Every autumn, as the leaves change color, we get a vivid new picture of the trends that pull us apart as a country.  After almost three decades of incrementally widening disparities of wealth and income, we’ve entered a new version of economic apartheid, American-style. Let’s call it Inequality 2.0.

The United States is now the third most unequal industrialized society after Russia and Mexico.

The U.S. Census reports that since 2001, the ranks of our nation’s poor have grown by 4 million, and the number of people without health insurance has swelled by 10 percent to over 45 million.

Over 50 percent of 2004 total income went to the top fifth of households, and the biggest gains to the top 5 percent and 1 percent. The average CEO now takes home a paycheck 431 times that of their average worker.

2004 saw a dramatic increase in the number of billionaires. According to “Forbes” magazine, there are now 374 of them. In the early 1980s, the average net worth of the individuals on the Forbes 400 list was $400 million. Today, the average net worth is $2.8 billion. Wal-Mart’s Walton family now has 771,287 times more than the median U.S. household.

Does inequality matter?   Concentrations of wealth and power pose a danger to our democratic system. The corruption of politics by big money might explain why for the last five years the president and Congress have been more interested in repealing the federal estate tax, paid only by multi-millionaires, than in reinforcing levees along the Gulf Coast.

Now, to pay for hurricane reconstruction and the war in Iraq, Congress is considering cuts in programs that help poor people, such as Medicaid and Food Stamps. They have not yet considered fairer ways of reducing the deficit like reversing special tax breaks for the rich, such as the recent cuts in capital gains and dividend taxes.

Public policies in trade, taxes, wages and social spending can make a difference in mitigating national and global trends toward prolonged inequality. But our priorities are moving us in the wrong direction.

(click here to read the entire article)

Chuck Collins and Felice Yeskel are co-authors of the new book, “Economic Apartheid in America: A Primer on Economic Inequality and Insecurity” (The New Press).

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Friday, October 28

  COOL has been Killed

by Caroline Vernon on Fri 28 Oct 2005 04:00 PM CDT

Politics and Money to Blame for Killing Consumer-Friendly Food Labeling Program.

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This is completely unacceptable!

Note: The only silver lining is that the Larry Craig provision to exempt factory farms from Superfund and Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act (EPCRA) failed once again.

Statement of Wenonah Hauter, Director of Public Citizen’s Food Program.

The long battle over country-of-origin labeling (COOL) has reached a disappointing finish, with a decision last night by the House-Senate Conference Committee on the agriculture appropriations bill (H.R. 2744) to wave a white flag of surrender to the food and grocery industries. The committee effectively killed a mandatory program that would require labels on foods sold in grocery stores to state where and how the food was raised or produced.

As is typical of this Congress, this final move was made behind closed doors. Even though Public Citizen tried to attend this so-called public meeting, no one who was standing in line to attend the meeting was allowed to enter the room. Despite polls showing that consumers overwhelmingly support mandatory labeling, lawmakers have killed the idea through budgetary gimmicks because they favor a weaker, voluntary labeling program. A mandatory program would not have cost the government any money; that cost would have been borne by the food industry.

As outlined in the recent Public Citizen report Tabled Labels, available at http://www.citizen.org/documents/COOL.pdf, big agribusiness used millions of dollars in lobbying expenditures and campaign contributions, and a network of Washington insiders with close connections to the Bush administration and Congress, to thwart COOL. This latest effort to kill COOL was led by U.S. Rep. Henry Bonilla (R-Texas), who has received more than $167,000 from COOL opponents in the past three election cycles, making him their top beneficiary. The Food Marketing Institute, which represents the grocery industry, and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, which represents the meat industry, have been the biggest opponents of mandatory COOL. It is apparent that our elected lawmakers’ main concern is to protect industry, not consumers.

While the appropriations bill delays mandatory COOL for meat to September 2008, this move effectively kills the program because this new implementation date is beyond the expiration date - 2007 - of the 2002 Farm Bill that originally mandated it.

Rules for voluntary COOL are already in effect, yet most consumers are not getting information about where their food was produced. For nearly four years, Congress has stalled on this issue. Most people can earn a college degree in four years, but apparently it’s not enough time for Congress to institute a simple program that would have been useful to every consumer in the United States. Congress has failed us again.

Public Citizen is a national, nonprofit consumer advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit www.citizen.org.
   
