Posted by Sadie from ? (160.129.27.22) on Friday, May 09, 2003 at 5:58PM :
Dear Citizen,
1-RALPH NADER ON C-SPAN, SUNDAY MAY 11, 9AM EST
2-TAKE ACTION! DEMAND TRANSPARENCY FOR OIL CONTRACTS
RALPH NADER ON C-SPAN, SUNDAY MAY 11
This Sunday, May 11th, Ralph Nader will appear live on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal at 9:00am EST to discuss POST-WAR IRAQ, CORPORATE WAR PROFITEERS, US CORPORATE CRIME WAVE, BUSH'S DOMESTIC POLICIES, and more.
We encourage you to watch and use the call-in line to make your voice heard on these critical issues. The program airs Sunday 9:00-10:00am EST (6:00-7:00am PST).
TAKE ACTION! DEMAND TRANSPARENCY FOR OIL CONTRACTS Bush administration officials have said recently that "Iraq's oil belongs to the Iraqi people," but questions continue to arise about the role of oil and oil services companies with close connections to the administration, including Vice President Cheney's old company, Halliburton.
Rep. Henry Waxman has raised questions about the no-bid emergency contract given to a Halliburton subsidiary to put out oil well fires in Iraq. (See Waxman's correspondence with the Army Corps of Engineers:
http://www.house.gov/reform/min/inves_admin/admin_contracts.htm). The contract was not revealed until weeks after it was given out. The initial description of the still unreleased suggested it was for extinguishing fires and repairing the infrastructure. But as Waxman has discovered, it also includes "operation of facilities" and "distribution of products," may cost as much as $7 billion and may extend into 2004.
We must increase transparency in the contract process. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), who introduced related amendments to the "Services Acquisition Reform Act" in the House Government Reform committee last night. See
http://www.house.gov/maloney/press/108th/20030508GovReform.html.
Call your Representative and tell him or her that taxpayer money should not be given to administration cronies without appropriate accountability. Agencies entering into a contract for the repair, maintenance, or construction of the infrastructure in Iraq should not do so without full and open competition and without publishing details the contract.
We also recommend that you support the “Sunshine in Iraq Reconstruction Contracting Act of 2003” (SB 690), which requires federal agencies to publicly justify any decision to award Iraqi reconstruction contracts without a fully open, competitive bidding process. Capitol Switchboard: (202) 224-3121.
For more information about Halliburton and government contracts see our
backgrounder on Halliburton: http://www.citizenworks.org/corp/halliburton.php
And "Halliburton's Road to Riches," by Taxpayers for Common Sense:
http://www.taxpayer.net/TCS/wastebasket/nationalsecurity/2003-05-08halliburt
on.htm
Keep up the good work,
Your friends at Citizen Works
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For more information about Citizen Works, please visit http://www.citizenworks.org.
-- Sadie
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