Monday
Apr282008
Witnesses tell stories of contracting abuses in Iraq
The Senate Democratic Policy Committee held a hearing today on "Contracting Abuses in Iraq: Is the Bush Administration Safeguarding American Taxpayer Dollars?" Chairman Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) said this was the thirteenth in a series of oversight hearings to examine contacting abuses in Iraq, such as inappropriate awarding of major contracts, unsubstantiated costs and overcharges, and delivery of unsafe water to the troops in Iraq. Dorgan wants to create a special committee in the U.S. Senate, modeled after the Truman Committee, to "exercise oversight over contracting abuses related to reconstruction and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan."
Frank Cassaday, former KBR employee, said he saw items being wasted in burn pits rather then paying to transport or store them, witnessed numerous illegal activities by KBR managers and employees, and knew of officers withholding ice from troops going into the desert to instead give ice to friends and co-workers or trade for DVDs, CDs, and other items at the Iraqi shops across the street. He also said employees padded their hours and staffed unnecessary workers on a project, which resulted in "more government dollars paid for work never performed." When he reported stolen items to the camp manager, he said he was punished and retaliated against by the KBR ice manager.
Linda Warren, another former Halliburton/KBR employee, was also retaliated against for reporting looting by KBR employees. She said "there appeared to be widespread corruption and no system of checks and balances." She witnessed inflation of the number of troops using the facilities, sometimes counting a soldier 8 times. Warren said she was "ashamed to be an American working in Iraq."
Barry Halley, former WWNS and CAPE Environmental employee, said he discovered missing items that DynCorp had received money for, as well as overcharging for laptops. He also reported on double billing for meals. Halley said a co-worker of his was killed in an unsecured car while the armored car he would have been riding in was being used by a manager to transport prostitutes. He said "it was clear to me that once you knew the right people in Iraq, projects could be created with little emphasis on contract performance."
Frank Cassaday, former KBR employee, said he saw items being wasted in burn pits rather then paying to transport or store them, witnessed numerous illegal activities by KBR managers and employees, and knew of officers withholding ice from troops going into the desert to instead give ice to friends and co-workers or trade for DVDs, CDs, and other items at the Iraqi shops across the street. He also said employees padded their hours and staffed unnecessary workers on a project, which resulted in "more government dollars paid for work never performed." When he reported stolen items to the camp manager, he said he was punished and retaliated against by the KBR ice manager.
Linda Warren, another former Halliburton/KBR employee, was also retaliated against for reporting looting by KBR employees. She said "there appeared to be widespread corruption and no system of checks and balances." She witnessed inflation of the number of troops using the facilities, sometimes counting a soldier 8 times. Warren said she was "ashamed to be an American working in Iraq."
Barry Halley, former WWNS and CAPE Environmental employee, said he discovered missing items that DynCorp had received money for, as well as overcharging for laptops. He also reported on double billing for meals. Halley said a co-worker of his was killed in an unsecured car while the armored car he would have been riding in was being used by a manager to transport prostitutes. He said "it was clear to me that once you knew the right people in Iraq, projects could be created with little emphasis on contract performance."
tagged 
Iraq, KBR, contracting abuses, halliburton in News/Commentary
Iraq, KBR, contracting abuses, halliburton in News/Commentary
Reader Comments (3)
I saw this on C-Span. I was surprised but then again, I wasn't. I think the reason why this is happening at Halliburton/KBR is simple: Bush holds the key to all these contracts and him and his buddies are making a lot of money off of us taxpayers. We need to investigate Bush now or after he leaves office. I guarantee you that he's richer than ever before with illegal accounts overseas like Afghanistan and its surrounding neighbors.
I saw the replay of this hearing this evening. We have learned quite a bit over the last few weeks: The grisly "Yoo Memos," the 300,000 cases of P.T.S.D. or clinical depression, suicide attempts at the rate of 1,000/month (not the 750/yr. the Pentagon reports), retired brass shilling for D.O.D. in return for possible valuable contracts, the possibility of our attacking Iran, and now, more graft and greed and non-accountability on the part of the Vice President's favorite no-bid buddies, KBR. When is enough enough? Apparently, for Speaker Pelosi, almost never. She is reportedly still planning to ask for a record amount of war-related funds; even more than the president has requested. And, as the statute of limitations ticks away into infinity, she is content to let accountability for this massive malignancy called "Iraq" wait. Wait for what? Does she think Santa is going to come down the chimney and do what is clearly her duty? The G.O.P. may have kicked the ball to get this misadventure started, but did not the Dems, too, take an oath to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution? Some days it feels as if all of Washington has become congenitally deaf to what the rest of us live with every day: there is a cancer on our country, and it is eating away at the heart and soul of what made America so special in our hearts, in our minds and in the hopes we have for our children and our grandchildren. Bush's war and Pelosi's paralysis over that war are making that cancer grow and become ever more entrenched. "We" are all that "we" have left to save us. Do we have the will? I don't think we do. I think we may have all given up and are just afraid now to say so. And that is why I weep for my country.
This type of actions are happening everywhere not just in the KBR/Iraq, but here in our own country of America; it is a continuing problem in the societies we choose to live in. The good people always have to pay for the behavior of those bad people, the ones that choose to abuse their authorities and take advantage of people and situations. KBR is not alone in this type of behavior but it not due to the war it is a due to selfish ambitious and wrong choices made individuals that choose to pursue deviant behavior, those are the people you should be attacking not KBR as a whole. Those people once again have created the image that which was portrayed in this article. A few out of many who are fitting for our freedom has corrupted the reputations of those who over there in Iraq for the right reasons. People cannot govern themselves once again due to their selfish ambitious.