[Henry] Bunting [a former employee for Halliburton in Iraq] displayed a towel that was monogrammed with the logo of a Halliburton subsidiary, KBR, saying a company manager insisted on ordering the towels for between $4.50 and $5.50 each, instead of $1.60 for cheaper towels.
Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., said the allegations concerning Halliburton were particularly grave, given that some U.S. soldiers couldn't get life-saving protective vests and body armor due to the prohibitively high cost.
Durbin also said he was troubled by the "millions of wasted dollars spent in the name of defense."
Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., called on Halliburton to disclose if it has been trading with Iran, in violation of U.S. sanctions.
"This week, my staff uncovered documents from the Department of Commerce revealing a flurry of business activities between Halliburton and the Iranian government when Vice President Cheney ran the company," Lautenberg.
"The documents indicate contacts between an Iranian oil company called Kala Ltd. and a subsidiary of Halliburton, Halliburton Products and Services, which has 'offices' in Dubai but is registered in the Cayman Islands," Lautenberg said.
"Despite the possibility that Halliburton - under Vice President Cheney's watch - was deliberately bypassing U.S. sanctions law to conduct business with the terrorist regime in Tehran, this administration, which purports to be waging a global war on terror, has given Halliburton contracts exceeding $9 billion to rebuild Iraq," Lautenberg said.
The New Jersey Senator said he has requested official Senate hearings to investigate billing abuses in Iraq for the last nine months but has so far received no reply from Republicans.
Surely this is getting uncomfortable even for stoic Cheney. This would be a good Rovian opportunity for a carefully-timed vice presidential heart attack.
