Oily friend problems

Senate Democrats have released a report Friday stating that a lack of US Treasury Department oversight contributed to the abuses in the Iraq oil-for-food program. A Texas company, Bayoil USA, was criminally indicted in April on charges it schemed to pay $37 million in secret kickbacks to Iraq in return for importing 200+ million barrels into the US. According to the report, Bayoil made at least $7.5 million on the deal. Asked for assistance by the UN in 2001 and 2002 to help track the shipments, the US Treasury Department never responded.

As we have recently seen during the Miers nomination fiasco, powerful friends from Texas really stick together – loyalty is their motto. Hmmm – Bayoil from Texas is owned by David Chalmers, Chalmers = big Republican contributor, Chalmers has been indicted for the scheme, major political donors and friends of the Bush family have paid kickbacks to Saddam Hussein for financial benefits ---- sounds like the Texas crowd is slimy on this one.

Allegations of US and British government complicity in the kickbacks
More US complicity
More Bush family involvement
posted on The Human Stain