Erik D. Prince

Erik D. Prince (born June 6 1969, Holland, Michigan) is the founder and sole owner of the private military company Xe, formerly Blackwater Worldwide. Testifying before the United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on October 2, 2007, he gave his title as chairman and CEO of the Prince Group and Blackwater Worldwide, then named Blackwater USA. On March 2, 2009, Prince announced that he was stepping down as CEO of Xe.

Early life and career

Erik Prince was born into a wealthy family, the youngest child of Edgar D. Prince, founder of the Prince Corporation (an automobile-parts company that introduced lighted vanity mirrors for cars), and Elsa Broekhuizen. He has three older sisters. Prince’s mother is of Dutch heritage.

Prince earned an airplane pilot’s license at age 17 and graduated from Holland Christian High School. He attended the United States Naval Academy after high school, but left the academy after three semesters, and ultimately graduated from Hillsdale College in 1992. During his time at Hillsdale, Prince served as a volunteer firefighter and as a diver for the Hillsdale County Sheriff’s Department.

He was an intern in the White House under President George H. W. Bush and subsequently criticized that administration’s policies to the Grand Rapids Press, saying: “I saw a lot of things I didn’t agree with—homosexual groups being invited in, the budget agreement, the Clean Air Act, those kinds of bills.^“ He also served as an intern to California Republican Rep. Dana Rohrabacher. While at Hillsdale, Prince campaigned for presidential candidate Pat Buchanan, and interned at his father’s co-founded Gary Bauer’s Family Research Council.

After college, he earned a commission in the United States Navy after joining in 1992 via Officer Candidate School. He served as a Navy SEAL officer on deployments to Haiti, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean, including Bosnia. When his father, Edgar, unexpectedly died in 1995, Prince ended his Navy service prematurely. Prince’s mother, Elsa, sold the Prince Corporation for $1.3 billion to Johnson Controls, Inc. Prince moved to Virginia Beach and personally financed the formation of Blackwater Worldwide in 1997. He bought 6,000 acres (24 km²) of the Great Dismal Swamp of North Carolina and set up a school for special operations operators. The name “Blackwater” comes from the peat-colored bogs in which the school is located.

Family

Prince’s father co-founded the Family Research Council with Gary Bauer. Prince is the brother of Betsy DeVos, a former chairwoman of the Michigan Republican Party and wife of former Alticor (Amway) president and Gubernatorial candidate Dick DeVos, son of Richard DeVos, Sr. (listed by Forbes in 2007 as one of the world’s richest men, with a net worth of $2.4 billion).

Prince was unfaithful to his first wife, Joan Nicole Prince, cheating on her with their nanny, Joanna Houck. When Joan Prince died of cancer in 2003, Houck attended the funeral while pregnant with Prince’s child. Prince and Houck were married a year later.

Prince has six children.

Political donations

Prince serves as vice president of the Edgar and Elsa Prince Foundation. Salon reports that “between July 2003 and July 2006, the foundation gave at least $670,000 to the Family Research Council, which his family founded, and $531,000 to Focus on the Family” headed by James Dobson. The foundation is also a major donor to Calvin College, a Christian institution in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Prince also serves as a board member of Christian Freedom International, a non-profit group with a mission of helping “Christians who are persecuted for their faith in Jesus Christ.”

Since 1998, Prince has personally donated over $200, 000 to Republican causes.^[18][19][20] Prince is a donor, along with others to the Alliance Defense Fund, a conservative Christian legal group. Prince had also contributed money to the Green Party of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, though this has been interpreted as an unsuccessful attempt to help Republican candidate Rick Santorum in his race against Democratic challenger Bob Casey.

Former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards has characterized Prince as one of George W. Bush’s “political cronies.” Prince has denied using family clout to obtain contracts for Blackwater.

Relations with the media

Confidentiality agreements prohibit former Blackwater executives from talking about Prince. He has been described by the press as “reclusive” and “secretive”. Prince is noted for disliking having his photo taken and distributed; often using his hands to shield himself from photographers. While attending a technology conference in North Carolina, he was visibly uncomfortable when photographed on stage and officials asked that the images not be published. He also frequently turns down interview requests.

According to the head of a competing contractor, “Realistically, there’s ongoing projects by (terrorist groups) to collect data on private contractors. I appreciate and understand his efforts to protect his family. The guy needs his privacy.”

However, in response to controversy surrounding the September 16, 2007 Blackwater Baghdad shootings and its subsequent FBI investigation, Prince has emerged from media seclusion to grant more on-camera interviews. Some noteworthy appearances where he discusses the incident include:

• Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer October 14, 2007
• 60 Minutes October 14, 2007
• Charlie Rose October 15, 2007

Blackwater controversies

Prince’s company, Blackwater Worldwide, was involved in several international controversies during 2007, leading to his being asked to testify before the United States Congress. Seventeen Iraqi civilians were killed when a Blackwater private security detail (PSD) escorted a convoy of US State Department vehicles en route to a meeting in western Baghdad with United States Agency for International Development officials on September 16, 2007. On September 22, 2007, Federal prosecutors announced an investigation into whether Blackwater employees illegally smuggled weapons into Iraq that were later possibly transferred to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), a Kurdish nationalist group designated a terrorist organization by the US, North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the European Union.

Congressional investigation

On October 2, 2007 Prince was subject to a congressional hearing conducted by the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform following the controversy related to Blackwater’s conduct in Iraq and Afghanistan.^[32] Public relations powerhouse Burson-Marsteller was brought in briefly, but at a critical moment, to help Prince, prepare for the Oct 2 hearing.

