War Profiteering

Bombing something does not give you the right to sell it...
Iraq is not America's to sell

The Price of War, NYTimes, June 27, 2004

The multibillion robbery the US calls reconstruction
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1247867,00.html
The shameless corporate feeding frenzy in Iraq is fuelling the resistance
Naomi Klein
Saturday June 26, 2004
The Guardian

Good news out of Baghdad: the Program Management Office, which oversees the $18.4bn in US reconstruction funds, has finally set a goal it can meet. Sure, electricity is below pre-war levels, the streets are rivers of sewage and more Iraqis have been fired than hired. But now the PMO has contracted the British mercenary firm Aegis to protect its employees from "assassination, kidnapping, injury and" - get this - "embarrassment". I don't know if Aegis will succeed in protecting PMO employees from violent attack, but embarrassment? I'd say mission already accomplished. The people in charge of rebuilding Iraq can't be embarrassed, because, clearly, they have no shame. (more)

Fiore presents: America's favorite contractor
http://www.markfiore.com/animation/favorite.html

CONTRACT SPORT
by JANE MAYER
What did the Vice-President do for Halliburton?
Issue of 2004-02-16 and 23
http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/?040216fa_fact

Vice-President Dick Cheney is well known for his discretion, but his official White House biography, as posted on his Web site, may exceed even his own stringent standards. It traces the sixty-three years from his birth, in Lincoln, Nebraska, in 1941, through college and graduate school, and describes his increasingly powerful jobs in Washington. Yet one chapter of Cheney’s life is missing. The record notes that he has been a “businessman” but fails to mention the five extraordinarily lucrative years that he spent, immediately before becoming Vice-President, as chief executive of Halliburton, the world’s largest oil-and-gas-services company. The conglomerate, which is based in Houston, is now the biggest private contractor for American forces in Iraq; it has received contracts worth some eleven billion dollars for its work there...Cheney earned forty-four million dollars during his tenure at Halliburton.

Baker takes the loaf
Bush's business partner slices up Iraq

By Greg Palast

December 11, 2003—Well, ho ho ho! It's an early Christmas for James Baker III.

All year the elves at his law firm, Baker Botts of Texas, have been working day and night to prevent the families of the victims of the September 11 attack from seeking information from Saudi Arabia on the kingdom's funding of al Qaeda fronts.

It's tough work, but this week the payoff came when president [sic] [sic] Bush appointed Baker, the firm's senior partner, to "restructure" the debts of the nation of Iraq.

And who will net the big bucks under Jim Baker's plan? Answer: his client, Saudi Arabia, which claims $30.7 billion due from Iraq (plus $12 billion in "reparations" from the First Gulf war).

Puppet Strings

Let's ponder what's going on here.

We are talking about something called 'sovereign debt.' And unless George Bush has finally 'fessed up and named himself Pasha of Iraq, he is not their sovereign. Mr. Bush has no authority to seize control of that nation's assets nor its debts.

But our president [sic] isn't going to let something as meaningless as international law stand in the way of a quick buck for Mr. Baker.
more at: http://www.onlinejournal.com/Commentary/121103Palast/121103palast.html

December 11, 2003 Pentagon Finds Halliburton Overcharged on Iraq Contracts
By DOUGLAS JEHL
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/11/international/middleeast/11CND-PENT.html

ASHINGTON, Dec. 11 — A Pentagon investigation has found evidence of overcharging and other violations in billions of dollars worth of reconstruction contracts for Iraq that were awarded to Vice President Dick Cheney's former company, military officials said today.

The violations by a Halliburton Company subsidiary, Kellogg, Brown and Root, could involve "potentially tens of millions of dollars" in overcharging for fuel that the company is trucking into Iraq under one of two contracts, said Michael Thibault, deputy director of the Defense Contract Audit Agency. In a draft report, Mr. Thibault said, the agency has recommended that the Army Corps of Engineers seek reimbursement from the company.

