Army Investigating Contractor Fraud
Army investigators are probing up to 50 instances of fraud, conspiracy, bribery, and bid rigging on the part of private contractors hired to assist the United States’ efforts in Iraq and the war on terror. “Senior contracting officials, government employees, residents of other countries and, in some cases, U.S. military personnel have been implicated in millions of dollars of fraud allegations.” (AP)
Was Reid’s Desert Deal Legit?
In 2002, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) “paid $10,000 to a pension fund controlled by Clair Haycock, a Las Vegas lubricants distributor and his friend for 50 years. The payment gave the senator full control of a 160-acre parcel in Bullhead City that Reid and the pension fund had jointly owned. Reid’s price for the equivalent of 60 acres of undeveloped desert was less than one-tenth of the value the assessor placed on it at the time.
“Six months after the deal closed, Reid introduced legislation to address the plight of lubricants dealers who had their supplies disrupted by the decisions of big oil companies.” Were Reid to sell the land, he could net between $50,000 and $290,000. (LA Times)
The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret
Protecting the identity of secret agents has long been seen as vital by U.S. intelligence agencies, and in 1982 the Central Intelligence Agency pushed Congress to make it illegal to out covert assets. But the Scooter Libby trial has revealed that, when it came to discussing such matters with outsiders, “the agent’s identity was often treated as not much more than water-cooler dishing or cocktail party chatter.” (LA Times)
Fleischer’s Immunity Deal Gets a Closer Look
“Attorneys for former vice presidential aide I. Lewis ‘Scooter’ Libby want more information about an unusual immunity-from-prosecution deal that government lawyers gave former White House spokesman Ari Fleischer in the CIA leak case.” (AP)
An Inside Look at Media Manipulation
Cathie Martin, Vice Presient Dick Cheney’s former top press assistant, testified last week in the Libby trial. She offered up a rare insider’s glimpse at the manner in which politicians use the media to their advantage, candidly describing “the uses of leaks and exclusives, when to hide in anonymity, which news medium was seen as more susceptible to control, and what timing was most propitious.” (AP)
ACLU Wants to See Wiretap Filings
On Friday, the American Civil Liberties Union asked a federal court to unseal secret documents filed by the Bush administration defending its warrantless surveillance program. The administration is arguing that, since it is suspending the electronic surveillance program, the ACLU’s case challenging its constitutionality is moot. (LA Times)
Officer to Face Eight Court-Martial Charges in Abu Ghraib Case
Lt. Col. Steven L. Jordan, the only U.S. military officer to be charged in the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse case, will be court-martialed on eight charges, including cruelty and maltreatment of prisoners. (AP)
New Ethics Rules Confusing Some
“To cut down on wining and dining by lobbyists, the House and Senate have drafted new rules that bar lawmakers and congressional aides from accepting almost any meals from lobbyists. Hors d’oeuvres are an exception,” as is food that is eaten standing up using a toothpick. The new rules seem a bit arbitrary, which has led to “considerable uncertainty about what’s allowed, and some unintended consequences.” (The Wall Street Journal)
What’s Pork?
If Congress can’t agree on a new spending plan by February 15, the government will shut down. Key to the effort is President Bush’s demand that earmarks be cut in half, but lawmakers are struggling to define just how to define an earmark, as they argue with “federal agencies and lobbyists. . . over what constitutes waste and what is legitimate spending.” (The Washington Post)
Provocative Gitmo Remarks Backfire
Two weeks after a senior Pentagon official criticized companies represented by legal firms providing pro bono work to Guantnamo inmates, the companies have shot back with statements supporting the lawyers’ work. (The Boston Globe)
Disastrous Cold War-Era Program Could Lead to Nuclear Terrorism
The Chicago Tribune has a report on Atoms for Peace, an ill-conceived Cold War program in which the U.S. government distributed highly enriched uranium â a key ingredient of nuclear weapons â to more than three dozen nations around the world. Since the program ended, a worldwide effort has attempted to retrieve as much of the uranium as possible â an effort that has met with little success. (Chicago Tribune)
