Rendon

[Magda Hassan]

The Rendon Group asserts that it had "no role whatsoever in making the case for the Iraq war, here at home or internationally." In fact, the selling of a war in Iraq began with the creation of the Iraqi National Congress more than a decade ago and the installation of Ahmad Chalabi as its head. In both of these events, the Rendon Group played a major role, and continued to play a major role over the years. The INC had a single purpose: the forceful removal of Saddam Hussein and his government from power and the installation of a government run by Chalabi. To achieve this goal, Chalabi spent more than a decade attempting to hard-sell senior US officials on the idea of launching a war against Iraq - finally succeeding in 2003. As Whitley Bruner, the former CIA station chief in Baghdad, said: "Chalabi's primary focus was to drag us into a war." He added, "Absolutely, that was his goal and he succeeded." John Rendon also told me: "From day one, Chalabi was very clear that his biggest interest was to rid Iraq of Saddam."
It was the Rendon Group that created the INC, helped install Chalabi as its leader, and funded the organization with money supplied by the CIA. John Rendon told me that he himself acted as the "senior advisor" to the group. The job of the Rendon Group was to use "perception management" techniques -- propaganda -- to help put Chalabi in as president of Iraq, the same way they used propaganda to help put Guillermo Endara into the presidential palace in Panama a few months earlier. Again, to quote the CIA's Whitley Bruner, "The reason they got the contract was because of what they had done in Panama."
Another CIA official who worked extensively in Iraq with Chalabi and the INC, Robert Baer, was even more blunt. In 2003 he said: "John Rendon has an enormous contract with the Pentagon until today. He's got easy access, go to the Pentagon any time he wants. He was responsible for selling this war and selling the peace if you like." Baer added, "They are all over the war. Every time you talk to anybody in the government, that's had conference calls on the Iraq war, they tell me that Rendon is on the conference calls that involve all the government agencies involved in the war."
As to the other "mistakes" alleged by the Rendon Group, let me address each individually:
1. I never claimed the Rendon Group was either connected with Judith Miller or deliberately disseminated false information. What I said was that the Rendon Group was hired to provide publicity favorable to Chalabi and his INC and to help them demonize Saddam Hussein around the world. The Rendon Group even created a road show that traveled around Europe hawking the evils of Saddam's regime.
2. Another false accusation. I state clearly in the article that it was The New York Times that made the allegation about the Office of Strategic Influence, and that it was "a charge Rendon denies. 'We had nothing to do with that,' he says."
3. I am happy to accept this correction -- that Rendon worked directly with the government of Kuwait -- and I regret the error.
4. It is clear that Paul Moran alternated between worlds -- working off and on for the Rendon Group, which specializes in highly secret activities, including propaganda and "perception management" on behalf of the CIA, the Pentagon and the INC; and at other times working for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and other legitimate news organizations as a freelance journalist -- reporter as well as photojournalist. According to the June 25th, 2003 issue of Australia's highly respected The Bulletin, the country's longest-running news magazine and part of the American Newsweek:
"Two close friends and two of Moran's brothers sat down with an Adelaide journalist the day after the funeral. They drank coffee and reminisced about their friend . . . one of the friends mentioned that Moran worked for a "shadowy" company. Shadowy company, wondered the journalist. Whatever could you mean? The friend mentioned a name: the Rendon Group. He talked of Moran's involvement in helping an Iraqi defector escape and Moran's work with the INC. Moran, he said, had helped mobilise a popular uprising against Saddam Hussein's regime and trained dissidents in the use of hidden cameras. There were the renowned "Paul Moran channels" -- he seemed able to contact important people with little bother -- and the "James Bond lifestyle." In short, Moran had spent a decade, on and off, trying to destabilise Saddam Hussein's regime for a company hired by both the CIA and Pentagon." In addition, Zaab Sethna, who worked for both the Rendon Group and the INC, told an Australian television audience in 2003: "They continued to use Paul for projects . . .The Rendon group would hire Paul. He continued to work with the Rendon group over the years."
5. As I stated, the Pentagon's contract with the Rendon Group called for the company to monitor Internet chat rooms in both English and Arabic -- and "participate in these chat rooms when/if tasked." The words in quotation are the Pentagon's, not mine, so if the Rendon Group has a problem with that language I suggest they discuss it with the Pentagon.
6. I am happy to accept that Mr. Rendon waits until he gets into his office to read his classified documents. But there are few, if any, other PR companies cleared to "research and analyze information classified Top Secret/SCI/SI/TK/G/HCS," as his Pentagon contract states.
7. I appreciate the Rendon Group's modesty, but "every PR firm" is not cleared for Top Secret/SCI/SI/TK/G/HCS information, does not work for the CIA, doesn't have a history of helping to overthrow foreign governments, and is not targeted against an Arabic news organization accused of helping America's enemy during a war.
8. Throughout the entire article, I never once implied that the Rendon Group's fees were excessive. I simply stated how much they are according to documents I obtained. I am happy to let the public make its own judgment as to whether Mr. Rendon's fee of $311.26 per hour ($12,450.40 per week) is excessive for PR advice.
Finally, I never implied "that the location of his interview with Mr. Rendon, the menu and the expensive French wine were all of Mr. Rendon's choosing." It is a common practice for journalists to pay for a meal when asking someone out to dinner for a long interview. The wine was actually one in the middle price range on the menu and the choice of the club was largely for Mr. Rendon's privacy, not mine. According to the receipt, Mr. Rendon ordered "sate lamb chops" -- I never eat lamb chops. And just for the record, I also paid for Mr. Rendon's apple tart dessert and his coffee -- decaf black.