    

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Saturday, October 22

  Ed Fallon's Scary Money Tour Hits Iowa This Week

by Caroline Vernon on Sat 22 Oct 2005 04:00 PM CDT

  Ed Fallon's Scary Money Tour Hits Iowa This Week

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From Fallon for Governor

www.fallonforgovernor.com

Halloween is right around the corner and over the next few days you’ll be confronted with more and more scary things. It’s the time of year when ghouls, ghosts, witches, werewolves, monsters and magicians are all about us.
  
But politics has become a pretty scary place, too. It’s scary to see the interests of everyday Iowans ignored. It’s even scarier to know the reason. Our political system has been bought and paid for by political action committees, special interest groups and corporate lobbyists. The government that was created to represent all of us increasingly represents primarily those who can afford a big campaign donation or a high-priced lobbyist. Being powerless and forgotten is scary. Big money in politics is scary.

But big money should be afraid, too, because organized people can beat organized money. Change is on the horizon. We need to elect leaders who will fight for government that’s not bought and paid for. We need to elect leaders that will fight for government that doesn’t put wealthy corporate interests ahead of public interests. We need to come together as Iowans, regardless of differences in gender, race, age, party affiliation or wealth.
  
Here is our current “Scary Money” schedule:

Monday, October 24

8:30 a.m.
Spencer Library
21 E. 3rd Street
Spencer, IA
  
10:30 a.m.
Lake Shore Café
1520 Lake Avenue
Storm Lake, IA
  
1:00 p.m.
Sioux City Library – Meeting Room
529 Pierce St.
Sioux City, IA

4:00 p.m.
Barley’s
114 West Broadway
Council Bluffs, IA

6:00 p.m.
Atlantic Library
507 Poplar Street
Atlantic, IA

7:00 p.m.
Taylor Hill Lodge
1614 Highway 71
Audubon, IA

Tuesday, October 25

8:00 a.m.
Family Table Restaurant
1525 Radiant Rd.
Carroll, IA
  
10:00 a.m.
Kristine’s Restaurant
26 N. 27th St.
Fort Dodge, IA
  
1:00 p.m.
Chandler’s Restaurant
3229 4th St. SW
Mason City, IA

4:00 p.m.
Café Diem
229 Main Street
Ames, IA

6:00 p.m.
Des Moines Public Library
Downtown
Des Moines, IA

Wednesday, October 26

8:00 a.m.
Smoky Row Coffeehouse
109 Market St.
Oskaloosa, IA

9:30 a.m.
Ottumwa Public Library
102 W. 4th St.
Ottumwa, IA
  
12:00 p.m.
Keokuk Public Library
210 N. 5th St.
Keokuk, IA
  
2:00 p.m.
Burlington Public Library
501 N. 4th St.
Burlington, IA
  
6:00 p.m.
Eastern Iowa Community College
Strahan Hall, Room 27
152 Colorado St.
Muscatine, IA

Thursday, October 27

9:00 a.m.
Bettendorf Library
2959 Learning Campus Drive
Bettendorf, IA
  
11:00 a.m.
Democratic Headquarters   
224 22nd Place
Clinton, IA

1:00 p.m.
Maquoketa Public Library
126 S. 2nd St.
Maquoketa, IA

3:00 p.m.
Dubuque
Venue TBA
 
Friday, October 28

9:00 a.m.
Decorah Public Library
202 Winnebago St
Decorah, IA
(enter downstairs at lower level)

11:00 a.m.
City Hall
Community Room
112 E. Spring St.
New Hampton, IA
  
1:00 p.m.
Waterloo Public Library
415 Commercial St.
Waterloo, IA
  
3:00 p.m.
1st Avenue Café
2706 1st Avenue NE
Cedar Rapids, IA
 
5:00 p.m.
Iowa City
Venue TBA
 
7:00 p.m.
Rukmapura Park Hotel
1702 Rukmapura Park
Fairfield, IA  

Be sure to check the events page for any schedule changes. http://www.fallonforgovernor.net/events/

A NEW WAY TO HELP:

Over the past few weeks, as our new staff members have moved in, we’ve found ourselves in a bit of a crunch for desk chairs and computer time. If you or someone you know can lend us either a computer or a place to sit while working at one, please e-mail us and let us know.

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  GAO Report Finds Flaws In Electronic Voting

by Caroline Vernon on Sat 22 Oct 2005 04:00 AM CDT

GAO Report Finds Flaws in Electronic Voting

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t r u t h o u t | Report

Thank God! The truth comes out! I knew they cheated in the last election... was there ever really any doubt? GWB was never legitimately elected... not the first time, and not the second time. My question is, how could any of our own Representatives have voted against verifiable paper trails? And when will the rest of us hold them accountable?

