War Profiteers Fed By Your Taxes - What You Can Do

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Following from Common Cause:

Something is wrong.  Every day, more information emerges about a disturbing trend in Iraq, private contractors enriching themselves at public expense.  Just today, more stories emerged about Halliburton, including a report by auditors at the Pentagon that found serious problems with overcharging and waste on contracts presently worth over $4 billion.  Next week, executives of the defense contractor are being called to testify before Congress on the growing scandal.

You CAN do something about it.  Call your Senators and ask them to support the Leahy Amendment to deter war profiteering.  You can reach the Senate switchboard at [phone].

On Wednesday, June 16, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) is expected to offer an amendment to the Department of Defense Authorization Bill (S. 2400) that will deter contractors from defrauding the government.  Leahy’s anti-war-profiteering amendment would subject contractors working abroad for Uncle Sam with stiff penalties – up to 20 years in jail and $1 million in fines – if they overcharged, cheated, or lied to the government.  

We need strong bipartisan support for this amendment and we need your direct appeals to your Senators to push this forward.  So if you’re unhappy about contracting in Iraq, please call your Senators and ask them to vote for the Leahy anti-war profiteering amendment.

US Senate Switchboard: [phone].
Find your senators here: http://www.senate.gov

Halliburton lived large at taxpayer expense
    Democrats in the House of Representatives, who are feuding with Republicans over whether the spending should be publicly aired at a hearing today, released signed statements Monday by five ex-Halliburton employees recounting the lavish spending.
Those former employees contend that the firm once headed by Vice President Dick Cheney:

Lodged 100 workers at a five-star hotel in Kuwait for a total of $10,000 a day while the Pentagon wanted them to stay in tents, like soldiers, at $139 a night.

Abandoned $85,000 trucks because of flat tires and minor problems.

Spent $1.50 a can to buy 37,200 cans of soda in Kuwait, about 24 times higher than the contract price.

Knowingly paid subcontractors twice for the same bill.

Halliburton is already under fire for allegations of overcharging the Pentagon for fuel and soldiers' meals. The latest accusations center on whether Halliburton properly keeps track of its bills from smaller subcontractors, Pentagon auditors said in a report released Monday by Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif.

more:
http://www.sltrib.com/2004/Jun/06152004/nation_w/175543.asp


Connect the Dots
Connect the Dots Between Iraq and America Through Halliburton
http://www.independent-media.tv/item.cfm?fmedia_id=7746&fcategory_desc=Under%20Reported


HalliburtonWatch: Pentagon Broke Contract Laws To Help Halliburton
The GAO told Congressional investigators today that Pentagon officials "overstepped the latitude provided by competition laws" before the war by awarding oil-related work to Halliburton under a pre- existing global logistics contract (LOGCAP).

Testimony before the House Committee on Government Reform hearing confirmed today that Bush administration political appointees overruled career contracting officials in the Pentagon by giving Halliburton the oil-related task order months before the invasion of Iraq.

http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=174-06152004