American Oil companies offered five million dollars to each Iraqi MP to pass the Oil law

[OneAngryDemocrat]

Source: http://www.roadstoiraq.com/2008/01/29/american-oil-companies-offered-five-million-dollars-to-each-ir

An Iraqi MP preferred to remain anonymous told the newspaper that highly confidential negotiations took place by representatives from American oil companies, offering $5 million to each MP who votes in favor of the Oil and Gas law.

The amount that could be paid to pass the votes do not exceed $150 million dollars in the case of $5 million to each MP, pointing out that the Oil law requires 138 votes to pass, which the Americans want to guarantee in many ways, including vote-buying, intimidation and threats!



Read more: http://www.roadstoiraq.com/2008/01/29/american-oil-companies-offered-five-million-dollars-to-each-iraqi-mp-to-pass-the-oil-law/

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This news article is an english translation from the arabic newspaper, Akhbar Alkhaleej.

Please visit my anti-war website, www.shockedandawful.com

[no_hypocrisy]

1. And this is what the oil companies do with their tax breaks . . .

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

2. Cheap.

The U.S. has paid a trillion or so for the same deal*.










*Plus a million dead people.

[Robbien]

3. This is not the first time we have played this gambit

I've been very surprised and impressed all the money flying around the privatization oil law has not worked up to now.

Perhaps the new five mil price tag will be the appropriate sellout price. I hope not.

[stillcool]

4. Carrot or stick

money or more bombsI

[Fovea]

5. those fucking cheapskates!

What is it with these new global oligarchs anyway?

It would have been worth dropping a Billion into their puppy pile.

[Canuckistanian]

6. That's SOP for the oil companies

Pay a few million here and there to reap BILLIONS later.

And American politicians have an even better bribe/profit ratio.

[indepat]

7. $5 million a head to each MP ain't very much considering the oil companies would get 88%(?)

of oil revenues which could exceed $10-or-so trillion, more or less. If so, the oil companies would be the worst sort of war criminals IMO, for it would all but confirm in the opinion of many just what was the agenda of DC's energy meetings with oil execs early on.

[clixtox]

11. There isn't any doubt now about...

Cheney/Shrub's culpability in the WAR CRIME'S perpetrated in Iraq. (In our name!)

Their objective from the beginning of their reign has been to control(steal) the petroleum resources in Iraq by ANY means, using any pretext, regardless of reality or ensuing collateral damage.

It is easy to understand why many believe that the "Bush crime family" were involved in the planning of 9/11 by providing cover and stymying anti Al-Queda/OBL investigation before and since 9/11.

There is no denying that the whole tragedy has been exploited in every way by the regime to further their fascist agenda.

Now that the Democrats have shaken all of the even slightly progressive candidates (except Gravel, bless his heart and cojones) out of the running, apparently, we progressives are screwed and bound to be taken for granted again this cycle.

Ain't our system great!

Not for us sheeple of course, but surely for those who control and exploit us relentlessly.

It's 2006 all over again!

We will return the same pack of two-faced sell-outs back to where-ever to "represent" us.

You have to wonder how much they are being offered to turn their backs on their constituents.

$5 Million would go a long ways in Iraq these days,

I imagine that once you are bought once, in Baghdad or Washington, you are bound forever to kowtow.

Makes sense to me.

I am not saying that every one of those rascals is compromised, one way or another, but it isn't difficult to figure out ones which most likely are corrupted somehow.

Those who are complacent, compliant, complicit, collaborating or have completely capitulated probably are corrupt, they have been compromised.

Or they are just nearly brain dead.

What else?

[Roland99]

8. That's treating Iraq like a sovereign nation!!

[frog92969]

9. Chimp...er...chump change!

They haven't signed it to stop us carpet bombing their civilians, I doubt this will change their minds.
Oh wait, politicians. Never mind.

[Amonester]

10. uh... oh... money trumps peace, said the war criminal chimp!!

corruption at the highest levels.

[Ichingcarpenter]

12. This ties back to Bush's signing statements.

ush just signed the $696 billion defense bill, President Bush didn’t approve the entire bill, though — he used a signing statement to say he wouldn’t follow four provisions of the act, which he said “could inhibit the president’s ability to carry out his constitutional obligations.” Those provisions would have mandated increased Congressional oversight of military contractors, banned construction of permanent military bases in Iraq and forbade the use of U.S. troops to exercise United States control of Iraq’s oil resources.

Antonia Juhasz of the group Oil Change International told IPS the issues of oil and permanent military bases are related.

“We’ve got the Bush administration pushing aggressively for an (Iraqi) law that would give oil companies 20- to 25-year contracts for oil in Iraq and if they were to be at work for an extended length of time, they would need security,” she said.

“If the U.S. military is going to stay in Iraq for 20 or 35 years, they’re going to need bases,” she added.

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40987

[dysfunctional press]

13. next time, the planes WILL have iraqi terrorists in them...

once some of the kids who have survived grow up and realize exactly what ALL we did to their country.

[wiggs]

14. That's the brand of democracy we want to spread in the M.E..... Sad, embarrassing. What

are the chances this will be run in mainstream media? What are the chances oil companies will be investigated for bribery and corruption?

[OneBlueSky]

15. seems the American system of government is taking hold in Iraq . . .

buy the politicians now, and tell them how to vote later . . . but in this case, seems it really was a quid pro quo, right up front . . . just lovely . . .

[conspirator]

16. I am SHOCKED I TELL YOU! Not. This is just Neocolonialism

Kill a lot of people to spread terror. Kill any leader who protects the local interests.
Then install your bribable puppets. There you go.

[Disturbed]

17. How many of the MPs have taken the $5Mill Bribe?

Couldn't they just take the $5Mill, pass the Oil Law & then get
out of the country?

[CJCRANE]

18. In a family, clan and tribe-based society

the offer of millions of dollars and a witness-protection lifestyle might not appeal to many people.

[Toots]

19. Exxon puts, in it's pocket, OVER one hundred million a DAY so this is nothing

to them at all. Sort of like putting a quarter in a parking meter. One days Net Profits and in fact they are not alone. Other Oil Companies are right there with them so between them it is like buying a piece of bubblegum..

[spanone]

20. at least our soldiers are dying for something.....oil company profits...support those troops

:sarcasm:

[Javaman]

21. Is that in dollars, euros or gold? nt

[bbgrunt]

22. they should have just done this to begin with and

saved us a war. Oh, I forgot. There were too many other corporate friends who wanted in on the action.

[yurbud]

23. If I was them, I'd want safe passage out of the country too because everyone would want my head

after selling the whole country down the river.

[Done]

24. Our wonderful journalists will be all over this.

:sarcasm:

[Joanne98]

25. SHOCK!

:sarcasm:

[Initech]

26. So um, what is this war for again?

[yurbud]

27. Posted on my blog and on newsranking sites LINKS:

Blogged:
http://professorsmartass.blogspot.com/2008/01/big-oil-tries-to-bribe-iraqis-to-pass.html

vote it up:
http://digg.com/world_news/BIG_OIL_tries_to_BRIBE_Iraqis_to_pass_OIL_THEFT_LAW

http://news.propeller.com/story/2008/01/31/big-oil-tries-to-bribe-iraqis-to-pass-oil-theft-law/

http://reddit.com/info/679cb/comments/

http://buzzflash.net/story.php?id=38927