http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-12571711
A US Army general in Afghanistan has been accused of using "psychological operations" to influence US lawmakers.
Lt Gen William Caldwell allegedly tasked "psy-ops" personnel to help him persuade legislators to support budget increases, Rolling Stone magazine said.
...Lt Col Michael Holmes, who led a psy-ops team in Afghanistan, was quoted by Rolling Stone as saying that his unit was ordered to prepare Gen Caldwell for meetings with visiting US officials by providing detailed background briefs.
Gen Caldwell demanded "deeper analysis of pressure points" that would help him persuade politicians to support additional funding for the training for training Afghan troops, Lt Col Holmes says.
Lt Col Holmes recounted one alleged exchange with Gen Caldwell's chief of staff.
"How do we get these guys to give us more people?" the magazine reported that the chief of staff said. "What do I have to plant inside their heads?"
...Among the lawmakers targeted were senators John McCain, Joe Lieberman, Jack Reed, Al Franken and Carl Levin.
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Finally one of the mysteries of our age has been solved, perhaps now they could employ these same psychological tricks to convince legislators they have to raise taxes for the super rich, what a novel idea that would be!