Friday 21 October 2005

Rep. Waxman led twelve members of Congress today in releasing a new GAO report that found security and reliability flaws in the electronic voting process.

In a joint press release, Rep. Waxman said, "The GAO report indicates that we need to get serious and act quickly to improve the security of electronic voting machines. The report makes clear that there is a lack of transparency and accountability in electronic voting systems - from the day that contracts are signed with manufacturers to the counting of electronic votes on Election Day. State and local officials are spending a great deal of money on machines without concrete proof that they are secure and reliable."

The GAO report found flaws in security, access, and hardware controls, as well as weak security management practices by voting machine vendors. The report identified multiple examples of actual operational failures in real elections and found that while national initiatives to improve the security and reliability of electronic voting systems are underway, "it is unclear when these initiatives will be available to assist state and local election authorities."

Rep. Waxman also released a fact sheet summarizing the report's key findings.

Fact Sheet

Overall Findings

In October 2005, the Government Accountability Office released a comprehensive analysis of the concerns raised by the increasing use of electronic voting machines.

Overall, GAO found that "significant concerns about the security and reliability of electronic voting systems" have been raised (p. 22).

GAO indicated that "some of these concerns have been realized and have caused problems with recent elections, resulting in the loss and miscount of votes" (p. 23).

According to GAO, "election officials, computer security experts, citizen advocacy groups, and others have raised significant concerns about the security and reliability of electronic voting systems, citing instances of weak security controls, system design flaws, inadequate system version control, inadequate security testing, incorrect system configuration, poor security management, and vague or incomplete standards, among other issues. ... The security and reliability concerns raised in recent reports merit the focused attention of federal, state, and local authorities responsible for election administration" (p. 22-23).

Specific Problems Identified by GAO

Based on reports from election experts, GAO compiled numerous examples of problems with electronic voting systems. These included:

Flaws in System Security Controls

Examples of problems reported by GAO include (1) computer systems that fail to encrypt data files containing cast votes, allowing them to be viewed or modified without detection by internal auditing systems; (2) systems that could allow individuals to alter ballot definition files so that votes cast for one candidate are counted for another; and (3) weak controls that allowed the alteration of memory cards used in optical scan machines, potentially impacting election results. GAO concluded that "these weaknesses could damage the integrity of ballots, votes, and voting system software by allowing unauthorized modifications (p. 25).

Flaws in Access Controls

Examples of problems reported by GAO include (1) the failure to password-protect files and functions; (2) the use of easily guessed passwords or identical passwords for numerous systems built by the same manufacturer; and (3) the failure to secure memory cards used to secure voting systems, potentially allowing individuals to vote multiple times, change vote totals, or produce false election reports.

According to GAO, "in the event of lax supervision, the ... flaws could allow unauthorized personnel to disrupt operations or modify data and programs that are crucial to the accuracy and integrity of the voting process" (p. 26).

Flaws in Physical Hardware Controls

In addition to identifying flaws in software and access controls, GAO identified basic problems with the physical hardware of electronic voting machines. Example of problems reported by GAO included locks that could be easily picked or were all controlled by the same keys, and unprotected switches used to turn machines on and off that could easily be used to disrupt the voting process (p. 27).

Weak Security Management Practices by Voting Machine Vendors

Experts contacted by GAO reported a number of concerns about the practices of voting machine vendors, including the failure to conduct background checks on programmers and system developers, the lack of internal security protocols during software development, and the failure to establish clear chain of custody procedures for handling and transporting software (p. 29).

Actual Examples of Voting System Failure

GAO found multiple examples of actual operational failures in real elections. These examples include the following incidents:

In California, a county presented voters with an incorrect electronic ballot, meaning they could not vote in certain races (p. 29).

In Pennsylvania, a county made a ballot error on an electronic voting system that resulted in the county's undervote percentage reaching 80% in some precincts (p. 29-30).

In North Carolina, electronic voting machines continued to accept votes after their memories were full, causing over 4,000 votes to be lost (p. 31).

In Florida, a county reported that touch screens took up to an hour to activate and had to be activated sequentially, resulting in long delays (p. 31).

