Federal Restrictions on using U.S. MPs for law enforcement on foreign soil

[Ken White]

Exempting the FBI who should be left alone; they have enough they won't be able to do. Cops can't catch terrorists because Cops play too nice and have a follow the law mindset -- that is a good thing -- gotta set a thief to catch a thief. Cops can train people to look for terrs; then the trainees will figure out the rest of it...

I don't believe that it is, but even so, it is better than using Armor or Artillery officers to train the Iraqi Police.

Amen to that...

...If you train for the mission you can do it in the same way you train the infantry for war without actually having a training war going on all the time.

And that.

Being in high demand does not always equate to using them in the most efficent manner.

That, too...

I will agree that my preference would be to use reserve/guard MPs whose civilian job is as a police officer. This is particularly true with MTT teams. However, no one else seems to think that way.

However, gotta disagree on that one -- I think the same way, and I know others do as well. It is not the best option but it is the best achievable and the cheapest option (cheap in more than just the cost aspect).

I don't think your thoughts are shallow, I just think that the mission could be done once someone decided to do it.

True, he exresses valid concerns but the alternatives are not good -- we've tried most and the just do not work. Or we can dither and stew about it for a few years while doing nothing. That, too is the American way...

[TheCurmudgeon]

True, he exresses valid concerns but the alternatives are not good -- we've tried most and the just do not work. Or we can dither and stew about it for a few years while doing nothing. That, too is the American way...

Ahhhhh Master, you are wise beyond your years...

[Ken White]

possessed, I'd say the old Pennsylvania Dutch saying is more appropriate; "Ve are too zoon oldt und too late schmart..."

[John T. Fishel]

a long way while I was out riding my mare - Gracie is the grandneice of Secretariat on her sire's side.

2 points:
1. In Panama, we used RC SF who were civilian cops - called em RC Cops - and teamed them with AC SF teams for 30 days. A new RC Cop team would come in for 30 days but the AC SF team would remain. With each RC Cop from a different police department the AC SF would have at least 4 different police SOPs to observe. By the end of the second iteration the AC SF were damned good police/police trainers - and FID is a 7th SFG specialty. Weakness was that the RC Cops were were limited to RC SF and MPs were not included.

2. John Nagl was here in OK last week at our Dilemmas of Global Security Symposium. While we didn't get into police training by US military his BN - 1/34 Armor - is charged with training trainers for both Iraq and Afghanistan. Key is that these guys are not SF. Point is that good soldiers can adapt and are capable of designing and executing training programs. Indeed, the first Panama police training course - the 20 hour course - was designed by then Major Richard Downie, an infantryman and FAO. Rich later worked with the Italian Carabinieri in former Yugoslavia before he took over the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation as its first Commandant. Had a bunch of police in his classes, Now, as civilian Director of the Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies, he educates civilians, soldiers, NGO types, etc, including civilian cops from the Latin American and Caribbean region.

All in all, the Long War is going to require a remarkable degree of adaptability on the part of soldiers, sailors, Marines, airmen, and civilians alike and we should think out of the box enough to be willing to seriously consider using state police who have a constabulary/gendarmerie type role. there really is enough work for everyone who wants it.

Cheers

JohnT