# One more way the GOP supports the troops **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 23, 2006, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313 "2006-01-23T22:19:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/1 "2006-01-23T22:19:19Z")
> [@](#): > > WASHINGTON - Water supplied to a U.S. base in Iraq was contaminated and the contractor in charge, Halliburton, failed to tell troops and civilians at the facility, according to internal documents from the company and interviews with former Halliburton officials. > > Although the allegations came from Halliburton’s own water quality experts, the company once headed by Vice President Dick Cheney denied there was a contamination problem at Camp Junction City, in Ramadi. > > “We exposed a base camp population (military and civilian) to a water source that was not treated,” said a July 15, 2005, memo by William Granger, the official for Halliburton’s KBR subsidiary who was in charge of water quality in Iraq and Kuwait. > > “The level of contamination was roughly 2x the normal contamination of untreated water from the Euphrates River,” Granger wrote in one of several documents. Charming. Absolutely charming. The sort of thing we’ve come to expect of Halliburton, quite honestly. Can’t let anything get in the way of business, y’know. But the GOP, who supports the troops and compares us Dems to Osama bin Laden, they’re all up in arms, right? And pigs are flying outside your office window: > [@](#): > > The Associated Press obtained the documents from Senate Democrats who are holding a public inquiry into the allegations Monday. > > Sen. Byron Dorgan (news, bio, voting record), D-N.D., who will chair the session, held a number of similar inquiries last year on contracting abuses in Iraq. He said Democrats were acting on their own because they had not been able to persuade committee chairmen in the Republican-run Senate to investigate. ---
**Author:** ![dbuzman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9de0a6/32.png) [@dbuzman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dbuzman)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/2 "2006-01-23T22:23:23Z")
You really should link to the story so people can decide for themselves. This is what RT is talking about. [http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2006/01/22/halliburton\_cited\_in\_iraq\_contamination/](http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2006/01/22/halliburton_cited_in_iraq_contamination/) ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/3 "2006-01-23T23:50:53Z")
Aw, but they’ve got a no-bid contract, they _must_ be good! ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/4 "2006-01-24T00:00:32Z")
Don’t expect a response too quickly. It always takes a few days before the usual suspects can get their talking points spun up. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/5 "2006-01-24T00:00:50Z")
Ah, shouldn’t have used that “compares us Dems to Osama bin Laden” bit, that’ll give the apologists something to challenge while avoiding the main point. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/6 "2006-01-24T00:03:15Z")
> [@](#): > > Aw, but they’ve got a no-bid contract, they must be good! Thank God for that. Just imagine how bad the water would been if different companies had been competing to contaminate it. ---
**Author:** ![Hung\_Mung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e4f/32.png) [@Hung\_Mung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hung_Mung)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/7 "2006-01-24T00:53:42Z")
> [@rjung](#): > > Aw, but they’ve got a no-bid contract, they _must_ be good! Why don’t you go join Harry Belafonte out in Venezuela-town? I bet you have a picture of a wussy, sad Jesus face as the background of your computer [kinda like this, only possibly wussier](http://www.jarvisburgchurchofchrist.20fr.com/images/jesuswept.jpg). I wish I could see you face-to-face because I want to slowly wag my finger while eyeing you disdainfully. The terrorists are winning, **rjung**. The terrorists are winning. ---
**Author:** ![Hung\_Mung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e4f/32.png) [@Hung\_Mung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hung_Mung)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/8 "2006-01-24T00:55:23Z")
And my poor proofreading skills are the result of a vast leftwing conspiracy in the education system. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/9 "2006-01-24T01:07:26Z")
> [@Hung Mung](#): > > Why don’t you go join Harry Belafonte out in Venezuela-town? I bet you have a picture of a wussy, sad Jesus face as the background of your computer [kinda like this, only possibly wussier](http://www.jarvisburgchurchofchrist.20fr.com/images/jesuswept.jpg). I wish I could see you face-to-face because I want to slowly wag my finger while eyeing you disdainfully. > > The terrorists are winning, **rjung**. The terrorists are winning. That’s not Jesus. It looks more like Osama bin Laden. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/10 "2006-01-24T01:09:43Z")
> [@dbuzman](#): > > You really should link to the story so people can decide for themselves. > > This is what RT is talking about. > [http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2006/01/22/halliburton\_cited\_in\_iraq\_contamination/](http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2006/01/22/halliburton_cited_in_iraq_contamination/) Gah! I can’t believe I omitted the link. I was quoting from [this one](http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060123/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/halliburton_contaminated_water), but it’s probably six of one and a half dozen of the other. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/11 "2006-01-24T01:34:00Z")
