Si, Señor Jefe,
Cheney knows how to run an oil business, certainly one that thrives on cheating the US Army and all of us taxpayers.
The main original point of this rave is that I don’t trust him to serve in the public interest.
Let him go off and make gazillions for his cronies in petrocorpland, including his Saudi pals and whatnot.
By the way, recent reports point out that the Halliburton deal in Iraq is actually two deals, one for the $500m or so to fix up the Iraq infrastructure, and then an open-ended deal to operate and distribute the goods from the Iraq oil patch: a deal that will indeed be worth $$billions, if it is allowed to stand.
Cheating the US Army?
Elaborate on that please…
Certainly, Mr. D:S,
There are a variety of interesting public documents available via this website:
http://www.house.gov/reform/min/inves_admin/admin_contracts.htm
The site also features several replies by the Army to this Congressman’s inquiries. Apparently, Secy. Rumsfeld has not yet replied to the letter sent to him (I haven’t checked the website for awhile).
and a google-check shows plenty of news coverage of the Halliburton track record as well…
The pattern is to overbill the Army for projects done on a cost-plus basis, then when caught overbilling, to pay the fine. Typically, the fine is rather modest in comparison to the magnitude of the original contract and the profits. That’s why Halliburton has continued to repeat the same type of overbilling, year in and year out (including the years when Cheney was its CEO).
It seems to me that our government must make a more appropriate response to such law-breaking than to essentially rubberstamp the process. For instance, Halliburton could be placed on probation, or even excluded from the bid process for a set period. Furthermore, the government could disallow the type of cost-plus contracting that encourages a company like Halliburton to bilk the Army. Thing is, there are vested interests within the Pentagon (and now, certainly, the White House). Somehow, they must be getting taken care of by their wink-wink-nod-nod pals in the private sector, because they too are repeatedly approving these contracts.
@Deviant:Scripter:
Oh my gosh, you’re seriously under the impression that the upper class doesn’t pay the most taxes in this country? :o
Mr. D:S,
You indeed have a point, although I believe you stretch it a bit too far. The “upper class” – let’s just call them the rich – do pay oceans of income taxes, largely on capital gains. Perhaps the top one percent pays in as much as a third of all income tax dollars collected by the IRS. Indeed, the fact that they pay in so much is the main reason why they stand to benefit far beyond the general wage earner does in the ongoing tax cut offensive: they will get by far the biggest breaks.
My position is that one dollar in taxes – or even 100 dollars in taxes – paid by the rich, is easier for them to bear than one dollar in taxes paid by the poor or the middle classes. I don’t claim that the general layout of the income tax structure is unfair, but the balance of pain has been spreading downwards of late. And those two million job losses in the past two or three years have mainly pushed the lower-rung populations to the edge. The rich tend to have more options.
Anyway, I don’t concede that the rich pay “the most” taxes. It seems to me that the great American middle pays the most, not only in taxes but in fees. And beyond the actual dollars, the middle certainly pays more proportionate to their net worth and household budget!
F_alk,
Sen. John F. Kerry(D) and Ted Kennedy(D) inherited millions. What they did with it after that wasn’t give it to the government to do good deeds. :) Republican big money dudes don’t waste time in congress. They’re too busy pumping billions into the Caymans and Belize. :o
Zs,
Cheneyworld has to get its $ from somewere. As he is a conservative he’s probably conserving it for that rainy day when the US is bankrupt and needs a bailout. Thus, Cheneyworld! :P
Har Har – now I sees why they calls you “El Jefe” dude!!
It’s a zany world, but some hombre has to run it, ey?
Cheneyworld - - this is where I head for the MOON!!
(((Speaking of which, has anyone here read the rilly fine novel, “The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress” by Robt. Heinlein? Great stuff, really original, one of the finest from a fine and imaginative (if often didactic) writer.)))
Republican big money dudes don’t waste time in congress. They’re too busy pumping billions into the Caymans and Belize.
If I was taxed as much as they are, I’d try to find every loophole too…
I thought i had just learned that the democrats are the rich ones… are they being “unfairly” taxed also? Do they evade taxes?
One would assume, F_alk, that the IRS doesn’t discriminate it’s tax rates based on your political party. :roll: :roll: :roll:
So, YES, they are unfairly taxed too. :o
