Fraud, Katrina Contracts Could Waste $2 Billion
“The tally for Hurricane Katrina waste could top $2 billion next year because half of the lucrative government contracts valued at $500,000 or greater for cleanup work are being awarded without little competition.
“Federal investigators have already determined the Bush administration squandered $1 billion on fraudulent disaster aid to individuals after the 2005 storm. Now they are shifting their attention to the multimillion dollar contracts to politically connected firms that critics have long said are a prime area for abuse.
“In January, investigators will release the first of several audits examining more than $12 billion in Katrina contracts. The charges range from political favoritism to limited opportunities for small and minority-owned firms, which initially got only 1.5 percent of the total work.” (AP)
Interior, Pentagon Faulted in Audits
“The Defense Department paid two procurement operations at the Department of the Interior to arrange for Pentagon purchases totaling $1.7 billion that resulted in excessive fees and tens of millions of dollars in waste, documents show.
“Defense turned to Interior, which manages federal lands and resources, in an effort to speed up its contracting. Interior is one of several government agencies allowed to manage contracts for other agencies in exchange for a fee.
“But the arrangement between Interior and Defense “routinely violated rules designed to protect U.S. Government interests,” according to draft audit documents obtained by The Washington Post.” (WaPo)
Court Upholds Bush On Katrina Housing Program Shutdown, Pending Appeal
“A federal appeals court told the Bush administration Friday that it does not need to immediately restart a housing program for thousands of Hurricane Katrina victims.
“The ruling suspends an order by U.S. District Judge Richard Leon, who said last month that the
Federal Emergency Management Agency violated the Constitution when it eliminated short-term housing assistance. Leon said the agency didn’t explain its reasoning and provided victims only confusing computer-generated codes to explain its decision.
“Under Leon’s order, FEMA appeared on track to restore housing payments to families in Texas.
“‘Maybe we can get this thing jump-started and get these people a roof over their heads before Christmas,'” Leon said Monday.
“The ruling by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit puts that on hold at least until March, when the court will hear arguments in the case.” (AP)
Murtha, Lobbyists Connected Through Non-Profit Organization
“For a quarter of a century, Carmen Scialabba labored for Rep. John P. Murtha (D-Pa.), helping parcel out the billions of dollars that came through the House Appropriations Committee, so when the disabled aide needed a favor, Murtha was there.
“In 2001, Murtha announced the creation of Scialabba’s nonprofit agency for the disabled in Johnstown, Pa. The next year, with Scialabba still on his staff, Murtha secured a half-million dollars for the group, the Pennsylvania Association for Individuals With Disabilities (PAID), and put another $150,000 in the pipeline for 2003, according to appropriations committee records and former committee aides. Since then, the group has helped hundreds of disabled people find work.
“But the group serves another function as well. PAID has become a gathering point for defense contractors and lobbyists with business before Murtha’s defense appropriations subcommittee, and for Pennsylvania businesses and universities that have thrived on federal money obtained by Murtha.
“That arrangement over the years has yielded millions of dollars in federal support for the contractors, businesses and universities, and hundreds of thousands in consulting and lobbying fees to Murtha’s favored lobbying shops, according to Federal Election Commission records and lobbying disclosure forms. In turn, many of PAID’s directors have kept Murtha’s campaigns flush with cash.” (WaPo)
As Earmarked Funding Swells, Some Recipients Don’t Want It
“[M]any federal and state officials whose agencies receive earmarked money say they don’t want it.
“The problem, they say, is that most earmarks don’t come with extra money from Washington. They merely dictate how agencies must spend federal money they were already counting on. Mr. Norton says the wildlife bridge is a waste of money that could divert federal funds from more pressing highway projects. His department never agreed to fund it. Earmarks, he complains, force him to use limited federal money to pay for lawmakers’ pet projects.
“The head of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration recently told Congress that earmarks are “eroding NASA’s ability to carry out its mission.” The governor of South Carolina doesn’t want a $150 million earmark for a bridge over a lake in his state.” (WSJ)
Some Workers In Immigration Raids Released
“Dozens of illegal immigrants arrested in last week’s meatpacking plant raids have been released for humanitarian reasons pending immigration hearings, a government official said Friday.
“About 100 have been released from detention centers, many to care for children or ailing relatives, since the Dec. 12 federal raids on Swift & Co. meatpacking plants in six states, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement spokesman Jamie Zuieback said. Many were released the day of the raids, she said.
“She wouldn’t specify what other criteria the agency used to determine whether workers should be released for humanitarian reasons.” (AP)
Pelosi Turns Down C-Span Request to Control House Cameras
“Incoming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., on Friday turned down C-SPANâs request to take control of the cameras used to televise House floor proceedings.
