain, Joe Lieberman, Jack Reed, Al Franken and Carl Levin.
Among those the team was told to pressure during a four-month period were Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen, Germany’s interior minister, and the Czech ambassador to Kabul, according to members of the “information operations” (IO) team and internal documents. And when officer sought to bring the operation to a halt, a campaign of retaliation was launched against him, according to the magazine.
“My job in psy-ops is to play with people’s heads, to get the enemy to behave the way we want them to behave,” Lieutenant Colonel Michael Holmes, leader of the IO unit, told Rolling Stone. “I’m prohibited from doing that to our own people. When you ask me to try to use these skills on senators and congressman, you’re crossing a line.” The magazine also said Caldwell’s chief of staff asked Holmes how the general could secretly manipulate the US lawmakers.
