The Media Fund | Title: "Halliburton"

Republican National Committee ^ | August 4, 2004

[RWR8189]

Rhetoric

NARRATOR: “The Bush Administration gave Dick Cheney’s old company no-bid contracts for Iraq on a silver platter.”

The Facts

Former Clinton Officials Call Halliburton Charges Ridiculous

Clinton Procurement Official Steven Kelman Calls Allegations Against Halliburton “Somewhere Between Highly Improbable And Utterly Absurd.” “One would be hard-pressed to discover anyone with a working knowledge of how federal contracts are awarded – whether a career civil servant working on procurement or an independent academic expert – who doesn’t regard these allegations as being somewhere between highly improbable and utterly absurd. … Many people are also under the impression that contractors take the government to the cleaners. In fact, government keeps a watchful eye on contractor profits – and government work has low profit margins compared with the commercial work the same companies perform. … As for the much-maligned Halliburton, a few days ago the company disclosed, as part of its third-quarter earnings report, operating income from its Iraq contracts of $34 million on revenue of $900 million – a return on sales of 3.7 percent, hardly the stuff of plunder.” (Steven Kelman, “No ‘Cronyism’ In Iraq,” The Washington Post, 11/6/03)

Clinton’s Undersecretary Of Commerce Says Halliburton Controversy Is Overblown. “William Reinsch, president of the National Foreign Trade Council in Washington, is a Democrat who served under Clinton as undersecretary of commerce. He said he disagrees with most of the Bush administration’s policies, but thinks the Halliburton controversy is overblown. ‘Halliburton has a distinguished track record,’ he said. ‘They do business in some 120 countries. This is a group of people who know what they’re doing in a difficult business. It’s a particularly difficult business when people are shooting at you. … I don’t think we went to war because we thought it would help selected American companies.’” (James Rosen, “Is Iraq’s Reconstruction Rigged?”  The [Raleigh] News & Observer, 10/5/03)

Army Corps Of Engineers Reject Charges Of Favoritism For Halliburton

Army Corps Of Engineers Says “There Is No Reason To Think Halliburton Has The Inside Track.” “Scott Saunders, a spokesman for the [U.S. Army] Corps [of Engineers], said there is no reason to think Halliburton has the inside track. ‘We’ve never really done something like this before – gone in and tried to fix a country while it’s still being terrorized,’ he said.” (James Rosen, “Is Iraq’s Reconstruction Rigged?”  The [Raleigh] News & Observer, 10/5/03)

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Rhetoric

NARRATOR: “Then the Pentagon caught Halliburton overcharging $61 million for gasoline. Worse, they billed over $100 million for meals for our troops that they never delivered.”

CHYRON: UP TO $7 BILLION IN CONTRACTS; HALLIBURTON; CAUGHT OVERCHARGING; DIDN’T DELIVER MEALS

The Facts

Pentagon First Discovered Possible Gasoline Overcharge, Justice Department Investigating

Pentagon First Discovered Possible Overcharges In December 2003. “The Pentagon said in December it discovered $61 million in potentially inflated charges for gasoline. Department auditors turned the matter over to Defense criminal investigators in January, elevating what was an administrative overcharge matter into a criminal review.” (Tom Brune, “Halliburton Iraq Deal Probed,” Newsday [New York], 3/12/04)

Army Corps Of Engineers Said Halliburton Had Little Control Over Price. “The fees being questioned were part of money paid on a contract to repair oil field equipment and supply fuel. The Army Corps of Engineers last year said KBR had little control over the price – that it was forced by the Kuwait government to stick with its subcontractor, Altanmia Commercial Marketing, which Halliburton says is responsible for the alleged overcharge.” (Tom Brune, “Halliburton Iraq Deal Probed,” Newsday [New York], 3/12/04)

Justice Department Now Investigating Possible Halliburton Overcharges On Gasoline. “The Pentagon has referred allegations that Halliburton Corp., the largest private contractor in Iraq, overcharged on a fuel contract to the Justice Department for a possible criminal or civil investigation … The referral followed a critical December report by Pentagon auditors that found that the KBR division of Halliburton had overcharged $61 million through last September on the contract to provide gasoline in Iraq and a subsequent inspector general probe.” (Tom Brune, “Halliburton Iraq Deal Probed,” Newsday [New York], 3/12/04)

Pentagon Already Withholding Millions In Payments To Halliburton

Pentagon Withholding Nearly $160 In Payments To Halliburton. “Pentagon auditors have recommended withholding nearly $160 million in payments to Halliburton Corp., saying the company charged the military for meals in and around Iraq that were never served. … Investigators for the Defense Contract Audit Agency, or DCAA, concluded last week that KBR charged the military for thousands of meals it never provided to troops under its contract to provide logistical services to forces in the region. The DCAA said in a statement Monday that it recommended withholding more than $159 million from future payments to KBR.” (Matt Kelley, “Pentagon To Keep Cash From Halliburton,” The Associated Press, 5/17/04)

Halliburton Already Agreed To Reimburse Military $27.4 Million For Possible Overcharges On Meals, Company Cooperating In Investigation Of Subcontractor And Forgoing Payments On Contract Until Matter Resolved. “In the latest controversy surrounding Halliburton Co.’s work for the U.S. military, government officials said Monday that the company had potentially overcharged $27.4 million for meals served to troops abroad. Halliburton, which agreed to repay the money, said in a statement that it was cooperating with the government in an investigation of its subcontractor, Saudi Arabia-based Tamimi, for billing for meals that allegedly were never served to troops and civilian contractors at five military bases. … Halliburton said it had agreed to forgo further payments on the contract to resolve the matter.” (T. Christian Miller, “Probe Targets Halliburton’s Meals Supplier,” Los Angeles Times, 2/3/04)

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Rhetoric

NARRATOR: “And George Bush is still doing business with them. The Media Fund is responsible for the content of this advertisement.”

