Iraq contractor fraud said to be limited

[Barrett808]

Source: Associated Press

Iraq contractor fraud said to be limited
By CHARLES BABINGTON, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Fraud committed by government contractors in Iraq is a problem but isn't as severe as some critics have suggested, federal officials said Tuesday.

Some House Judiciary Committee Democrats questioned the assertions, saying they felt the Justice Department is dragging its feet in pursuing some cases of alleged fraud. They also said some federal judges appear too willing to seal records in such cases, making it impossible for the public to assess the merits of whistleblowers' accusations.

Stuart W. Bowen Jr., an inspector general for Iraq reconstruction, told lawmakers that anti-fraud efforts should be better coordinated, but they nonetheless have had an impact.

"Losses to American taxpayers from fraud within reconstruction programs will likely amount to relatively small components of the overall investments in Iraq, totaling in the tens of millions" of dollars and not in the "hundreds of millions or billions as is sometimes imagined," Bowen told the Judiciary subcommittee on crime, terrorism and homeland security.

Other witnesses said the problem is worse. "Billions of dollars are missing, and many more billions wasted," said Alan Grayson, a lawyer representing numerous self-described whistleblowers who have alleged fraud, under the Civil False Claims Act, by contractors including Houston-based KBR Inc.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070619/ap_on_go_co/iraq_contractors

[babylonsister]

1. Is that the Bowen under investigation because he wanted to silence critics

of the war?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stuart_Bowen

In 2007, Bowen came under congressional investigation himself after several reports of misconduct were filed by former aides. The investigation which is being led by ranking Republicans in the House of Representatives has resulted in accusations that the investigation is politically motivated in order to silence a critic of the handling of the Iraq War. Investigators state, however, that the reports are serious enough to warrent an investigation into Bowen's conduct.<6> As of May 2007, the investigation was ongoing.

[wellst0nev0ter]

4. Looks Like Bowen's Got The Message

Stop snitchin'. Stop lyin'.

Bastards :grr:

[stillcool]

2. Limited to Bush-friends..

and associates.

[burrowowl]

3. Say WHAT!

Pure B$!

[Captain Angry]

5. It is limited.

It's limited by the amount of money they can stuff in each suitcase.