Tillman's Fellow Ranger Admits Cover-Up

Last Soldier To See Tillman Alive: "I Was Ordered Not To Tell" His Brother

(CBS/AP)  An Army Ranger who was with Pat Tillman when the former football star was cut down by friendly fire in Afghanistan said Tuesday a commanding officer had ordered him to keep quiet about what happened.

The military at first portrayed Tillman's death as the result of heroic combat with the enemy. Army Spc. Bryan O'Neal told a congressional hearing that when he got the chance to talk to Tillman's brother, who had been in a nearby convoy on the fateful day, "I was ordered not to tell him what happened."

"You were ordered not to tell him?" repeated Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

"Roger that, sir," replied O'Neal, dressed in his Army uniform.

The revelation came as committee members questioned whether, and when, top Defense officials and the White House knew that Tillman's death in eastern Afghanistan three years ago was actually a result of gunfire from fellow U.S. soldiers.

Tillman's death received worldwide attention because he had walked away from a huge contract with the NFL's Arizona Cardinals to enlist in the Army after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

His family was initially misled by the Pentagon and did not learn the truth for more than a month. Tillman was awarded a Silver Star based on fabricated accounts — who fabricated them still isn't clear after several investigations.

"We don't know what the secretary of defense knew, we don't know what the White House knew," Waxman said. "What we do know is these were not a series of accidents, these stories. They were calculatedly put out for a public relations purpose. ... Even now there seems to be a cover-up."

Kevin Tillman was in a convoy behind his older brother, a former NFL star, on April 22, 2004, when Pat Tillman was mistakenly shot by other Army Rangers who had just emerged from a canyon where they'd been fired upon. Kevin Tillman didn't see what happened. O'Neal said he was ordered not to tell him by then-Lt. Col. Jeff Bailey, the battalion commander who oversaw Tillman's platoon.

"He basically just said, Sir, that uh, 'Do not let Kevin know, he's probably in a bad place knowing that his brother's dead,"' O'Neal testified. "He made it known that I would get in trouble, sir, if I spoke with Kevin."

O'Neal said he was "quite appalled" by the order.

Bailey's superior officer, then-Col. James C. Nixon, has testified to the Defense Department's inspector general that he ordered that information on the facts of Tillman's death be shared with as few people as possible so that the Tillman family would not learn those facts through news media leaks. That, in turn, shaped Bailey's guidance to his troops.

The Army said initially that Tillman was killed by enemy gunfire while trying to help another group of ambushed soldiers. The family was not told what really happened until May 29, 2004, a delay the Army blamed on procedural mistakes.

Kevin Tillman and Tillman's mother, Mary Tillman, also testified Tuesday but were not in the room when O'Neal spoke.

[toolmangler-2009]

Death by friendly fire in combat is still death in combat. There is extreme risk some military operations, even if it's a thousand miles away from the front.
Posted by Jebby_One at 12:33 AM : Apr 26, 2007


Tnx Jebby_one. Thats good enough for me.

[jebby_one]

" The generally poor reliablity of internet-based news isn't helped any when major broadcasters like CBS can't even be bothered with proofreading and fact-checking. "

----------------------------

Does anyone believe that CBS and the NYT are anything other than propaganda agents for the Neo-commie wing of the democrat party?

These guys skipped reporting news about the Holocaust for pete sake.

[jebby_one]

" If you die in combat there is a bigger payoff than if you are killed by accident, (friendy fire)..."

-------------------------

Death by friendly fire in combat is still death in combat. There is extreme risk some military operations, even if it's a thousand miles away from the front.

There is no second class honor associated with friendly fire mishaps. Most military people would not distinguist he two ... until recently when self serving 2-bit politicians tried to exploit friendly fire mishaps.

Does anyone really believe that the Tillman family is better off knowing that Patrick was probably shot by someone in his own unit. Will they be better off if they discover that maybe Patrick's own actions that day may have contributed to his death?

To me he was an honorable soldier, regardless. No need to go beyond that. But now family are questioning the honor of Pat Tillman's comrades. They will now have to defend their honor regardless of where the chips fall. The Tillmans may or may not like what further investigations may reveal.

