Who Keeps Tabs on Contractors in Iraq?

[Barrett808]

Who Keeps Tabs on Contractors in Iraq?
By DEBORAH HASTINGS, AP National Writer

There is no centralized procedure for monitoring scores of contracting firms rebuilding

Iraq with U.S. funds, according to the military. The controls that do exist have been criticized for failing to keep track of millions.

Instead, most contracts are monitored by the individual agencies that award them. The Army Corps of Engineers, for example, which issues the bulk of reconstruction work, has its own inspectors and quality assurance monitors. The U.S. Defense Contract Management Agency provides oversight on behalf of the Army for troop support contracts — private firms that do everything from serving meals to washing combat fatigues.

Congress has set aside $18.4 million to help Iraq rebuild its roads, water systems, airports, rail lines, seaports, housing and other needed projects. The total cost of reconstruction has been estimated at $150 billion.

...

Last month, investigators said incompetence and "indications of fraud" was responsible for nearly $100 million in cash not being accounted for by the CPA. That amount included more than $7 million that simply vanished, according to the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, appointed in January 2004 to serve as a U.S. government watchdog for Iraqi reconstruction.

The CPA, predominantly run by Americans, has provided a poor example for reconstruction, critics say. Millions handed out to contractors including Custer Battles has not been accounted for, auditors said.

(more)

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050612/ap_on_re_mi_ea/contractors_the_minders

[maddezmom]

1. 7 million simply vanished...dear lord

:eyes: and they are still getting contracts.

[bemildred]

2. Nobody. Iraq is not about accountability. nt

[LiberalFighter]

12. You are wrong!!!!

Cheney keeps track

[movonne]

3. Rate this...

[leQ]

4. kicked

[maddezmom]

5. Banned Contractor Soliciting Iraq Deals (Custer Battles)

By DEBORAH HASTINGS, AP National Writer
44 minutes ago



Former executives of Custer Battles — an American firm accused of stealing millions from Iraq reconstruction projects and banned from further government contracts — have continued doing contracting work and have formed new companies to bid on such projects, The Associated Press has learned.


This may or may not be illegal, military officials say; Custer Battles officials deny any wrongdoing.

The new companies (there are at least three) are all headed by Rob Roy Trumble, who previously was operations chief for Custer Battles, according to state records.

The fledgling firms have different names but all are housed in the same office as Custer Battles — Suite 100 on Hammerlund Way in Middletown, R.I., 3,000 square feet on the ground floor of a squat building in an industrial park.

~snip~
more: http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050612/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_contractors_1

[Racenut20]

6. Looks like everything is on the up and up to me. LOL

[Barrett808]

7. Banned Contractor Soliciting Iraq Deals (Custer Battles)

Banned Contractor Soliciting Iraq Deals
By DEBORAH HASTINGS, AP National Writer

Former executives of Custer Battles — an American firm accused of stealing millions from Iraq reconstruction projects and banned from further government contracts — have continued doing contracting work and have formed new companies to bid on such projects, The Associated Press has learned.

This may or may not be illegal, military officials say; Custer Battles officials deny any wrongdoing.

The new companies (there are at least three) are all headed by Rob Roy Trumble, who previously was operations chief for Custer Battles, according to state records.

The fledgling firms have different names but all are housed in the same office as Custer Battles — Suite 100 on Hammerlund Way in Middletown, R.I., 3,000 square feet on the ground floor of a squat building in an industrial park.

Meanwhile, Custer Battles' former chief financial officer Joseph Morris, accused of submitting fake invoices to the government, has been working for another American contractor in Iraq, according to interviews.

(more)

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050612/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_contractors

[alfredo]

8. Wasn't this what it was all about?

If there wasn't a true threat to our nation or to Iraq's neighbors, then why else did we invade?

[Karenina]

9. Can you not hear

that GIANT $UCKING $OUND??? ;-)

[alfredo]

17. That sucking sound is from the corporate media smooching bush's

ass.

[Karenina]

19. Among other thing$

:puke:

[alfredo]

20. Banish that thought....

[Patty Diana]

10. an error 18.4 million should be 18.4 Billion

it was in the 87 billion supplemental that caused a great deal of outrage

[cliss]

11. Well, we shouldn't worry too much.

I say give it another 1 1/2 years, and the treasury will be broke. We won't be able to hand out any more "reconstruction" contracts, because our foreign financiers will have run out of patience.


And just think, NONE of this has been paid for. The entire Iraq war was financed from borrowed funds. Not one penny has been paid, as far as I know.

We have debt, as far as the eye can see.

[Anywho6]

13. Banned Contractor Soliciting Iraq Deals

By DEBORAH HASTINGS, AP National Writer

Former executives of Custer Battles — an American firm accused of stealing millions from Iraq reconstruction projects and banned from further government contracts — have continued doing contracting work and have formed new companies to bid on such projects, The Associated Press has learned.

This may or may not be illegal, military officials say; Custer Battles officials deny any wrongdoing.

The new companies (there are at least three) are all headed by Rob Roy Trumble, who previously was operations chief for Custer Battles, according to state records.

The fledgling firms have different names but all are housed in the same office as Custer Battles — Suite 100 on Hammerlund Way in Middletown, R.I., 3,000 square feet on the ground floor of a squat building in an industrial park.

More...

<http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050612/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_contractors_2>

[POAS]

14. War profiteers used to go to jail n/t

[K-W]

15. The pentagon is full of defence contractors.

Of course they arent monitering themselves.

[indepat]

16. We don't need to keep a freakin' tab on contractors: trust them and don't

verify.

[alfredo]

18. Trust the magic of the marketplace.

If God didn't consider them righteous, he would have given them such great wealth.