Current Federal Standards and Initiatives Are Ineffective and Are Unlikely to Provide Solutions in a Timely Fashion

GAO reported that voluntary standards for electronic voting, adopted in 2002 by the Federal Election Commission, have been criticized for containing vague and incomplete security provisions, inadequate provisions for commercial products and networks, and inadequate documentation requirements (pp. 32-33).

GAO further reported that "security experts and some election officials have expressed concern that tests currently performed by independent testing authorities and state and local election officials do not adequately assess electronic voting system security and reliability," and that "these concerns are amplified by what some perceive as a lack of transparency in the testing process" (p. 34). The GAO report indicated that national initiatives to improve voting system security and reliability of electronic voting systems (such as updated standards from the Election Assistance Commission; federal accreditation of independent testing laboratories; and certification of voting systems to national standards) are underway, but " a majority of these efforts either lack specific plans for implementation in time to affect the 2006 general election or are not expected to be completed until after the 2006 election" (p. 43). As a result, GAO found that "it is unclear when these initiatives will be available to assist state and local election officials" (p. 43). According to GAO, "Until these efforts are completed, there is a risk that many state and local jurisdictions will rely on voting systems that were not developed, acquired, tested, operated, or managed in accordance with rigorous security and reliability standards - potentially affecting the reliability of future elections and voter confidence in the accuracy of the vote count" (p. 53).

(Source)

View the full report here. 

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Friday, October 14

  Nuclear Funding Accountability

by Caroline Vernon on Fri 14 Oct 2005 04:00 PM CDT

Nuclear Funding Accountability

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Excerpts from nirs.org

At a time when Congress is threatening to cut off hundreds of thousands of individuals from their life-lines by making drastic cuts to Medicaid in order to reduce the deficit, here is an opportunity to eliminate some of the pork from the DOE’s Fiscal Year 2006 budget.

The Alliance for Nuclear Accountability (ANA) has evaluated and identified seven nuclear weapons and three nuclear energy programs in next year’s budget that are wasteful and warrant cutbacks or elimination of the programs entirely. Proposed cuts would result in immediate savings of over $1.8 billion. Billions more could be cut from the DOE’s budget over the next five years and much of the savings could be applied toward addressing the environmental and potential health effects which result from nuclear weapons production.

It comes as no surprise that I have heard little to nothing about these proposed nuclear weapons programs within the mainstream media. Evidently, our fourth estate has decided that this same issue that permeated our airwaves throughout the 60's and 70's and which threatened not only our national security but our global security, is no longer newsworthy enough to share with the American people.

We still haven’t cleaned up many of the Superfund sites which this Congress has neglected to fully fund, and yet the DOE wants to pile a new mess on top of an old one, but this is one mess you can’t continue to just sweep under the rug.

Congress could save taxpayers nearly a billion dollars by simply agreeing to cuts already made in the House and Senate versions of the FY 2006 Energy & Water spending bill (H.R. 2419). The Chairmen of the Conference Committee have the most power over what cuts or increases survive in the final bill. Call your legislators and urge them to tell the Chairmen to accept the House and Senate funding cuts to nuclear weapons and energy programs while preserving the House increases to environmental cleanup and nuclear warhead dismantlement.
 
TIMING: Valid for the month of October, 2005.

Differences between the House and Senate versions of the Energy & Water spending bill must be worked out by a joint House-Senate Conference Committee. With the deficit over $330 billion, it is imperative that Congress approve the $1 billion in cuts to nuclear weapons and energy programs that were adopted earlier this year.

Budget cuts that we support include:

* $85 million for the Advanced Fuel Cycle Initiative, a dangerous and expensive return to REPROCESSING nuclear waste.

* $74 million from the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository;

* $303 million for plutonium fuel fabrication (MOX), a commercial reactor fuel;

* $7.6 million for a new plutonium bomb plant to mass-produce nuclear bomb triggers;

* $4 million for research into a nuclear bunker buster that has the potential of a million casualties but would be unable to penetrate many of the deepest targets;

* $25 million to increase the readiness to resume underground nuclear testing;

* $146 million for constructing the National Ignition Facility for nuclear weapons research;
Budget increases we support include:

* $115 million to dismantle nuclear warheads as pledged by the President following the Moscow Treaty;

* $190 million to the environmental cleanup budget for sites to adhere to legal obligations for cleanup of contamination from U.S. nuclear weapons production.

