DEMOCRACY RISING: BUSH FAMILY'S WAR PROFITEERING --
democracyrising.us
The Bush Family's War Profiteering
Thursday, 24 February 2005
The extent of Iraq contracts going to corporations which involve members of President George W. Bush's family is widespread and extensive involving hundreds of millions of dollars. Often these firms receive contracts where the corporations have no expertise and certainly the Bush family members have no expertise or experience in these areas. It is a world not of know how but of know who, marinated in campaign contributions. It seems like Bush family and friends are trading on their relationship to the President. The matrix of government contracts and Bush related corporations invites further investigation by the media and Congress - inquiries that are long overdue.
Below are examples of Bush Family members who have profited from the war and occupation of Iraq. These issues have not been examined or reported by the mainstream media.
Neil Mallon Bush the younger brother of the President, infamous for his involvement in the Silverado S and L scandal, has been hired by Crest Investment Company as a consultant for $60,000 per year to assist with their efforts to serve as a middleman to advise other companies that seek taxpayer-financed business in Iraq. Working with Crest puts Neil Bush at the center of multiple organizations profiting from the war and occupation in close alliance with long-term Bush Family allies.
Crest Investment is headed by Jamal Daniel who is a principal partner in New Bridge, a Houston, TX based company with offices in Iraq and Kuwait. The main focus of New Bridge is to advise companies that seek opportunities in the private sector in Iraq, including licenses to market products in Iraq. The company highlights that the Coalition Provisional Authority decision to allow foreign companies to establish 100 percent ownership of businesses in Iraq, an unusual arrangement in the Mideast, has added to the attractiveness of the market. The company describes itself by saying:
“ New Bridge Strategies, LLC is a unique company that was created specifically with the aim of assisting clients to evaluate and take advantage of business opportunities in the Middle East following the conclusion of the U.S.-led war in Iraq. Its activities will seek to expedite the creation of free and fair markets and new economic growth in Iraq, consistent with the policies of the Bush Administration. The opportunities evolving in Iraq today are of such an unprecedented nature and scope that no other existing firm has the necessary skills and experience to be effective both in Washington, D.C. and on the ground in Iraq.” (See: newbridgestrategies.com ) .
New Bridge Strategies , is headed by Joe M. Allbaugh, Mr. Bush's campaign manager in 2000 and the director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency until March 2003. Earlier he was Chief of Staff to then-Governor Bush of Texas Other directors include Edward M. Rogers, Jr. vice chairman, and Lanny Griffith, lobbyists who were assistants to President George Herbert Walker and now have close ties to the White House."
Also related to this Neil Bush network is Diligence LLC ( diligencellc.com ). Diligence shares addresses and many Board members with New Bridge Strategies. It was formed by past members of the CIA and Britain's MI5 Intelligence Services along with experts in international law, journalism and intelligence which enables them to review all sorts of future investment projects and provide security advice. Diligence opened an office in Baghdad in July 2003 where they provided payroll protection and delivery, personnel and facilities security, review of potential Iraqi business ventures, training and management of personal security forces, and intelligence briefs. A subsidiary includes Diligence Middle East, LLC which was created in partnership with New Bridge and the Kuwaiti Coroporation, Al-Mal Investment Company.
William H.T. ("Bucky") Bush, an uncle of George W. Bush, joined the board of directors of the St. Louis based company Engineered Support Systems in March 2000. (See: engineeredsupport.com Bucky Bush was one the Bush “Pioneers,” the campaign contributors who raised more than $100,000 in the 2000 presidential election. Engineered Support Systems has three areas: light military support equipment, heavy military support equipment, and electronics/automation systems. Since 2000, following the presidential election and the 9-11 attacks, the company's federal contracts, revenues and its stock value have all gone up. Engineered Support Systems has been in the top 100 contractors with the DoD since 2001. It’s contracts with the U.S. military have totaled over $1 billion.
On May 1, 2003, Engineered Support Systems acquired Maryland-based Technical and Management Services, TAMSCO on May 1, 2003. (See tamsco.com The following week TAMSCO announced that it had “implemented a leading edge communications technology to support U.S. Army logistics operations in the Middle East upon the successful fielding of two Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) satellite terminals as part of the Coalition Forces Land Component Command (CFLCC) project in Iraq.” According to the company, “This marked the first time that TDMA technology had been utilized by the U.S. Army for satellite communications.”
In February 2003, before the invasion of Iraq, TAMSCO began its satellite communications network linking Germany, Iraq and the U.S. In a period of less than two and a half months, TAMSCO identified the most cost-effective technology; procured, integrated, tested and shipped the equipment; trained soldiers on its installation and maintenance; installed an antenna hub site in Germany; installed the network equipment; and established a help desk operation in Kuwait.
The Air Force and Army were both offering contracts. The Air Force awarded TAMSCO a $44.2 million contract for a radar system in June, another $11.7 million in orders in July, and more than $21.8 million in contracts in August. The Army provided a contract for a development project totaling $700,000 in June, and $12.8 million in contracts in August 2003.
Engineered Support Systems' enterprises are profitable for Bucky Bush. He received consulting fees of $2,500 a month in 2002 for serving on its audit committee, as well as options to buy thousands of shares of stock at $28.42 a share. The stock now trades at $62.50 a share. As of January, he owned 33,750 shares, along with his portion of 3.3 million shares owned by all the firm's officers and directors as a group. The company paid him another $125,000 in fees.
William H.T. Bush is also a trustee for the investment firm Lord Abbott, one of Halliburton's top 10 shareholders and also a top-ten mutual fund holder in Halliburton, which has obtained prime contracts in Iraq. Vice President Cheney, the former CEO of Halliburton, still has between $18 million and $87 million invested through Vanguard, another top-ten holder in Halliburton stock.
