Halliburton Employees Take $6M in kickbacks in awarding Iraq Contracts

January 23, 2004 5:43 AM

"They get unfairly maligned simply because of their past association with me," said Dick Cheney in a Fox Radio interview. No, I think it's the graft and corruption but that's just my opinion. WSJ reports that Halliburton Employees Take took $6M in kickbacks in awarding Iraq contracts. In every {war|conflict|police action} I'm sure there's been some amount of war profiteering, but this really takes the falafel. There was so much controversy surrounding this war that this finding brings into question the whole Bush-Cheney-Halliburton Old Boy Network. Check out all Halliburton news at Topix.net.
posted by cpfeifer (7 comments total)

I read this just a few minutes ago, and am surprised (altho I shouldn't be) that CNN hasn't mentioned it at all this morning. This really ices the cronyism and corruption cake.
posted by amberglow at 5:54 AM on January 23, 2004

That Cheney quote is absolutely priceless.
posted by eyebeam at 6:26 AM on January 23, 2004

I'm pretty amazed that I didn't see anything on the Republican computer hacking scandal in the papers today... (though maybe they're saving it for a day when people actually read the papers?) This sucks. We're seeing the government all but dance around in piles of money stolen from the corpses of dead children, and it's apparently so 'old news' that noone cares to report on it. The biggest thing Bush's reelection campaign has going for it is the degree to which the mainstream media apparently just doesn't care.
posted by kaibutsu at 9:56 AM on January 23, 2004

Right now it just looks like rouge employees and Halliburton came clean on what happened. No cover up or scandal. There is graft and corruption in every company and it just needs to be handled it is part of life. However it opens the door to more questions and investigations that could reach higher levels. It will take time and there is smoke it could be fire.
posted by stbalbach at 10:17 AM on January 23, 2004

Small edit for correct presentation:

"They get fairly maligned simply because of their past association with me," said Dick Cheney in a Fox Radio interview.

Now, that's fixed. Not pedantic, just want accuracy.
posted by nofundy at 10:26 AM on January 23, 2004

Halliburton's Destructive Engagement
posted by homunculus at 12:18 PM on January 23, 2004

I'm sure there's been some amount of war profiteering, but this really takes the falafel.

That's a funny line, that is. :)
posted by dejah420 at 6:07 PM on January 23, 2004