A second set of violations, in a second contract with the Army, involve unacceptable delays by the Halliburton subsidiary in providing cost estimates to the government for dozens of separate projects already under way in Iraq, Mr. Thibault said. These violations, for work that includes the construction of food, housing and other facilities for the military, could involve overcharging as well, Mr. Thibault said.

December 9, 2003

U.S. Bars Iraq Contracts for Nations That Opposed War

By DOUGLAS JEHL
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/09/international/middleeast/09CND-DIPL.html

ASHINGTON, Dec. 9 — The Pentagon has barred French, German and Russian companies from competing for $18.6 billion in contracts for the reconstruction of Iraq, saying the step "is necessary for the protection of the essential security interests of the United States."

The directive, which was issued by the deputy defense secretary, Paul D. Wolfowitz, represents perhaps the most substantive retaliation to date by the Bush administration against American allies who opposed its decision to go to war in Iraq.

The administration had warned before the war that countries that did not join an American-led coalition would not have a voice in decisions about the rebuilding of Iraq. But the administration had not previously made clear that French, German and Russian companies would be excluded from competing for the lucrative reconstruction contracts, which include the rebuilding of Iraq's infrastructure and equipping its army.

...
The directive by Mr. Wolfowitz does not spell out a precise argument for why allowing French, German and Russian companies to join in the competition for the contracts would hurt American security interests. But it suggests that the main motivation is to use the contracts as a reward for countries that participate in the American-led coalition and contribute troops to the American-led security effort.

December 10, 2003

High Payments to Halliburton for Fuel in Iraq

By DON VAN NATTA Jr.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/09/international/middleeast/09CND-DIPL.html

he United States government is paying the Halliburton Company an average of $2.64 a gallon to import gasoline and other fuel to Iraq from Kuwait, more than twice what others are paying to truck in Kuwaiti fuel, government documents show.

Halliburton, which has the exclusive United States contract to import fuel into Iraq, subcontracts the work to a Kuwaiti firm, government officials said. But Halliburton gets 26 cents a gallon for its overhead and fee, according to documents from the Army Corps of Engineers.

The cost of the imported fuel first came to public attention in October when two senior Democrats in Congress criticized Halliburton, the huge Houston-based oil-field services company, for "inflating gasoline prices at a great cost to American taxpayers." At the time, it was estimated that Halliburton was charging the United States government and Iraq's oil-for-food program an average of about $1.60 a gallon for fuel available for 71 cents wholesale.

...
The money for Halliburton's gas contract has come principally from the United Nations oil-for-food program, though some of the costs have been borne by American taxpayers. In the appropriations bill signed by Mr. Bush last month, taxpayers will subsidize all gas importation costs beginning early next year.

In an interview on Tuesday, Mr. Waxman responded to the latest information on to costs of the Halliburton contract. "It's inexcusable that Americans are being charged absurdly high prices to buy gasoline for Iraqis and outrageous that the White House is letting it happen," he said.

Halliburton Hangover
Chellie Pingree, President of Common Cause and former majority leader of the Maine Senate, is the author of Maine Rx, a landmark program to reduce prescription drug costs in that state.
http://www.tompaine.com/feature2.cfm/ID/9377

In terms of sheer size, the $87 billion Iraq spending bill recently approved by Congress is the nation’s largest ever for war, bigger than the budgets of the Homeland Security and Education Departments combined. With so much at stake, you would think that Congress would have done all it could to ensure that these tens of billions of dollars are scrupulously monitored and wisely spent, with no opportunity for waste, fraud or abuse.
But you would be wrong...