“Since C-SPAN coverage of the House began on March 19, 1979, the network has been required to rely on cameras controlled by the House, not its own operators. The Senate, which did not allow televised coverage until June 2, 1986, likewise does not permit independent cameras.
“Brian P. Lamb, a C-SPAN founder who remains the networkâs chairman and CEO, wrote to Pelosi on Dec. 14 asking her to allow C-SPAN cameras to cover House floor proceedings just as it does congressional committee hearings and other events. He had made the same request a dozen years ago after Republicans captured control of the House in the 1994 elections â with the same negative results. . . .
Pelosi, in her reply on Friday, said, ‘I believe that the dignity and decorum of the United States House of Representatives are best preserved by maintaining the current system of televised proceedings.'” (CQ)
Defeated Anti-Abortion AG Files Charges, Is Rebuffed By Courts
“The Kansas attorney general, a vocal abortion opponent, charged a well-known abortion provider with illegally performing late-term abortions, but a Sedgwick County judge yesterday threw out the charges after less than a day.
“Judge Paul W. Clark dismissed the charges against Dr. George Tiller at the request of Sedgwick County District Attorney Nola Foulston, who said her office had not been consulted by Attorney General Phill Kline.
“Clark signed his one-page order only hours after Kline’s complaint against Tiller was unsealed.
“Kline, who lost his reelection bid and leaves office in three weeks, said he would try to get Clark to reinstate the charges.” (AP)
Bush AIDS Programs Hit By Poor Records
“President Bush’s ambitious AIDS-fighting program in poor countries has pushed so hard for fast results that basic record keeping and accountability often went by the wayside, making it hard to judge the true success, according to government audits and officials.
“Investigators found the three-year-old, $15-billion program has overcounted and undercounted thousands patients it helped or was unable to verify claims of success by local groups that took U.S. money to prevent the spread of disease or care for AIDS victims and their children.
“The Bush administration says it has worked to fix the problems that were found in multiple countries and outlined in several audits reviewed by The Associated Press.” (AP)
Justice Dept. Database Stirs Privacy Fears
“The Justice Department is building a massive database that allows state and local police officers around the country to search millions of case files from the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration and other federal law enforcement agencies, according to Justice officials.
“The system, known as “OneDOJ,” already holds approximately 1 million case records and is projected to triple in size over the next three years, Justice officials said. The files include investigative reports, criminal-history information, details of offenses, and the names, addresses and other information of criminal suspects or targets, officials said. . . .
“But civil-liberties and privacy advocates say the scale and contents of such a database raise immediate privacy and civil rights concerns, in part because tens of thousands of local police officers could gain access to personal details about people who have not been arrested or charged with crimes.” (WaPo)
Pork No Longer Paves the Road to Re-election
“Until this year, Richard W. Pombo, the seven-term Republican congressman from the Central Valley, had never caused much fanfare about bringing home earmarks, the special local projects that circumvent the normal budgeting process. He was far better known for his work fighting environmental regulations.
“All that changed in the closing months of this yearâs surprisingly tight re-election campaign, when Mr. Pombo began trumpeting the money he had directed to his car-bound district â particularly $75 million for highway expansion, a gift for one of the most congested areas of California.
“But it was not enough to persuade voters like Alex Aldenhuysen, a self-described independent, just out of the Navy and voting for the first time in two years. He said he was turned off by Mr. Pomboâs earmark talk. And in the end, Mr. Pombo lost his seat to a Democrat in one of the yearâs most significant upsets.” (NYTimes)
Alarming 9/11 Claim Is Found Baseless
“The Senate Intelligence Committee has rejected as untrue one of the most disturbing claims about the Sept. 11 terrorist strikes â a congressman’s contention that a team of military analysts identified Mohamed Atta or other hijackers before the attacks â according to a summary of the panel’s investigation obtained by The Times.
“The conclusion contradicts assertions by Rep. Curt Weldon (R-Pa.) and a few military officers that U.S. national security officials ignored startling intelligence available in early 2001 that might have helped to prevent the attacks.
“In particular, Weldon and other officials have repeatedly claimed that the military analysts’ effort, known as Able Danger, produced a chart that included a picture of Atta and identified him as being tied to an Al Qaeda cell in Brooklyn, N.Y. Weldon has also said that the chart was shared with White House officials, including Stephen J. Hadley, then deputy national security advisor.
“But after a 16-month investigation, the Intelligence Committee has concluded that those assertions are unfounded.” (LATimes)
