'cheney Greased Big Contract: Email Evidence'

[random guy]

Cheney greased big contract: email evidence

June 1, 2004

 

Washington: A Pentagon email said that United States Vice-President Dick Cheney's office "co-ordinated" a multibillion-dollar Iraq reconstruction contract awarded to his former employer Halliburton, Time magazine has reported.

 

The email provided arrangements for the Restore Iraqi Oil (RIO) contract between Halliburton and the US Government, according to the current issue of the magazine.

 

The March 5, 2003, email, from an Army Corps of Engineers official, said a leading Pentagon official, Douglas Feith, who reports to the Deputy Defence Secretary, Paul Wolfowitz, got the job of shepherding the contract, Time reported.

 

Mr Feith had approved the multibillion-dollar deal "contingent on informing WH [the White House] tomorrow. We anticipate no issues since action has been co-ordinated w[ith] VP's [vice-president's] office," read the email. The magazine reported that Halliburton won the contract three days later, although no other bids had been submitted.

Advertisement Advertisement

 

Mr Cheney was Halliburton's chief executive from 1995 until he joined President George Bush's presidential ticket in 2000. A spokesman for Mr Cheney said his office had no role in the contract process.

 

"Vice-President Cheney and his office have had no involvement whatsoever in government contracting matters since he left private business to run for vice-president," said Kevin Kellems, a spokesman for Mr Cheney.

 

An administration official familiar with the email, who refused to be named, said the memo merely mentions the fact that the White House had been given a standard courtesy call notifying that a contract decision had been made and was soon to be announced publicly.

 

Mr Cheney has denied interest in the company. "As vice-president, I have absolutely no influence of, involvement of, knowledge of in any way, shape or form of contracts led by the Corps of Engineers or anybody else in the federal government," Mr Cheney told NBC television's Meet the Press in September, Time reported.

 

The Texas oil services firm has been accused by some Democrats of war profiteering after winning billions of dollars in contracts from the US military in Iraq.

 

The company has denied it obtained favourable treatment. Time reported that the Pentagon email was found among documents provided by Judicial Watch, a watchdog group.

 

Halliburton's current CEO, Dave Lesar, told Time: "There are very few companies in the world that could or would adapt this quickly while, at the same time, [financing] an operation of this magnitude." However, he admitted that Halliburton was not up to the job. "Our control system was not ready for the surge of activity."

 

Mr Feith, Mr Wolfowitz and Mr Cheney, with the Secretary of Defence, Donald Rumsfeld, and Mr Cheney's Chief of Staff, Lewis Libby, are considered the core of Bush Administration "hawks" who pushed for the attack on Iraq.

 

Reuters, Agence France-Presse

 

This is for all those skeptics who don't believe that Bush and Cheney had a vested interest in declaring war on Iraq. Haliburton 'won' the Iraq contract - which wasn't difficult seeing as they were THE ONLY company running!

PS: i'll be interested to know, was this story given a mention in the major US news sources? Or is Australia getting more news about the American Government's activities than the American people are?

[Gryph]

I'm sure everyone knew about this but now its out in the open. I wonder what will actually happen to him...

 

And I don't think I heard this story on the news. It was on CNN for maybe a short while but nothing big. I read it online and that was about it really...

Edited June 1, 2004 by GryphonKlaw

[Agozer]

I'd be more happy if I could get news the same pace you guys do....I didn't know about that.