UMaine US-IRAQ BUSINESS CONFERENCE POSTPONED

Organizers have postponed "Doing Business in Iraq: the Private Sector," a conference that had been scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 13 in Scarborough. The conference will be moved to a date early in 2004, most likely in March.

http://www.umaine.edu/news/111703/IraqConference.htm
http://www.umaine.edu/globalfocusseries/

UMaine and war profiteering
http://www.bangornews.com/editorialnews/articles/411415_110803umaineandwarprofi_.cfm

A commentary written by Douglas Allen, a University of Maine philosophy professor, Ilze Petersons and Eric T. Olson, a UMaine alumnus. All three are members of the Peace & Justice Center of Eastern Maine. More than 100 people have additionally signed this commentary in support.

Why should Maine citizens be concerned about the University of Maine's sponsorship of a conference on "Doing Business in Iraq"? The Bangor Daily News (Nov. 1-2) quoted the founder of the U.S.-Iraq Business Alliance, Dennis Sokol, who sees only profit-making opportunities in Iraq. "When there are diamonds and gold out in the streets, you don't wait a couple of years to pick it up."

Bring Halliburton Home
by Naomi Klein
Posted November 6, 2003
http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20031124&s=klein

...[T]he US Army's Law of Land Warfare states that "the occupant does not have the right of sale or unqualified use of [nonmilitary] property." This is pretty straightforward: Bombing something does not give you the right to sell it...
Even if the selloff of Iraq were conducted with full transparency and open bidding, it would still be illegal for the simple reason that Iraq is not America's to sell.

PROFITEERS FOR HIRE
JIm Hightower
11/4/2003
http://www.jimhightower.com/air/read.asp?id=11223

Sometimes I miss the old days. Remember back when "war profiteering" actually was thought to be a bad thing? Indeed, Harry Truman considered it treason.
But now, multi-billion-dollar profiteering by such names as Halliburton, Bechtel, and Boeing has become such a booming business that a new kind of corporate consultant has sprung up: Profiteering facilitator.

Rage Erupts over Iraq War Profiteering
http://www.truthout.org/docs_03/110603F.shtml

A decision by the House Republicans to strip the Iraq supplemental bill of an anti-profiteering provision has outraged the Democrats.
The provision — included during the Senate Appropriations Committee markup with unanimous support but removed in conference — would have subjected those who deliberately defrauded the United States or Iraq to jail terms of up to 20 years and costly fines.

HALLIBURTON CONTRACT EXTENSION CANCELLED AMID ALLEGATIONS OF OVERCHARGING
TAXPAYERS
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1144461&l=8013

The Army Corps of Engineers is "likely" to cancel the no-bid contract extension granted a week ago to Halliburton for delivery of oil-related services amid allegations that Halliburton is overcharging the federal government to import oil into Iraq. The decision to revisit the contract extension comes in part due to the assertions from inside the Pentagon that Halliburton's price for imported gasoline was "at least double what it should be."

The Real Winners
A rogue's gallery of war profiteers.
BY TODD TAVARES
http://www.dollarsandsense.org/archives/2003/0703tavares.html
Even as bombs were raining down on Baghdad, a short list of private beneficiaries was being drawn up behind closed doors. As the invasion entered its final phase, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Army Corps of Engineers (funded through the Pentagon) began doling out contracts.

November 2 BDN Story on UMaine sponsored conference:
http://www.bangornews.com/editorialnews/printarticle.cfm/ID/411003

UMaine to Co-Host Conference on Private Sector Business in Iraq;
Speakers to Include Key Members of Iraqi Governing Council and Weinberger

See UMaine Press Release here:
http://www.umaine.edu/news/102703/Iraq.htm
Great News! Sale! The admission price has been lowered from $1500 to $850!

(UMaine co-sponsored) Conference to examine business in post-war Iraq
http://www.pressherald.com/business/stories/030924iraqbiz.shtml
By MATT WICKENHEISER, Portland Press Herald Writer

Former Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger is among the speakers for the $1,500-per-person UMaine co-sponsored event.
The University of Maine will co-sponsor a high-level conference in Scarborough exploring business opportunities in Iraq, with speakers including former Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger.

