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Gold9472
08-29-2005, 12:30 PM
Army official who questioned Halliburton deal reported demoted

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20050829/wl_afp/usiraqhalliburton;_ylt=ApN4IT2L058aclHKXEkhQoUDW7o F;_ylu=X3oDMTBiMW04NW9mBHNlYwMlJVRPUCUl

Mon Aug 29, 3:52 AM ET

WASHINGTON (AFP) - A top US Army contracting official who criticized a large, noncompetitive contract with the Halliburton Company for work in Iraq has been demoted for what the Army called poor job performance, The New York Times reported.

The newspaper said Bunnatine Greenhouse has worked in military procurement for 20 years and for the past several years had been the chief overseer of contracts at the Army Corps of Engineers, the agency that has managed much of the reconstruction work in Iraq.

The demotion removes her from the elite Senior Executive Service and reassigns her to a lesser job in the corps' civil works division, the report said.

Greenhouse's lawyer, Michael Kohn, called the action an "obvious reprisal" for the strong objections she raised in 2003 to a series of corps decisions involving the Halliburton subsidiary Kellogg, Brown & Root, Inc., which has garnered more than 10 billion for work in Iraq, The Times said.

Vice President Richard Cheney was chief executive at Halliburton before he joined President George W. Bush's election campaign in 2000.

"She is being demoted because of her strict adherence to procurement requirements and the Army's preference to sidestep them when it suits their needs," the newspaper quoted Kohn as saying in an interview.

He also said the Army had violated a commitment to delay Greenhouse's dismissal until the completion of an inquiry by the Pentagon's inspector general.

Carol Sanders, spokeswoman for the Army Corps of Engineers, said the personnel action against Greenhouse had been approved by the Department of the Army, the paper said.

In a memorandum dated June 3, 2005, the commander of the corps, Lieutenant General Carl Strock, said the administrative record "clearly demonstrates that Ms. Greenhouse's removal from the SES. is based on her performance and not in retaliation for any disclosures of alleged improprieties that she may have made."

Kohn said Greenhouse had initially received stellar performance ratings, the paper pointed out. But her reviews became negative at roughly the time she began objecting to decisions she saw as improperly favoring Kellogg Brown and Root, he said.

Gold9472
08-29-2005, 12:36 PM
Senior Democrat says decision to demote Halliburton worker will chill whisteblowing

http://rawstory.com/news/2005/Senior_Democrat_says_decision_to_demote_Halliburto n_worker_will_chill_whisteb_0829.html

8/29/2005

The top U.S. Army contracting official who first raised criticism over Halliburton's no-bid contract in Iraq was demoted Sunday for what the army called poor job performance -- the first time her performance was rated low in 20 years.

Today, Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) blasted the Bush administration’s decision to fire the lead government whistleblower in a statement to RAW STORY.

“Secretary Rumsfeld has lowered the axe on someone courageous enough to speak the truth about an abuse of taxpayer dollars," he remarked. "Ms. Greenhouse was simply being honest, which seems to be enough to get you fired in this Administration.

"This action is meant to send a chilling message to other federal workers: keep your mouth shut," he added.

Lautenberg has repeatedly called for Senate hearings to investigate Halliburton’s contracts, but the Republican leadership of Congress has declined to hold any inquiries.

“Instead of getting to the truth of these contracts, this Administration wants to get rid of anybody who tells the truth,” Lautenberg said.

The official, Bunnatine "Bunny" Greenhouse, had overseen contracts at the Army Corps of Engineers, which has managed Iraq reconstruction work. She was removed Saturday from her elite Senior Executive Service position and reassigned her to a lesser job in the civil works division.

Greenhouse's lawyer, Michael Kohn, told the New York Times he saw "obvious reprisal" for the objections she raised to a series of decisions involving the Halliburton subsidiary Kellogg, Brown Root, which has netted more than $10 billion for work in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"She is being demoted because of her strict adherence to procurement requirements and the army's preference to sidestep them when it suits their needs," he said Sunday.

A spokeswoman for the Army Corps of Engineers, told the Times that the action against Greenhouse was approved by the Army.

somebigguy
08-29-2005, 12:39 PM
Well telling the truth is bad for your career, ask Sibel Edmonds. And will the American people stand up and say enough??? No, American Idol is on tonight.

Gold9472
08-29-2005, 12:45 PM
Well telling the truth is bad for your career, ask Sibel Edmonds. And will the American people stand up and say enough??? No, American Idol is on tonight.

"You can fool some of the people, some of the time, and those are the people I focus on."

somebigguy
08-29-2005, 12:49 PM
I believe it was:

"You can fool SOME of the people, ALL of the time, and those are the people I focus on."

And who are those people you can fool ALL of the time?? Why its the gun loving, war mongering, bible thumping, right wing kooks; thats who.

Gold9472
08-29-2005, 02:25 PM
Whatever... you got the gist.