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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings, Torture and Big Money |
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July 29th,
2008 - Waxman: Blackwater ‘Misled’ Officials to Get Contracts |
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Waxman:
Blackwater ‘Misled’ Officials to Get Contracts By Beth Sussman The Hill July 29, 2008 Blackwater Worldwide
“misled” government officials to obtain several lucrative contracts the
company was not eligible for, said Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) following the
release of a new report. The Small Business Administration’s
(SBA) Inspector General on Monday released a report saying that “Blackwater
or its affiliates obtained ... a total of 39 contracts that were set aside
for small businesses even though the bidder may not have met SBA’s criteria
to be considered a small business.” Waxman, who chairs the
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, said the report shows that the
security company “was not eligible for dozens of lucrative federal
contracts.” “It appears the company
misled contracting officials who in turn ignored blatant warning signs,”
added the lawmaker, whose committee requested an SBA investigation into
Blackwater in March to determine whether the company improperly received
contracts reserved for small businesses. The report concluded that
Blackwater classified 1,000 security personnel as “independent contractors”
when they should have been classified as “employees.” But company officials stood
by their classifications, saying that the report “draws no conclusions” and
“is unnecessarily speculative.” “Over the past several
years, expert accounting and outside legal counsel have determined that
Blackwater’s classification of security personnel as independent contractors
is reasonable, correct and legally protected,” said Blackwater spokeswoman
Anne Tyrrell. The company has received
hundreds of millions of dollars in contracts from the government for work
during the Iraq war. “It is deplorable that no
one ever looked out for the interests of the federal taxpayer,” Waxman said. External link: http://tinyurl.com/5fwcdd |