Couple things. First of all, if KBR was nothing but an eeeevviiilll Republican company, then the last administration would have been idiots had they, say, hired them to build 33 different camps in the former Yugoslavia and provide them with hotel services that included, yes, water purification. I guess it goes without saying they did that very thing. [Link.](http://www.dcma.mil/communicator/archives/spring%20summer%202004/in_the_news.htm) If Halliburton screwed up, they ought to be penalized in some way, obviously. But forgive my skepticism in thinking the Democrats have the interests of the Republic in mind when they bitch about these problems. They see a fat target of opportunity, that’s all they see. When they actually had to care for troops in the field, they signed contracts with the same crowd. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/12 "2006-01-24T01:45:42Z")
> [@Mr. Moto](#): > > But forgive my skepticism in thinking the Democrats have the interests of the Republic in mind when they bitch about these problems. I don’t think the OP is claiming that the Democrats are necessarily selfless public servants worrying aobut the interests of the Republic. Rather, it’s claiming that the Republicans are hypocrites who pretend to be more patriotic and more concerned about the troops than the Democrats are, but who look the other way when a fat-cat Republican contractor screws up and actually endangers the troops. Whatever the personal motives of the Democrats involved, I for one am happy that at least somebody in the government is taking the trouble to investigate issues of waste, fraud, and abuse in government contracts. And I’m not particularly impressed by the Republicans’ apparent apathy on the issue. I thought these were supposed to be the guys who cared about fiscal responsibility and close scrutiny of government expenditure, hmmm? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/13 "2006-01-24T01:51:08Z")
> [@Mr. Moto](#): > > But forgive my skepticism in thinking the Democrats have the interests of the Republic in mind when they bitch about these problems. They see a fat target of opportunity, that’s all they see. Why can’t they do both? Protect the health of our troops, and skewer their political opponents; it doesn’t get much better than that! ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/14 "2006-01-24T01:52:16Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > That’s not Jesus. It looks more like Osama bin Laden. No-no-no. [THIS](http://natasha.eng.usf.edu/gilbert/images/usf_wants_u.jpg) is Jesus, and [THIS](http://holycrap.denmark.com/jar%20jar.jpg) is Osama Bin Ladin. Obviously, we’re in trouble. On the bright side, so are _they_. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/15 "2006-01-24T02:26:31Z")
> [@Mr. Moto](#): > > Couple things. > > First of all, if KBR was nothing but an eeeevviiilll Republican company, then the last administration would have been idiots had they, say, hired them to build 33 different camps in the former Yugoslavia and provide them with hotel services that included, yes, water purification. > > I guess it goes without saying they did that very thing. So? Your point is?? Here’s the deal: I assume businesses are going to try to maximize their revenues. In an ideal world, they’re going to do that by making better products, doing a better job, and stuff like that. In a less than ideal world, they’re going to elect Congresspersons that will weaken the rules within which business is conducted, and elect a President who won’t enforce what rules there are. Right now, they’ve got both, of course. Sweet! And even sweeter for Halliburton, because of the particular soft spot Cheney has for them. If Clinton hired Halliburton as well, so what? Regulation still meant something while Clinton was President. It meant something because a Democratic Administration was more willing to enforce the rules on corporations doing business with the government, and it meant something because if Halliburton had fucked up similarly and the Clinton Administration _hadn’t_ done something about it, the GOP would have cheerfully made political hay over the mistreatment of the troops by the evil Democrats. In that environment, both the natural inclination of the Democrats running the Executive branch, and the checks and balances provided by both parties having some power in the government, worked together to get Halliburton to behave. In this environment, neither of those factors is in play. Plus you have the Cheney factor. If Gore or Kerry were in the White House, Halliburton would be the same reasonably responsible corporation it was in 1998, in providing such services. It would _have_ to be. But it isn’t now, because it _doesn’t_ have to be, and that’s a quick route to extra profits. > [@](#): > > If Halliburton screwed up, they ought to be penalized in some way, obviously. Screwed up?! > [@](#): > > The first memo on the problem — written by Carter to Halliburton officials on March 24, 2005 — was an “incident report” from tests Carter performed the previous day. > > “It is my opinion that the water source is without question contaminated with numerous micro-organisms, including Coliform bacteria,” Carter wrote. "There is little doubt that raw sewage is routinely dumped upstream of intake much less than the required 2 mile distance. > > “Therefore, it is my conclusion that chlorination of our water tanks while certainly beneficial is not sufficient protection from parasitic exposure.” > > Carter said he resigned in early April after Halliburton officials did not take any action to inform the camp population. > [@](#): > > A July 14, 2005, memo showed that Halliburton’s public relations department knew of the problem. > > “I don’t want to turn it into a big issue right now,” staff member Jennifer Dellinger wrote in the memo, “but if we end up getting some media calls I want to make sure we have all the facts so we are ready to respond.” I would call that a bit more than a ‘screw-up.’ When it’s more important that your PR department knows enough to blunt any negative reporting, than it is important for the troops to know what shit (i.e. coliform bacteria) is in the water they’re making coffee from, that’s more than a screw-up. That’s willful malfeasance. There’s right and wrong, and that’s wrong. > [@](#): > > But forgive my skepticism in thinking the Democrats have the interests of the Republic in mind when they bitch about these problems. They see a fat target of opportunity, that’s all they see. The Dems at least have some historical track record of putting the interests of ordinary people ahead of those of Big Bidness. Maybe their motivations for doing so are crass, but who gives a fuck? Somebody needs to stick up for the little guy when Halliburton is crapping all over him, and it damned sure ain’t gonna be the GOP. And it isn’t. Even when the ‘little guy’ is wearing a U.S. Army uniform, and the GOP is going apeshit saying “Support the Troops!” over and over again. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/16 "2006-01-24T03:40:05Z")
Stuff like this is more a systemic problem than a party problem. I’ve seen bullshit of varying degrees from defense contractors for several decades. The way in which Pentagon contracts awarded needs to change in my opinion, as it is now though I can’t lay blame to either the Dems or Republicans because you have strong supporters of defense companies on both sides of the aisle. The defense contractors aren’t ideological, they’ll get money to whichever congressman will push their crap through appropriations, and for a long time (most of my military career) those appropriations were controlled by Democrats like Robert Byrd, not Republicans. And it wasn’t really any different then than it is now. We just weren’t fighting a major war where we had over 2,000 dead in the 1980s and the press doesn’t tend to report too much on stuff that’s not that interesting (imagine a headline in the mid-80s about how a division that hasn’t fired a round in combat in over 10 years got some bad water and had to order more.) ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/17 "2006-01-24T10:27:47Z")
> [@Martin Hyde](#): > > Stuff like this is more a systemic problem than a party problem. I don’t see how. For decades now, the GOP has been the party that’s tried to wrap itself in the flag, and proclaim how pro-military they are while the other party isn’t. Right now, they’re doing it to the extent that they freely call Dems traitors just for questioning the mission. If the Dems have done anything like this in the past few decades (give for-instances, please!), not only have they not done so against the backdrop of such hypocrisy, but I bet they haven’t blocked investigations into it either, despite controlling Congress until 1994. > [@](#): > > And it wasn’t really any different then than it is now. We just weren’t fighting a major war where we had over 2,000 dead in the 1980s and the press doesn’t tend to report too much on stuff that’s not that interesting (imagine a headline in the mid-80s about how a division that hasn’t fired a round in combat in over 10 years got some bad water and had to order more.) You couldn’t make a headline out of that now, either. But this went on, apparently, for most of a year, and the troops were never told; they didn’t _get_ the chance to order some clean water for their coffee. You can’t tell me that if that had happened to our troops in Serbia or Kosovo, that the GOP Congress wouldn’t have made sure Clinton got raked over the coals over it. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/18 "2006-01-24T11:09:51Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > If the Dems have done anything like this in the past few decades (give for-instances, please!), not only have they not done so against the backdrop of such hypocrisy, but I bet they haven’t blocked investigations into it either, despite controlling Congress until 1994. Gee, hmm, gosh, you’re right. I guess they didn’t block investigations, as far as I can see. Of course, they also didn’t go poking around if doing so would embarass a president from their party. KBR’s predecessor, Brown and Root, got a lot of Vietnam War era contracts, many within Vietnam. And it is very interesting to note the close relationship the company and its executives had with one Lyndon Johnson, in an era with much looser ethics laws. Not that Johnson much bothered with _them_. Check it out sonetime. I’m sure you’ll be enlightened. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/19 "2006-01-24T11:40:19Z")
So why isn’t the problem being addressed? Move the intake or move the ouput- how hard can that be? What should matter is fixing the situation. The attitude of the Republican faithful is what enables such abuses by their pet contractors. As long as so many continue to believe that _any_ deviation from 100% propriety by _any_ Democratic politician provides a permanent excuse for all Republicans no matter what they do, then the Republicans will continue to do whatever they want with impunity. ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313/20 "2006-01-24T12:32:41Z")
So far, we have one argument of “the Democrats probably did it too!” and one argument of “It’s not us, it’s the system!” No wonder corruption is rampant within the Republican party. So few of their followers can nut up and call them on their misdeeds, even when it involves fucking over members of the military. “Party of personal responsibility” my brown eye! Pathetic. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-more-way-the-gop-supports-the-troops/341313.md?page=2)