Former president George H.W. Bush only recently resigned as a board member of the finance giant the Carlyle Group, heavily associated with military and security contracts. The Carlyle Group was 43rd among federal contractors in 2002, with $676.5 million in contracts. In 2003, the Carlyle Group moved up to 11th place, with $2.1 billion in contracts, partly from the war on terrorism and partly from Iraq. Insiders at the company also cashed in millions of dollars' worth of options in 2003. (See thecarlylegroup.com. )
Marvin P. Bush, the youngest brother of George W. Bush, shares an interest in federal contracts held by companies in his firm's portfolio. Marvin Bush is also an adviser at HCC Insurance, formerly called the Houston Casualty Company, one of the biggest insurance carriers for the World Trade Center. Bush was a director at HCC, which has benefited financially from the 9-11 insurance bailout legislation passed by Congress at the instigation of the White House. The departure of Marvin from the HCC board was announced the same day, November 22, 2002, as the passage of the bill.
Marvin Bush is co-founder and partner in Winston Partners, a private investment firm which is part of a larger firm called the Chatterjee Group. (See winstonpartners.com. ) According to SEC filings, the Chatterjee Group consists of Winston Partners, LP; Chatterjee Fund Management, LP; Winston Partners II LDC, a Cayman Islands-based company; Winston Partners II LLC; Chatterjee Advisors LLC; Chatterjee Management Company; Mr. Chatterjee himself; and Furxedown Trading Limited, a company organized under the laws of the Isle of Man. The address for Winston Partners II LDC is in the Netherlands Antilles. The other subsidiaries were organized in Delaware. Governor Jeb Bush is also an investor in the Winston Capital Fund, which happens to be managed by Marvin's firm.
According to the Sept 30, 2003, issue of Mother Jones, an $80 million Iraq contract was awarded to Nour, a company which began in 2003 with ties to Winston Partners. Nour is an “international investment and development company" with more than 100 employees based in Iraq, and claims expertise in telecommunications, agribusiness, internet development, recruitment, construction materials, oil and power services, pharmaceuticals and fashion apparel.”
In January, 2004, Nour was awarded a $327 million contract to equip the Iraqi armed forces and Civil Defense Corps. However, not long after it was awarded, Nour came under heavy scrutiny because of questions involving the company's president and Ahmed Chalabi, of the US appointed Iraqi Governing Council. Newsday reported, Chalabi received a $2 million “fee” for helping to arrange a $80 million contract, that was actually awarded to a firm called Erinys International “within days” of being granted the contract, Erinys became a joint venture operation with Nour.
In addition, after the $327 million contract was awarded it was revealed that Nour had no prior experience in providing military equipment. Nour’s response was it planned to subcontract its weapons procurement to the Polish firm, Ostrowski Arms – unfortunately, Ostrowski didn't even have a license to export weapons. After these concerns the Army decided to terminate the contract with Nour. This added to the delays in body armor and other equipment that have increased the risks for U.S. soldiers. In May 2004, ANHAM, a joint venture with Nour, based in Vienna, Va., was the winner of a $259-million contract to equip the new Iraqi army and security forces with guns, trucks and other equipment. Nour lists current Iraq projects with the Ministry of Oil, the New Iraqi Army, and Criminal Intelligence in Iraq, Security in Iraq. (See nourusa.com .)
Winston Partners' also are heavily invested in another military contractor, the Amsec Corp. In 2001, Amsec was awarded $37,722,000 in contracts from the Navy. Marvin Bush's long-time business partner, Scott Andrews, sits on the Amsec board of directors, and the firm's CEO at the time was Michael Braham, who used to work for none other than Paul Bremer, the Administrator of the Coalition Provisional Authority.
In addition, the Chatterjee Group also owns 5.5 million shares in a security company known as Sybase. SEC filings show the shares as being divided up between, Winston Partners LP with 1,036,075 shares; Winston Partners LDC holding 1,317,825 shares; and Winston Partners LLC owning 1,221,837 shares. Sybase prepared to make major profits from the Patriot Act long before it was passed. Sybase created a product called the “Sybase PATRIOT Compliance Solution” to track money laundering by terrorists.
Sybase also is a significant government contractor, with contracts from the Navy ($2.9 million in 2001), the Army ($1.8 million in 2001), the Department of Defense ($5.3 million in 2001), Commerce, the Treasury, Agriculture and the General Services Administration, among others. The federal procurement database lists Sybase's total awards for 2001 as $14,754,000.
In 1993, shortly after the first gulf war, Marvin Bush joined his father, George H.W. Bush (three months out of office), on a trip to Kuwait. Where, according to the March 16, 2001 Austin Chronicle, “Marvin was representing U.S. defense firms selling electronic fences to the Kuwaiti Defense Ministry.”
Sources:
Margie Burns, The Green Bushes: The Family’s Profiteering Goes Unobserved, The Washington Spectator, February 1, 2004.
Margie Burns, Bush Businesses in Government, The Progressive Populist, February 16, 2005.
Stephen Fidler and Thomas Catan, Businessmen Use Bush Ties in Mideast, Financial Times, December 12, 2003.
Stephen Fidler and Thomas Catan, More Neil Bush Wheeler-Dealer Details: Consultant on Iraq Contracts Employed President’s Brother, Financial Times, November 28, 2003.
Rina Palta , No Bush Left Behind, Mother Jones Magazine, March/April 2004.
Evelyn Pringle, Under Reported: Jeb, Marvin & Neil - 3 Profiteering Bush Brothers, Independent Media TV, January 28, 2005.
Evelyn Pringle , Why Are We In Iraq -- Bush Family $$$ Signs, Independent Media TV , October 18, 2004. |