[jebby_one]

" Jessica has been saying ever since she first got out of the hospital that the story about her 'rescue' and the 'fight' she supposedly put up when captured were falsehoods. This is not something that just came about recently"

-----------------------

The media propelled her undeserved stardom and went to great efforts to keep kher in the spotlight. Why? Probably so theuy could later team up with scumbags like Henry Waxman and blame it all on Republicans.

Don't let this bother you. While they claim that Bush is unpopular the left-wing media's credibility is lower than dog-poop. Hell, the only group with less credibility than the media stooges are the Democrats.

[jebby_one]

" This is so sad. One now wonders how much of what your government says can be trusted...Surely they realise that they need the trust of the people to continue..."

-----------------

With the Bush administration? probably very little can be trusted. With the democrats? Probably nothing can be trusted.

We live in a democratic republican and our leaders are only as good as the people who elect them. Unfortunately we are now in a self-serving cycle where the democrats' believe the only chance of them holding power is to undermine anyone and everyone who has a different opinion from them.

[toolmangler-2009]

A co-worker who retired from the military, said the coverup by his friends (Tillmans) was because of 'insurance' . If you die in combat there is a bigger payoff than if you are killed by accident, (friendy fire). Alright, lets hear it, is this so? I just want the truth!!!! Speak up VETS
Posted by ToolMangler at 08:42 PM : Apr 24, 2007

[gaye5]

This is so sad. One now wonders how much of what your government says can be trusted...Surely they realise that they need the trust of the people to continue...
But I can understand the governments cover up if indeed it came from the government..because here I have heard that accidentaly killing of their own soldiers has happens too much in American forces, and when fighting with Americans that we are better off to keep away from them as we are more likely to be accidently killed by Americans than the enemy...
Now this is just what I have heard, it is not official of course, and Americans and Australians have had a long history of fighting happily together saving each others lives... both respecting and caring for each other...and great friendships have come out of combat...

[greengirl221]

Leave it to the Neo-cons...

As soon as any reports that remotely support the fact the the US is involved in an unjust war or the the US goverment has conducted some shady practices it is dismissed as LEft-wing proproganda. And any person that supports these views is considered anti-patriot.
Remember that just because someone does not agree with what the US gov is doing-it doesn't mean that they are not a patriot.
...And I thought standing up for the Truth was a noble quality-one the that every citizen should posess.

My supports goes out to those who risk everything to expose the truth!

[greengirl221]

Seeing this story makes you wonder what other incident reports have "fixed" to make the US Government look good. I'm sooo glad Mr. O'Neal & Ms. Lynch are speaking out the truth about what really happened.

[gramto7]

Jessica Lynch - why has she waited until just now to tell the truth....

Lord help us all.
Posted by dblbar

Jessica has been saying ever since she first got out of the hospital that the story about her 'rescue' and the 'fight' she supposedly put up when captured were falsehoods. This is not something that just came about recently.

[ecuadoriana]

"The movie Wag the Dog has often been used in comparison to Clinton. Now we see how the Bush Administration took a scene directly from that movie to sell us the war." Posted by jpesot at 06:02 PM : Apr 24, 2007

Wow, jpesot, you read my mind! I had been thinking this Tillman/Lynch plot seemed vaguely familiar- like an "Old Brown Shoe" that was smelling mighty rotten!

What we have here is a bush-whacked administration & a failure to communicate the truth. Yup.

I can see Seven-pesos' point about the south. BushWhack is giving the south, the entire country & the world, the biggest hosing up the azz we'll ever know. That's a colon cleanse we won't be forgetting soon.

Strange how so many people actually like it. Yuck.

[galaxiana]

Well, once again we have a fine example of CBS's reliable reporting and attention to facts and details...NOT!

Quote from the story:

"Abizaid told Gimble he was traveling in the war theater and didn't see the memo saying Tillman's death was possibly friendly fire until after Tillman's memorial service. "

Um, HELLO?! Who is "Abazaid" mentioned here? His or her name doesn't appear anywhere previous in the story, nor is he or she elucidated upon later.

Does CBS really think so little of its (presumably valuable) readership that it can't even proofread stories before posting them to the net? The generally poor reliablity of internet-based news isn't helped any when major broadcasters like CBS can't even be bothered with proofreading and fact-checking. :(

[dblbar]

Pat Tillman - God rest his soul. But this really makes me wonder how many others have died via "friendly fire" that were covered up because they didn't have the prominent name.

