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[David Minton <dminton AT mindspring.com>]

Dave,

While you know from my postings I am anything but a mouthpiece for
Bush-Cheney, I have to say the Halliburton compensation story appears bogus,
even if you read it in Salon.

See FactCheck.org (the Annenberg version).

http://factcheck.org/article.aspx?docID=261

That Halliburton is under investigation for shady dealings while Cheney was
CEO, on the other hand, is substantiated.

http://factcheck.org/article.aspx?docID=272

Edwards on Halliburton: Partial Credit

We can only give Edwards partial credit for his Halliburton attack, however.
He implied that Cheney was in charge of the company when it did business
with Libya in violation of US sanctions, but that happened long before
Cheney joined the company.

Edwards was also slightly off when he said Halliburton paid millions in
fines "while he (Cheney) was CEO." What he meant was that it paid fines for
matters that /took place/ while Cheney was in charge. And in fact, the
Securities and Exchange Commission announced Aug. 3 that Halliburton will
pay $7.5 million to settle a matter that dates back to 1998, when Cheney was
CEO.

Halliburton failed to disclose a change in its accounting procedures that
resulted in making its earnings look better. Cheney himself was not charged
with any wrongdoing, however. The SEC said Cheney "provided sworn testimony
and cooperated willingly and fully in the investigation."

On other matters, Edwards said Halliburton "did business with Libya and
Iran, two sworn enemies of the United States" and is now "under
investigation for having bribed foreign officials" while Cheney was CEO.

- Iran: Indeed, Halliburton has said it does about $30 million to $40
million in oilfield service business in Iran annually through a subsidiary,
Halliburton Products and Services Ltd. The company says that the subsidiary
fully complies with US sanctions laws, but the matter currently is under
investigation by a federal grand jury in Houston.

- Bribery Investigation: U.S. and French authorities currently are
investigating whether a joint venture whose partners included a Halliburton
subsidiary paid bribes or kickbacks to win a $12 billion construction
project in Nigeria.

- Libya: Edwards was wrong to include Libya, however.  In 1995,
before Cheney joined the company, Halliburton pled guilty to criminal
charges that it violated the U.S. ban on exports to Libya and said it would
pay $3.81 million in fines. Those violations dated back to 1987 and 1990.

David

On 10/6/04 1:25 PM, "matusiak" <dave AT matusiak.org> wrote:

> The Right wants to waste ludicrous amounts of time and energy accusing
> George Soros of making his money dealing drugs or running web sites out
> of the Caymans.  Unfortunately for tax payers, little to no attention
> is ever paid to the corporate hand outs and no-bid contracts given to
> their side.  Sorry America - you've been scammed.  (No sarcasm
> intended.)
> 
> dave m.
> --
> 
> http://www.guardian.co.uk/elsewhere/journalist/story/0,,1319367,00.html
> 
> (same thing on salon):
> 
> http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2004/10/06/halliburton/index_np.html
> 
> "In a meeting with investors in Houston toward the end of September,
> Halliburton's chief executive, David Lesar, said the company had become
> the target of a "vicious campaign" of political attacks ahead of the
> presidential election. The company's workers, he added, "don't deserve
> to have their jobs threatened for political gain". Another reason for
> wanting to quit Iraq is that 45 of the company's workers have died
> there.
> 
> As the presidential election has heated up, so has the temperature
> surrounding Halliburton. The company has become a useful piece of
> shorthand for the newly aggressive democratic nominee, John Kerry.
> 
> He told an audience in Albuquerque on a campaign trip last month: "Dick
> Cheney's old company, Halliburton, has profited from the mess in Iraq
> at the expense of American troops and taxpayers. While Halliburton has
> been engaging in massive overcharging and wasteful practices under this
> no-bid contract, Dick Cheney has continued to receive compensation from
> his former company."
> 
> ---
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