Betsy Devine: Funny ha-ha and/or funny peculiar

Who’s watching out for our $87 billion? Hey, I’m in favor of helping to rebuild Iraq, but I’d like some government oversight of how its spent.

Republicans disagree. According to
Klaus Marre in The Hill

A decision by the House Republicans to strip the Iraq supplemental bill of an anti-profiteering provision has outraged the Democrats…

The provision — included during the Senate Appropriations Committee markup with unanimous support but removed in conference — would …slap penalties on those who “materially [overvalue] any good or service with the specific intent to excessively profit from the war, military action, or relief or reconstruction activities in Iraq.”

OK, call me suspicious, but this missing provision sounded good to me. Why? For a number of reasons….

• Last week, the Center for Public Integrity reported that Halliburton, Bechtel, and other big winners so far of Iraq reconstruction contracts got billions in contracts after giving mere millions in campaign contributions.
• Last week, even conservatives like David Brooks expressed outrage that a cushy lease deal for Boeing in Iraq, on the fast track thanks to Republican intervention, would cost taxpayers $5.6 BILLION more than just buying the airplanes we need.
• Last week, Halliburton had to reply to charges that it was charging the US three times the going price for gasoline in Iraq.

But, as the old joke says, “Who’s counting?”

Not our Republican leadership, that’s for sure.