• When testifying before Congress on October 2, 2007, about Blackwater Worldwide’s activities in Iraq, Prince complained about the lack of remedies his company has to deal with employee misdeeds. When asked why an employee involved in a fatal incident had been “whisked out of the country” he replied, “We can’t flog him, we can’t incarcerate him.”

• When asked by a member of Congress for financial information about his company, he declined to provide it. “We’re a private company, and there’s a key word there — private,” Prince answered. Later he stated that the company could provide it at a future date if questions were submitted in writing.

• When the term “mercenaries” was used to describe Blackwater employees, Prince objected, characterizing them instead as “loyal Americans,” notwithstanding the fact that Blackwater employees comprise many nationalities.

Federal lawsuit

On August 3, 2009, two anonymous former Blackwater employees swore under oath that Prince may have murdered or facilitated the murder of individuals who were cooperating with federal authorities investigating the company. In addition, they said that Prince “views himself as a Christian crusader tasked with eliminating Muslims and the Islamic faith from the globe,” and that Prince’s companies “encouraged and rewarded the destruction of Iraqi life.” The allegations surfaced in pre-trial motions in an Eastern District of Virginia civil lawsuit brought on behalf of Iraqi civilians by Susan Burke, a private attorney working in conjunction with the Center for Constitutional Rights.

Resignation

Prince announced his resignation as CEO of Blackwater (now called Xe) on March 2, 2009. Prince will remain as chairman of the board but will no longer be involved in day-to-day operations. Joseph Yorio was named as the new president, replacing Gary Jackson, who took Prince’s place as CEO. Danielle Esposito was named the new chief operating officer and executive vice president.

Debra L. Reed

President and Chief Executive Officer, Southern California Gas Company and San Diego Gas & Electric Company (regulated utility companies) since 2006; President and Chief Operating Officer, Southern California Gas Company and San Diego Gas & Electric Company, 2004-2006; President and Chief Financial Officer, Southern California Gas Company and San Diego Gas & Electric Company, 2002-2004; President of San Diego Gas & Electric Company, 2000-2001; President, Energy Distribution Services, Southern California Gas Company, 1998-2001; Senior Vice President, Southern California Gas Company, 1995-1998; joined Halliburton Company Board in 2001; Chairman of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and member of the Compensation Committee; Director of Genentech, Inc.

JAY A. PRECOURT

Chairman of the Board, Hermes Consolidated, Inc. (a gatherer, transporter and refiner of crude oil and refined products) since 1999; Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, Scissor Tail Energy, LLC, 2000-2005; Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Tejas Gas Corporation, 1986-1999; President, Tejas Gas Corporation, 1996-1998; joined Halliburton Company Board in 1998; Chairman of the Health, Safety and Environment Committee and member of the Audit Committee; Director of Apache Corp.

J. LANDIS MARTIN

Founder and Managing Director, Platte River Ventures, L.L.C. (a private equity investment company) since 2005; Chairman (1989-2005) and Chief Executive Officer (1995-2005), Titanium Metals Corporation; President and Chief Executive Officer, NL Industries, Inc., 1987-2003; Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, Baroid Corporation (and its predecessor), acquired by Dresser Industries, Inc. in 1994, 1990-1994; joined Halliburton Company Board in 1998; Lead Director and member of the Nominating and Corporate Governance and the Health, Safety and Environment Committees; Director of Apartment Investment and Management Corporation and Crown Castle International Corporation.

ROBERT A. MALONE

Retired Chairman of the Board and President, BP America Inc. (the nation’s largest producer of oil and natural gas and the second largest gasoline retailer), 2006-2009; Chief Executive Officer, BP Shipping Limited, 2002-2006; Regional President Western United States, BP America Inc., 2000-2002; President, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer, Alyeska Pipeline Service Company, 1996-2000; joined the Halliburton Company Board in 2009; member of the Audit and the Health, Safety and Environment Committees; Director of Peabody Energy Company and First National Bank of Sonora.

DAVID J. LESAR

Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, since 2000; President of the Company, 1997-2000; Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, 1995-1997; joined Halliburton Company Board in 2000; He serves on the board of directors of the American Petroleum Institute.

James T. Hackett

Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of Anadarko Petroleum Corporation (an independent oil and gas exploration production company) since 2006; President and Chief Executive Officer of Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, 2003-2006; President and Chief Operating Officer of Devon Energy Corporation, 2003; Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ocean Energy, Inc., 2000-2003; President and Chief Executive Officer of Ocean Energy Corporation, 1999-2000; Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Seagull Energy Corporation, 1999; joined the Halliburton Company Board in 2008; member of the Compensation and the Audit Committees; Director of Fluor Corporation and Temple-Inland, Inc. and Chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.

S. Malcolm Gillis

University Professor, Rice University since 2004; President, Rice University, 1993-2004; Ervin Kenneth Zingler Professor of Economics, Rice University, 1996-2004; Professor of Economics, Rice University, 1993-2004; joined the Halliburton Company Board in 2005; member of the Audit and the Health, Safety and Environment Committees; Director of Service Corporation International, Electronic Data Systems Corporation, Introgen Therapeutics, Inc., and AECOM Technology and the Vietnam Education Foundation.

Nance Dicciani

Retired President and Chief Executive Officer, Honeywell International Specialty Materials, 2001-2008; Senior Vice President, Chemical Specialties and Director, European Region, Vice President and Business Unit Director, Monomers, Vice President, Petroleum Chemicals, Rohm and Haas, 1991-2001; joined the Halliburton Company Board in 2009. Director of Rockwood Holdings, Inc. and Praxair, Inc.

MILTON CARROLL

Chairman of the Board, CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (a public utility holding company) since 2002 and Chairman of Instrument Products, Inc., a private oil-tool manufacturing company; joined Halliburton Company Board in 2006; member of the Compensation and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committees; Director of EGL, Inc. and Health Care Service Corporation.