Alliance for Nuclear Accountability, (202) 544-0217

You can also send a letter to your members of congress by going to the following links:

Nuclear Age Peace Foundation has posted the alert on Capwiz (which has already generated over 1,000 messages) at: http://capwiz.com/wagingpeace/mail/oneclick_compose/?alertid=8067771

Working Assets has posted a similar alert on its Act for Change site (which has already generated over 11,650 messages) at http://www.workingforchange.com/activism/action.cfm?itemid=19499

A postcard version of the alert is attached, which can be copied, cut and distributed at local events. The alert is posted online at http://www.ananuclear.org/action.html

See ANA’s radioactive pork report at http://www.ananuclear.org/topten2005.html

See sign-on letter from 44 national and local groups to Energy & Water Conferees at http://ananuclear.org/E%26Wletteroct305.html

This Alert originated with:
Jim Bridgman, Program Director
Alliance for Nuclear Accountability
322 4th Street, NE, WDC, 20002
202-544-0217 x3
FAX: 202-544-6143
jcbridgman@earthlink.net
www.ananuclear.org

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Sunday, October 9

  HOGS, HOGS, HOGS ON THE RADIO

by Molly Regan on Sun 09 Oct 2005 11:13 AM CDT

HOGS, HOGS, HOGS ON THE RADIO

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Normally an IOWA-based radio program about hogs mentions the words commodity, pork bellies, or futures at least once.  The one this morning on 1270 AM-WKBF did not. The program "Conversation With Cathy And Karl" is broadcast on our local Air America affiliate.  It was sent out over the airwaves from 9-9:30 AM this sunny but cool October morning.  Those listening in the Quad-Cities area and for those up to 70 miles away, this is local, progressive, discussion radio at its best.  We here in eastern IOWA and those in western Illinois can pickup the signal.

This particular program heard Cathy Bolcom and Karl Rhomberg interview me about HOG CONFINEMENTS IN IOWA AND THE MASTER MATRIX.  I talked about the problems stemming from too many pigs being raised in too small an area.  HYDROGEN SULFIDE AND AMMONIA as well as ANTIBIOTICS and ASTHMA IN CHILDREN were all part of the program.

NERVOUS SYSTEM AND/OR BRAIN DAMAGE OR DEATH can result with even short exposure to strong doses of hydrogen sulfide or ammonia.  Many of you who visit this web site have read the articles I've previously written about this issue so are already aware of these things.  By hopefully stressing the HEALTH perspective as well as the SOCIAL, CULTURAL, and ECONOMIC aspects of what hog confinements represent we'll bring this topic back to continued public discussion.  

Before the IOWA and Illinois legislatures convene again, I hope to have an open forum on this matter.

To see what has happened in counties west of Eastern IOWA is crucial in understanding the life of a confined hog.  No longer is this just about a person trying to make a living at what they love to do; this first and foremost must be considered a HEALTH ISSUE. THE DAMAGE TO OUR HEALTH, ESPECIALLY TO CHILDREN'S HEALTH, CAN BE AVOIDED if confinements do not increase.

 It is also about the AGRICULTURE /INDUSTRIAL /CORPORATE COMPLEX.  Do we want our state to become a place where our health, air, and water are decimated to feed those in other states and around the world?  This is my main question. After hearing Scott County Board of Supervisor Chairman Larry Minard's final remarks on July 28th, it appears there is lack of concern for the majority of those living in our county.  He said we live in a global economy and for economic reasons the Thomas Dittmer hog lot expansion was approved.  All 5 supervisors voted in favor: 2 Democrats, 3 Republicans.

On the radio program today, Karl called this a "sham" referring to the fact that no matter how the local board of supervisors votes, the final say for permit approval or denial rests with the IDNR (IOWA Department of Natural Resources).  But at least since the board has opted the past 3 years to be part of the permit process, public input is received for 30 days after the construction permit request is received by the IDNR.

Those near Reynolds, Illinois, who I mentioned last week, are apprehensive about their chances to stop the confinement near their town of 550 (I had too many people listed previously, sorry).  On Thursday, September 29th, many of the 12 who are suing the farmer Jim O'Leary appeared in the Rock Island County courthouse.  It was the first hearing regarding a request for a TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER that would put a halt to the construction of the confinement buildings.  But since there are no pigs on the site yet, the judge deemed there was no emergency situation.

On Monday, November 7th, the group and their lawyer will be back in court this time asking for a temporary INJUNCTION.  More to come later.


BLACK ELK, GREAT OGLALA SIOUX LEADER WOULD SAY WE DISHONOR THE EARTH.

