While former investment banker Frank Quattrone is on trial starting today for routing IPO shares to hedge funds that paid a premium price, Vice President Dick Cheney sits on value-accruing stock options from Halliburton that become more valuable every time the company wins a no-bid contract for the reconstruction of Iraq. The Nation has a solid screed on the question of Cheney's ethics, pointing to this exchange a couple weeks back on Meet The Press about Halliburton's $7 billion Iraq contract, which was awarded without competitive bidding:
TIM RUSSERT: Why is there no bidding?
VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY: I have no idea. Go ask the Corps of Engineers.
Considering Cheney has publicly stated he has no ties with Halliburton, yet receives deferred compensation and has the option to buy shares at a discount to their current price, he is no less corrupt than the corporate executives his government is prosecuting now.
Posted by Mitch Ratcliffe at September 29, 2003 01:20 PM | TrackBack