Brokering War Spoils Should Not be the Business of the UMaine College of Business http://deep_blade.tripod.com/journal/

The invasion of Iraq is in large part about major multinational corporations divvying up the spoils of war while tens of billions of U.S. taxpayer dollars are captured by these corporations to support their taking of the country. Deep Blade Journal is a web site developed by Eric Olson, a Peace and Justice Center member that includes a blog on peace and justice issues

Windfalls of War
U.S. Contractors Reap the Windfalls of Postwar Reconstruction
http://www.publicintegrity.org/wow/

(WASHINGTON, October 30, 2003) - More than 70 American companies and individuals have won up to $8 billion in contracts for work in postwar Iraq and Afghanistan over the last two years, according to a new study by the Center for Public Integrity. Those companies contributed more money to the presidential campaign of George W. Bush -- more than $500,000 -- than to any other politician over the last dozen years, the Center found.

Report Links Iraq Deals to Bush Donations
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: October 30, 2003
Filed at 11:32 a.m. ET
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/international/AP-Iraq-Contracts.html

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Companies awarded $8 billion in contracts to rebuild Iraq and Afghanistan have been major campaign donors to President Bush, and their executives have had important political and military connections, according to a study released Thursday.
The study of more than 70 U.S. companies and individual contractors turned up more than $500,000 in donations to the president's 2000 campaign, more than they gave collectively to any other politician over the past dozen years.

Big Bucks in Iraq
http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20031110&s=shorrock
by Tim Shorrock
comment | Posted October 23, 2003

K Street on the Tigris
http://www.motherjones.com/news/outfront/2003/40/ma_556_01.html

Washington insiders are lining up to help corporate clients cash in on rebuilding Iraq, whether the Iraqis like it or not.
By Michael Scherer
Additional Reporting by Jaideep Singh

Washington Insiders' New Firm Consults on Contracts in Iraq
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/30/politics/30LOBB.html?ex=1065938106&ei=1&en=624fc2be049543a0
September 30, 2003
By DOUGLAS JEHL

Businessmen linked by their close ties to President Bush have set up a firm to advise companies that want to do business in Iraq.

ABSTRACT - Businessmen linked by their close ties to Pres Bush, his family and his administration set up consulting firm to advise companies that want to do business in Iraq, including those seeking pieces of taxpayer-financed reconstruction projects; firm, New Bridge Strategies, is headed by Joe M Allbaugh, Bush's campaign manager in 2000 and director of Federal Emergency Management Agency until March; other directors include Edward M Rogers Jr and Lanny Griffith, lobbyists who were assistants to first Pres Bush and now have close ties to White House; new company's Web site calls attention to links between its directors and two Bush administrations; John Howland, president of company, says it does not intend to seek any US government contracts itself, but might be middleman to advise other companies that seek taxpayer-financed business; says company is not trying to promote its political connections...

Let the serious looting begin
http://www.workingforchange.com/printitem.cfm?itemid=15673
Geov Parrish - WorkingForChange.com

"Iraq was effectively put up for sale yesterday, when the US-backed administration unveiled a sweeping overhaul of the economy, giving foreign companies unprecedented access to Iraqi firms which are to be sold off in a privatisation windfall."

UMaine and war profiteering

But many of us ask who will pay the price for these corporate profit gems. Our troops and Iraqi civilians who are dying so that the wealthy elite can make a financial killing in Iraq? Mainers and other Americans who see billions of their tax dollars poured into private contracts for rebuilding Iraq? Iraqis who have suffered under Saddam, sanctions, and war and now offer a great opportunity for the war-profiteering "gold rush" by multinational corporations?

Should the University of Maine be a willing partner and benefit from the war profiteering of corporations who will pay $850 to attend the conference to hear about "investment opportunities, the privatization of the country's rich oil fields, security needs and priority development such as communications and health care"? The BDN also reported that the university has paid $1,500 to become one of the forty members of the alliance, along with for-profit corporations paying from $5,000 to $25,000 to join.