CHYRON: GEORGE BUSH; A FAILURE OF LEADERSHIP; Paid for by The Media Fund, www.makeAmericaworkforus.com, not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee. The Media Fund is responsible for the content of this advertisement.

The Facts

Democrats Playing Politics With Halliburton Charges

Los Angeles Times Notes Political Nature Of Latest Halliburton Charges. “The latest revelations came from Democrats. They are trying to focus attention during the presidential race on the links between Halliburton and Vice President Dick Cheney, who ran the company from 1995 to 2000, and it has become increasingly difficult to separate politics from unbiased criticism of Halliburton’s working relationship with the government.” (T. Christian Miller, “Pentagon, Ex-Workers Hit Halliburton On Oversight, Costs,” Los Angeles Times, 6/15/04)

Halliburton Contract Originally Awarded In Competitive Bidding Process

“[H]alliburton Is In Iraq Primarily Because In 2001 It Won A Competitive Bidding Process To Administer The Logistics Civil Augmentation Program, A Multiyear Contract To Supply The Army.” (Max Boot, Op-Ed, “Don’t Blame Halliburton,” Los Angeles Times, 4/22/04)

Halliburton Received No-Bid Contracts During Clinton Administration

Halliburton Received No-Bid Contracts During Clinton Administration For Work In Bosnia And Kosovo. “Halliburton has also gotten some no-bid jobs in Iraq, just as it did in Bosnia and Kosovo in the 1990s, and for the same reason: Not a lot of other firms have similar expertise in supplying the U.S. military, and with a war on there’s no time to stage a lengthy bidding process.” (Max Boot, Op-Ed, “Don’t Blame Halliburton,” Los Angeles Times, 4/22/04)

During Clinton Administration, Halliburton Received $2.2 Billion From US Government For Work In Kosovo. “Between 1995 and 2000, while Democrat Bill Clinton ran the country and Republican Dick Cheney ran Halliburton, there was no talk of favoritism or political ties as the Houston-based company billed the government $2.2 billion for its work in Kosovo.” (James Rosen, “Is Iraq’s Reconstruction Rigged?”  The [Raleigh] News & Observer, 10/5/03)  

Halliburton’s Performance Praised By Former Vice President Al Gore’s “National Performance Review.” “[V]ice President Al Gore’s National Performance Review mentioned Halliburton’s performance in its Report on Reinventing the Department of Defense, issued in September 1996. In a section titled ‘Outsourcing of Logistics Allows Combat Troops to Stick to Basics,’ Gore’s reinventing-government team favorably mentioned LOGCAP, the cost-plus-award system, and Brown & Root, which the report said provided ‘basic life support services – food, water, sanitation, shelter, and laundry; and the full realm of logistics services – transportation, electrical, hazardous materials collection and disposal, fuel delivery, airfield and seaport operations, and road maintenance.’” (Byron York, “All Smoke, No Fire: The Administration’s Critics Are Wrong,” National Review, 7/14/03)

[talleyman]

Mega-Bump!

[OXENinFLA]

Bumping...................

[BMC1]

The other day I heard that Jamie Gorelick and John (ex-CIA) Deutch are on the board of directors of a French oil company which is a competitor th Halliburton. Not ?fina.

Does anyone have legitimate information on this? Can anyone do a Lexis Nexis search?

I would appreciate the help in locating the information.

[OPS4]

Bump and archive for future use.
Ops4 God Bless America!

[Republican Red]

I think it was Neal Boortz who said anytime a liberal brings up Halliburton just ask them what Halliburton does and what other company could replace them if they are so evil.

[danneskjold]

"Halliburton has become the Scarlet Letter to liberals..." - paraphrasing Dennis Miller

[danneskjold]

Here you go...

[NRA2BFree]

The Media Fund is responsible for the content of this advertisement.”

I've seen a couple of The Media Fund's ads on an Albuquerque TV station and these people are pure evil. They make President Bush sound like a criminal.

[BMC1]

Thank you but I'm looking for info on a FRENCH oil company with a FRENCH name.

[danneskjold]

Read their history...I'll keep looking...

[Jaded]

Jamie Gorelick is on the boards of:

Schlumberger
United Technologies

Other Memberships:
America's Promise
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Harvard
John D & Catherine T MacArthur Foundation
National Commission on Terrorism Attacks

John Deutch is on the boards of:

Cummins Inc
Citigroup
Raytheon
Schlumberger

Other memberships:
Council on Foreign Relations
Resources fro the Future
Urban Institute

Past Board Directorships:
Cummins Engine
CitiBank NA
CItiCorp
Palomar Medical
Schlumberger
Ariad Pharmaceuticals
Inetworks

Schlumberger Directors:
Ellen SUmmer
Tore I Sandvold
Anthony Eric Isaac
Andrew Gould
Jamie S Gorelick
Adrian Lajous
John M Deutch
Linda Gillespie Stuntz
Dr Andre Levy-Lang
Didier Primat
Nicolas Seydoux


Source: Bloomberg