November 2005

It was just a couple months ago that we learned the Bush White House was
illegally paying someone to write and publish "puff pieces" promoting the
administrations' education agenda. Today we learn that the military has taken
the same course of action in Iraq.

WASHINGTON — As part of an information offensive in Iraq, the U.S.
military is secretly paying Iraqi newspapers to publish stories written by
American troops in an effort to burnish the image of the U.S. mission in
Iraq.

The articles, written by U.S. military "information operations" troops,
are translated into Arabic and placed in Baghdad newspapers with the help of
a defense contractor, according to U.S. military officials and documents
obtained by the Los Angeles Times.

Many of the articles are presented in the Iraqi press as unbiased news
accounts written and reported by independent journalists. The stories
trumpet the work of U.S. and Iraqi troops, denounce insurgents and tout
U.S.-led efforts to rebuild the country.

Though the articles are basically factual, they present only one side of
events and omit information that might reflect poorly on the U.S. or Iraqi
governments, officials said. Records and interviews indicate that the U.S.
has paid Iraqi newspapers to run dozens of such articles, with headlines
such as "Iraqis Insist on Living Despite Terrorism," since the effort began
this year.

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Bush publicly scolded Duke Cunningham today over his crimes of taking bribes
in exchange for government contracts. Of course Bush speak is nothing more than
hypocrisy in action:

"Any member of Congress, Republican or Democrat, must take their office
seriously and the ethics seriously," Bush said to reporters during a trip to
Texas.

Full article

link

Funny how he addressed ethics as being taken seriously in Congress. No
mention about the ethics problems surrounding his own administration and the
leak investigation. I wonder if Bush realizes the company involved in this
bribery scandal did some work in the White House including in his own office?

Government procurement records show that MZM, which Wade started in 1993,
did not report any revenue from prime contract awards until 2003. Most of
its revenue has come from the agreement the Pentagon just cut off. But
over the past three years it was also awarded several contracts, worth more
than $600,000, by the Executive Office of the President. They include a
$140,000 deal for office furniture in 2002 and several for unspecified
"intelligence services."

Full article

link

Let me guess - Bush will be a victim of Cunningham's scam on that one.

The

Associated Press has published a nice list of gifts that Duke Cunningham
pleaded guilty to receiving

Some of the payments accepted by Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham as detailed
in his plea agreement:

• $200,000 toward the purchase of his Arlington, Va., condominium.

• $140,000 to a third party for the "Duke-Stir" yacht, which was moved to
his boat slip for his use.

• $16,867.13 to a marine services company for repairs to his own yacht,
the "Kelly C."

• $12,000 paid to an antique store for three night stands, a leaded glass
cabinet, a washstand, a buffet and four armoires.

• $6,632 paid to a furniture store for a leather sofa and a sleigh-style
bed.

• $7,200 paid to an antique store for a circa 1850 Louis Phillipe period
commode and a circa 1830 Restoration period commode.

• $13,500 toward the purchase of a Rolls-Royce.

• $17,889.96 for repairs to the Rolls-Royce.

• $11,393.56 paid to a moving company to ship his belongings from his
Arlington condominium to his San Diego-area home.

• $2,081.30 paid to a Washington, D.C., hotel for his daughter's
graduation party.

• $9,200 paid to a manufacturer for two Laser Shot shooting simulators.

• $10,000 paid to various hotels, resorts and restaurants for his meals
and entertainment expenses.

• Hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash to him and a company he
controlled.

• Source: Plea agreement filed in U.S. District Court.

Republican Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham has pleaded guilty in federal court
to income tax violations.

This  from the

AP:

Rep. Cunningham Pleads Guilty

Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham pleaded guilty to conspiracy and tax
violations after an investigation of the California Republican's home sale.

Cunningham has been under investigation since his sale of his home to a
defense contractor at an apparently inflated price in 2003 attracted the
attention of federal investigators.

He made his plea known at a hearing in federal court in San Diego on
Monday.

Cunningham, 63, is an eight-term congressman and Vietnam War flying ace.

In November 2003, he sold his Del Mar, Calif., home to defense contractor
Mitchell Wade for $1,675,000. Wade put the house back on the market and sold
it after nearly a year for $975,000 — a loss of $700,000 in one of the
nation's hottest housing markets.

Cunningham and his wife, Nancy, used the proceeds from the sale to buy a
$2.55 million mansion in ritzy Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.

Wade also let Cunningham live rent-free on his yacht, the Duke Stir, at
the Capital Yacht Club. His firm, MZM Inc., donated generously to
Cunningham's campaigns.

Around the same time, MZM was winning valuable defense contracts at a
time when Cunningham sat on the House Appropriations subcommittee that
controls defense dollars. In 2004 the little-known company based in
Washington, D.C., tripled its revenue and nearly quadrupled its staff,
according to information posted on the company Web site.