On Sept. 19, Paul Bremer's U.S.-controlled Coalition Provisional Authority issued Order 39 by decree. These new "laws," promoted by the Alliance, allow foreign investors to own 100 percent of any Iraqi asset except oil and real estate and to remit profits and royalties when they choose. They reduce import tariffs to 5 percent, allow foreign banks to take over Iraq's banking system, and, according to U.S.-appointed finance minister, Kamel al-Gailani, offer Iraq as "one of the most open countries in the world" for the huge corporations attending the UMaine conference.

According to Geov Parrish of Working for Change, foreign firms will be able to bid on l92 of Iraq's public-sector companies. "The plan allows for more access to the Iraq economy than almost any other developing nation - with lower taxes, no limit on the amount of money that may be taken out of the country, no requirements that Iraqis be hired or otherwise benefit from the successful bidders' operations." According to Rania Masri of the Institute of Southern Studies, "A handful of Bush-connected corporations are poised to make billions in profit while U.S. troops are killed almost daily and Iraq plunges deeper into a colonial nightmare."

If the U.S.-Iraq Business Alliance respects Iraq's right to seek "to have a free, fair and open democratic society that will make its own decisions," as the executive director of the Alliance claims, how can he also predetermine for the Iraqi people that "It's the American private sector that will restore Iraq's greatness" (as quoted in the BDN). Furthermore, the alliance was formed in June 2002, eight months prior to the time President Bush announced he had finally decided to invade Iraq. Clearly, the profit motive was in play long before the president promoted his questionable case for attacking. Can an invasion and subsequent economic transformation on these terms lead to democracy for the Iraqis? We think not.

This past October the U.S.-Iraq Alliance sponsored a conference in London similar to one being sponsored by the University of Maine. It was attended by about 100 private companies, mainly from Britain and the United States, to discuss investment opportunities in post-Saddam Iraq. Corporate delegates were greeted by protestors from Voices UK, a group opposed to the war in Iraq. A spokesperson for the protestors said: "After 13 years of war and economic sanctions Iraqis need a reconstruction process that they control and which is centered on their needs. What we are seeing is war profiteering on a grand scale and cronyism. Not only are there concerns about how much ordinary Iraqis will benefit, but it is actually delaying the reconstruction of the country with potentially catastrophic consequences. It is outrageous that the United States and Britain, having illegally invaded and occupied Iraq, are now forcing their free market ideology on the country whilst selling its assets off in what can only be described as a fire-sale."

A recent study by the Center for Public Integrity found that the 10 largest contracts granted without competitive bidding in Iraq were major campaign donors to President Bush. The top contractor was Halliburton, the company headed by Vice President Cheney before he resigned to run with Bush in 2000. The second largest contractor was Bechtel, with former Secretary of State George Shultz on its board of directors. The keynote speaker for the "Doing Business in Iraq" conference will be Caspar Weinberger who was Secretary of Defense under President Ronald Reagan and formerly vice president and general counsel of the Bechtel Group Cos.

The University of Maine may sponsor this conference under the guise of academic freedom, but we question its priorities and academic integrity. We question the university's complicity with the business of the exploitation of the Iraqi people by multinational corporations so closely entwined with the Bush administration and without the necessary structures in place for Iraqis to decide their own future democratically.

This commentary was written by Douglas Allen, a University of Maine philosophy professor, Ilze Petersons and Eric T. Olson, a UMaine alumnus. All three are members of the Peace & Justice Center of Eastern Maine. More than 100 people have additionally signed this commentary in support.

Baker takes the loaf Bush's business partner slices up Iraq

December 9, 2003

U.S. Bars Iraq Contracts for Nations That Opposed War

December 10, 2003

High Payments to Halliburton for Fuel in Iraq

Baker takes the loaf
Bush's business partner slices up Iraq