Halliburton scores big off Iraq

[KCDem]

Size, scope of work greater than previously disclosed


By Michael Dobbs
THE WASHINGTON POST

Aug. 28 — Halliburton, the company formerly headed by Vice President Cheney, has won contracts worth more than $1.7 billion out of Operation Iraqi Freedom and stands to make hundreds of millions more dollars under a no-bid contract awarded by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, according to newly available documents.

.....

http://www.msnbc.com/news/958312.asp

[CBHagman]

1. Can you imagine if this was a Democratic administration...

...and anyone in the administration, no matter how low on the totem pole, had ties to Halliburton? Tom DeLay would be screaming for an investigation, as would Dan Burton.

Instead we have the perfect whoredom -- fear of terrorism used to invade Iraq, then the rebuilding contracts used to feed back into the business from which the selected vice president came. In short, they depart with bags of money, after screwing over nearly everyone else -- the Iraqis, the U.N., the American people et al.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

2. I'm listening, but I don't hear a peep.

Any of the Dem candidates gonna speak up?

[CBHagman]

4. Yeah. John Kerry, for starters.

See his speech to La Raza:

www.johnkerry.com/news/speeches/spc_2003_0713.html

Henry Waxman (D-CA), though not running for president, has also been after the Halliburton link, if I remember correctly. We'll have to see about other Dems.

[zekeson]

3. Isn't this the second time that

the revelation of contracts being larger for Halliburton than previously reported has been trotted out? Its like the freakin' Blob, instead of Steve McQueen, this one is starring Dickless Cheney.

[KCDem]

5. yeah, how many times are we going to hear the same thing?

And WHEN will people wake up? When will the media realize that it's a terrible injustice? Sheesh, I think I'm gonna be sick.

[spinbaby]

6. Isn't Halliburton still PAYING Cheny?

It's something like 4 million a year if I remember correctly.

So why isn't this a scandal? Halliburton pays Cheney big bucks and just happens to get huge no-bid contracts--that's the kind of good old-fashioned corruption even Freepers can understand. This story needs to be shouted to the skies.

[mediaman007]

7. Capitalism!...Hey Bushies, where's the competition?

I can't understand why there aren't any other companies that are in the same business. Does Haliburton have a monopoly? If Haliburton doesn't have a monopoly, why don't we hear others in the same business whining about this?

This must be the right wing's idea of Free Enterprise. One company gets all the work.

[Avalon Sparks]

20. Not only that ~

they made the 'work' for them.

Taxpayers money used to pay someone to tear Iraq down and then turn around and use taxpayers money again to pay someone to build it back up.

What a bottomless money pit all financed on the US taxpayers dime.

And it's just a coincidence that those "someone's" getting taxpayer dollars are all in the Bush/Cheney Top Contributer's Club.

Oh bring back the mythical Welfare Queen and her 5 caddies, she was a lot cheaper than this shit.

I can't believe some American's ambivalance to this.

[wellst0nev0ter]

8. Now THAT'S How You Privatize The Profits

And socialize the costs :grr:

[theHandpuppet]

12. Excellent point!

And well-stated. Hope the Dem candidates use your words as a slogan!

[NIGHT TRIPPER]

9. NOTICE-it's MSNBC !! this is great--the media is coming around-

Hopefully we'll see more mainstream media picking up stories that question the integrity of this current"administration.
Can't wait for the day that my "earthlink" start page runs a daily headline that questions this Invasion/Takeover of Iraq or just at least says just one bad thing about Smirkee--

I live for that day !!!!

Just want to read one bad thing about chimpy on my earthlink startpage !!
--If we're really lucky we'll get to see something on Faux or CNN too!

[Einstein]

10. Guilty Guilty Guilty

It's unanimous. Cheney is guilty by association. Yes, he will be impeached for this. He still has an invisible hand guiding Halliburton. But since everyone is complaining about is so much, he has ordered a work slowdown by Halliburton. That is why the gas prices are rising again. Also, Cheney is against California offshore drilling and drilling in Alaska, until North Korea is bombed, and then Halliburton can move into the Pacific Rim for no-bid contracts there too. It's getting very confusing. There is a good book about Cheney written in the 1970's. It's called "None Dare Call it Conspiracy". Check it out.

[htuttle]

18. That book, "none dare call it conspiracy", is from the John Birchers'...

...and is fairly anti-semitic to boot.

And I'm not one to say that lightly.

[dArKeR]

11. Two U.S. Firms Hit Iraq Jackpot - CBS

The price of rebuilding Iraq is rising and two companies with strong political ties are being paid even more money by the government for their roles in Iraq's reconstruction than previously thought.

Halliburton Corp., the oil services firm once headed by Vice President Dick Cheney, has won contracts worth more than $1.7 billion from the U.S. government for its work in Iraq, and it could make hundreds of millions more from a no-bid contract it was awarded by the Army Corps of Engineers, the Washington Post reports.

Meanwhile, engineering and construction giant Bechtel, whose executives have included former Secretary of State George Shultz and ex-Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger, is also getting a big raise in its contract in Iraq, according to the Wall Street Journal.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/08/28/iraq/main570624.shtml

The Republicans are murdering innocent people for their financial gain.

http://darkerxdarker.tripod.com/

[sidpleasant]

14. Halliburton vs. Bechtel

The administration's bias toward Halliburton and its subsidiaries is so blatant and grotesque that even ultra - Republican megabuilders Bechtel are complaining about it. Bechtel declined to bid on the most recent $1 billion dollar contract to rebuild Iraq's oil industry. They didn't say anything publicly but off the record Bechtel execs complained that the bidding was rigged in favor of Halliburton. There was an article about this linked on Buzzflash a couple of weeks ago.

[newyawker99]

15. Hi sidpleasant!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[Tansy_Gold]

23. bechtel can't find subcontractors

overheard at work five minutes ago.

bechtel seems desperate to get subcontractors for construction jobs. Offering high pay, but there are few takers.

i'm working for one of those potential subcontractors. they're not jumping at this wonderful opportunity.

[Wednesdays]

13. Yikes! And they thought Teapot Dome was bad...

Oh man...and they might just get away with it, just like they did in the '20s. Only the "Fall Guy" (the Interior Secretary) went to jail, and even then for only a year.

It's that magic "R" at work, ya know.

[Mari333]

16. The price paid :

http://lunaville.org/warcasualties/Summary.aspx
http://www.iraqbodycount.net/
http://www.robert-fisk.com/iraqwarvictims_mar2003.htm

[drummerjohn]

17. "Mission accomplished"

said the chimp in chief

[bobthedrummer]

19. Halliburton makes a killing off Iraq war

http://www.corpwatch.org/issues/PID.jsp?articleid=6008

[lebkuchen]

21. This piece made it into today's Stars and Stripes

I couldn't believe it.

[pfitz59]

22. Cheney is still on the payroll......

He calls it "tax-deferred compensation". I call it payola.