SAINT FRANCIS WOULD TELL US WE NEED TO BE MORE KIND TO ANIMALS.

JOHN DENVER WOULD BE APPALLED.

GEORGE HARRISON WOULD SEE THE INJUSTICE.

BELLA ABZUG WOULD TAKE THEM TO COURT.


In your busy week, don't forget to CPR...CONSERVE/PARTICIPATE/RECYCLE

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Tuesday, October 4

  A Flood of Fraud

by Caroline Vernon on Tue 04 Oct 2005 04:00 PM CDT

A FLOOD OF FRAUD

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By Russell Mokhiber and Robert Weissman

Russell Mokhiber is editor of the Washington, D.C.-based Corporate Crime\Reporter, http://www.corporatecrimereporter.com. Robert
Weissman is editor of the Washington, D.C.-based Multinational Monitor, http://www.multinationalmonitor.org, and on the steering committee of the Center for Corporate Policy. Mokhiber and Weissman are co-authors of On the Rampage: Corporate Predators and the Destruction of Democracy (Monroe, Maine: Common Courage Press).

As you read this article, bear in mind that the bird-brain in charge has issued a suspension of the Davis-Bacon Act, effectively allowing these corporate scavengers to increase their profits at the expense of the workers, once again. Oh yeah, let’s not forget the fact that FEMA wants to reimburse faith-based organizations for their "charitable contributions" in assisting both the victims of Katrina and Rita. Gee, I wonder how much they’ll be profiting from God’s wrath. But hey, it’s all good right? Just don’t let those lowly workers take unfair advantage of the government by reaping the fruits of their labor, unless the fruit is rotten of course... I mean, so what if many of those workers are also victims of the hurricanes and will need to find some means of rebuilding their livelihood? After all, they’ve already lost everything they’ve ever owned, so what the heck, what’s a few more dollars an hour, right? They should be getting used to it by now, don’t you think?

There's no question that post-hurricane relief and reconstruction in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast are going to pose many genuinely difficult challenges.

But some things seem pretty simple.

For example, it's a dumb idea to have cruise ships house evacuees and then pay the cruise lines as four times what they would charge vacationers.

As it happens, however, that's exactly what the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is doing. An investigation by Senators Tom Coburn, R-Oklahoma, and Barack Obama, D-Illinois, found that what should
have been a short-term FEMA emergency deal is turning into a six-month boondoggle. FEMA has contracted with Carnival Cruise Lines, to the tune of $192 million, to house hurricane evacuees on three cruise ships.

The result, according to the senators: "Taxpayers are paying, per evacuee, four times the amount a vacation cruise passenger would have to pay. Three Carnival ships are only half full and mostly occupied by relief workers. Carnival's overhead costs in the FEMA operation are far
lower than during normal cruises. The Carnival ships are docked. No fuel is being used and no entertainment is being provided to the relief workers. Yet, taxpayers are paying $2,550 per guest per week, which is four times the cost of a $599 per person '7 Day Western Caribbean' Cruise from Galveston, Texas."

Another thing that seems straightforward: the government should not be contracting with companies that have made a habit of ripping it off, or engaging in illegal and irresponsible activities. (That happens to be existing U.S. law, which stipulates that the government should contractonly with "responsible prospective contractors.")

There are many companies that one might reasonably argue fail this test, but it would be hard to identify a corporation that fails it more miserably than Halliburton.

Noting this, 19 members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus last week wrote to President Bush, urging that Halliburton be "suspended from any hurricane damage assessment and reconstruction contracts until the many ongoing investigations into the company are completed."

The abridged version of Halliburton's wrongdoing cited in the
Progressive Caucus letter includes:

* Bribery. Halliburton has admitted that its KBR subsidiary "may" have bribed the government of Nigeria for the purpose of winning a multi-billion dollar construction contract.

* Bid-rigging on foreign projects. The Justice Department has initiated a criminal inquiry into Halliburton for bid-rigging in connection with the company's work on foreign construction projects.

* An epidemic of fraud and waste in Iraq: The company has allegedly charged taxpayers $45 for a pack of soda. The inspector general for the U.S. Coalition Provisional Authority found Halliburton charged the government $2.85 million for hotel costs in Kuwait even though cheaper housing arrangements were available. A defense audit agency says the company overcharged for fuel by more than $200 million, and jacked up the price of meals served to troops. (Is it really the case that the army can't feed itself?)

To read the rest of the article click here:

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