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The role of Yahoo in helping Chinese security officials to finger a journalist sentenced to 10 years for e-mailing "state secrets" is filtering into mainland China. The revelation reinforces a conviction among Chinese "netizens" that there is no place security forces can't find them.
White House uses practices criticized in Iraq rebuilding for hurricane-related jobs.
Boeing is in talks with the Justice Department to pay a fine and avoid criminal charges related to the scandals through a "deferred prosecution." The fine may be as high as $500 million.
Private contractors, guided by two former directors of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and other well-connected lobbyists and consultants, are rushing to cash in on the unprecedented sums to be spent on Hurricane Katrina relief and reconstruction.
Private security companies say they have seen an upswing in demand for services in the ravaged Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina blew through the region 12 days ago.
A slowing of reconstruction work in Iraq has freed up people for Fluor Corp. to begin rebuilding in the U.S. Gulf Coast region after Hurricane Katrina.
Blackwater is one of the leading private "security" firms servicing the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan.
As with the hurricane, there were warnings that FEMA was turning into a disaster. The union representing its career employees wrote to members of Congress last year that politically connected contractors and novices without disaster-relief experience had taken over and trashed FEMA's professionalism.
Concerns in the US are mounting that Katrina could prompt a round of 'pork barrel' contracts.
Foreign contractor, Iraqis are at odds
Recent shootings of Iraqi civilians, allegedly involving the legion of U.S., British and other foreign security contractors operating in the country, are drawing increasing concern from Iraqi officials and U.S. commanders who say they undermine relations between foreign military forces and Iraqi civilians.
Douglas Feith, who recently resigned as undersecretary of defense planned ahead for his retirement and will not be seen in the unemployment line.
After leaving FEMA in March 2003, Joe M. Allbaugh, who managed the 2000 Bush-Cheney campaign, founded Allbaugh Co., a lobbying-consulting firm with many clients in the disaster-relief business. The firm's Web site quotes Allbaugh: "I'm dedicated to helping private industry meet the homeland security challenge."
Stuart Bowen, U.S. Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, said it is unclear where the new funds would come from, but it is not the right time to discuss more money to given the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina in the U.S. Gulf region.
The U.S. will halt construction work on some water and power plants in Iraq because it is running out of money for projects, officials said Wednesday.
Private security companies have long been a concern and those operating on US department of defence contracts are free from risk of legal penalty under the Iraqi judicial system if anyone is killed in a firefight.
Iraq's government ordered its forces to reopen Baghdad airport on Friday after the private British company that polices it closed the passenger terminal in a dispute over unpaid bills.
Chief executives at top U.S. defense contractors have received a 200 percent pay hike since 2001 compared to a 7 percent raise for other CEOs at large companies, a study showed on Tuesday.