Jessica Lynch - why has she waited until just now to tell the truth....

Lord help us all.

[bluestardad]

WHO IS HELD ACCOUNTABLE?

FOR; the Slant drilling being done by Saudi Arabia and Kuwait in Iraqi Oil reserves, the theft of OIL during production and sale by not having meters on the line to account for the oil that is processed thru the line, and the remaining billions of dollars that have no audit trail from the 363 tons of money, indigenous Iraqi money found in Iraq, and the 400 billion American tax dollars that was sent to Iraq? American Enterprise Institute planning the Iraq Surge not Generals?

According to a Washington Post/ABC News poll conducted in June, 52 percent of Americans now believe the President deliberately distorted intelligence to make a case for war. In an Ipsos Public Affairs poll, commissioned by AfterDowningStreet.org and completed October 9, 50 percent said that if Bush lied about his reasons for going to war Congress should consider impeaching him. The President's deceit is not only an abuse of power; it is a federal crime. Specifically, it is a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, which prohibits conspiracies to defraud the United States.

http://www.democrats.com/node/12313

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20051114/delavega

Congress Contact http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/

The House Speakers email address: [e-mail]

[e-mail] Here is the Republican Party email address too!

[e-mail] Here is the Democratic Party email address also!

[coffeehead-2009]

As a parent, the defining action would have been the intentionaly destruction of my childs diary.
Something this young man felt prudent in his life - his memories, feelings, views, needs,joys and emotions.

They burnt it - lied about it and took that away ontop of the loss of his life.

I would be heartbroken to know that he had extended a part of him in his own words - and some ~ick ordered it destroyed. Painful and the ultimate definition of "we really don't give a *** about you or your families or your children" - that ALL we care about is lies and cover-ups.

[karlimhof]

Bush efforts to portray Till/lynch stories as elements supportive of "his war" - have been exposed.

Other exposures; WMD in Iraq, Al-Qaeda in Iraq, Uranium bought from Niger for Iraq, et al. all have proven to us that this Administration is based on lies and deceit.

The harm done to American is far greater than Osmama could have ever hoped for. Not that it will further his agenda but it has proven how fragile our institutions are and how weak our governments checks and balances have been these last 6 years.

[jebby_one]

neo-commie claims ...

"All soldiers, all men and women who serve or who have served honorably in the military, esp in combat, are brothers. Every person I served with was and still is my brother."

I served honorably in the US military including a tour as advisor in Vietnam. I would not consider you my brother. If you intentionally shot at me I would call it attempted murder. Sorry.

[mizpah63]

Look no further than the Office of Chief Propagandist--Karl Rove--for the source of the Lynch/Tillman cover-ups. Rove is the most dangerous, vile and evil creature in the Bush administration. Unfortunately, unlike the other administration lackeys, he has more than two brain cells which are constantly churning out lies. Rove is amoral; he has no conscience. He keeps close company with those of similar personal qualities.

[alphaa10-2009]

Having just viewed a two-hour documentary on the ENRON debacle, it is clear the denials, finger-pointing and outrage erupted only after it became impossible to hide the scandal any longer.

Likewise, this blog found the usual cadre of lock-step, jack-booted GOP fanatics insisting a Tillman coverup was simply contrived by "The Media". Where are these true believers, now?

When deceit comes from the highest levels of our government, is the breach of trust any different than Enron? To almost the last day, Ken Lay and Jeff Skilling conspired to deceive every stockholder about the true condition of Enron.

Likewise, and to the last day, we can be sure, certain figures in the Bush regime will assure us they see light at the end of the Iraq tunnel. They will prevaricate until caught in their own lies.

After Enron, stockholders lost billions in personal savings and pensions. In similar fashion, the rest of us are left to pay for this mockery of a presidential tenure.

Is it surprising one of the biggest contributors to Bush was Ken Lay?

[toldyouso21]

i'm personally not a Republican or on any side except America's side.

Posted by Jebby_One at 02:05 PM : Apr 24, 2007

CORRECTION: You are not ON America's side, you are IN America's side--like a putrid, pus filled, exploding appendix.