did lady bird johnson profit from the vietnam war

A parallel probe was launched by the Securities and Exchange Commission into an admission by Halliburton that one of its managers slipped $2.4 million into the pockets of another Nigerian official in order to secure illegal tax-breaks for its business in the impoverished African nation. Meanwhile, in that same crucial year of 1919, the other half of Halliburton was also beginning to take shape as two friends from San Marcos, Texas, Herman Brown and Dan Root, formed a road paving company that would eventually become one of the worlds largest construction firms. In 1973, Halliburton won a $120 million contract to build Iraqs two mammoth oil terminals in the Persian Gulf off the coast from Umm Qasr. A little more than a week after having arrived in DC, the freshly hatched congressman had engineered congressional approval for both the appropriation and the land purchase. She recalled his sleepless musings in her diary: I dont want to get in a war and I dont see any way out of it. Johnson was a sneaky, back slapping, Lady Bird' Johnson Laid to Rest The fiercely Republican oil services company, which prospered under Eisenhower, now found many familiar doors in Washington shuttered under the Kennedy administration. Once I listened to her often riveting, unique and surprising diary accounts -- accounts of some of the most iconic moments in our countrys history -- I began to see that all of the volumes of history and journalism written about the 1960s -- Lyndon Johnson, Vietnam, Civil Rights, and the Great Society -- suffer from a pretty big gap without her voice, without an idea of her influence. What is the birth He was soon in demand across the oil fields of Texas and Oklahoma. In 1940, the former road paving firm won a huge contract to build the Corpus Christi Naval Air Station, a complex of runways, hangars, barracks and command centers sprawling across 2,000 acres of swamp and scrubland on the gulf coast of Texas. The tricky part was trying to find the right subcontractor. And yes, of her power. Johnson, however, flew back to Houston the night after his destruction of Olds on a private jet owned by Brown & Root. As if they were rerouting an river in the Smokeys, the quick-fix generals at the Corps of Engineers simply reconfigured the terms of the Halliburton contract, changing it from putting out oil well fires to hauling fuel for US military operations. Ive got to call up 6,000 boys, make them leave their homes and their families. She doubted that others understood the depth of his pain.. Not my thing. Okay, the Pentagon learned a billion-dollar lesson the hard way, right? Halliburton got a $200 million cost/plus contract to work in Kosovo. They began construction on the dam before getting any federal funds and before the feds had actually acquired the land from the state of Texas. The State Department report pointed out that Iraqi oil production at the beginning of 2005 was lower than it had been during the previous fall. As a result, Halliburton flourished. ABC News will kick off Womens History Month with its new podcast "In Plain Sight: Lady Bird Johnson," co-produced with Best Case Studios and hosted by author Julia Sweig. But the unpaid behind-the-scenes partner has been with us a long time, and the deal has never been straightforwardly feminist, as two new biographies of first ladies reveal. Worldly and colorful, even late in life, Edie was not above using a word like cocksucker (in this case, to describe Barry Goldwater). In 1995, Halliburton hired Dick Cheney as its CEO. Tumulty makes the case that over the course of Ronalds political career, Nancy grew to understand her power. Wielding their clout, the two first ladies could hardly be a greater study in contrastseven as they shared a priority: vigilantly protecting their spouse above all, but also their own access and influence. When someone finally leaked the audit to Waxmans office, the documents disclosed a thick wad of Halliburton billings that the Pentagon bookkeepers deemed illogical.. The spot was sunny, safe and expensive. Stevenson was a wildly popular figure in Texas, but LBJ had an equalizer: a nearly bottomless reservoir of campaign money provided by Brown & Root and Wirtzs client list of oil barons, including H.L. TSHA | Taylor, Thomas Jefferson II I think a womans real happiness and fulfillment is found in her home., Read: Nancy Reagans real role in the AIDS crisis. WebJacqueline did not remain first lady. She shared his belief in American exceptionalism and defended his policies, digging in as protesters challenged the escalation of the war. Johnson We hear about the decade-long relationship between the two of them, one that dates back to the Kennedys arrival in Washington in the mid-50s, and hear fascinating observations these women make about each other. Jeffrey St. Clairis editor of CounterPunch. Several of the subcontracts in Iraq were doled out accompanied by the judicious application of cash bribes. As it happened, Halliburton had a man on the inside to press its case in the person of Dillon Anderson. Fluor-Daniel, Parsons and GSM Services were all were just as qualified for the task. Her motivation was not to expand her own portfolio: She wanted only to promote her husbands well-being and success, ferociously tending him and his image. Even here Halliburton benefited. Only six months into the occupation of Iraq, Halliburtons fleets of trucks began to breakdown due to lack of spare parts and shoddy upkeep. Brown & Root also understood that government contracts are a lot easier to get if you have a politician on retainer. The woman who becomes president will bear the usual burdens of the office, plus an added weight: In public life, men are not the lightning rod women are. Johnsons tapes also capture affectionate moments between him and his wife, Lady Bird. But before the year had ended that contract, covering everything from road construction, vehicle maintenance and power generation to food services, latrines and mail delivery, had generated nearly a billion dollars in revenues for Halliburton. Like Lady Bird, Nancy served as a mood regulator: She knew how well Reagan could perform when confident and relaxed, and her presence improved his performance. Nancy longed for a more conventional home life. In return, the Shah soon signed over control of Irans oil resources to a consortium of western oil companies, lead by Exxon, Mobil and Texaco. During World War II, Halliburton was called upon to help build the infrastructure for the oil fields of Saudi Arabia, launching a profitable relationship with the petro-kingdom that persists to this day. The biggest project by far was its $220 million contract to build the mammoth Air Force Base at Phan Rang, which Halliburton constructed on top of some the most beautiful Cham temple complexes in Vietnam. ), Erasure vs. Sumud: How the Nakba Came to Define the Collective Palestinian Identity, Violence as an Investment Policy, Human Rights Violations as a Business Model, Politicians and the Anzac Tradition: a Story of Manipulation and Mythology, Her Name Was Nora al-Awlaki: The Real Reason Donald Trump Should Rot in Hell, Relocating UN Headquarters out of the United States, Nichole Stephens, Administrative Assistant. The episode tracks the 14 days from the murder of the president to when the Johnsons move into the White House, days filled with tragic ceremony and heartfelt moments of solidarity between Jackie Kennedy and Lady Bird. Suddenly, it was. Victoria Thompson and Eric Johnson are executive producers and Suzie Liu is a producer with ABC News. ABC News will kick off Womens History Month with its new podcast "In Plain Sight," co-produced with Best Case Studios and hosted by author Julia Sweig. In a way, this meeting in the bowels of the Pentagon was all for show, a kind of mating ritual between the government and its favorite contractor. By the end of March 2005, more than 65 Halliburton employees had been killed in Iraq and more than 200 injuredthe most of any private contractor in the war zone. Deaver did, tooas deputy chief of staff in the governors office, he had been tasked with what his colleagues called the Mommy Watch, charged with keeping her away from others. Once again, Johnson faced a popular and reactionary governor for the Texas senate seat, vacated when Pappy ODaniel (grew bored of living in DC. This prototype evolved to become the Bell Model 47---the first helicopter to receive FAA Certification. Two years later, Halliburton won the 5-year renewal of this deal, valued at $180 million. We hear Lady Birds growing sense that Bobby Kennedy will become LBJ's political rival, and RFKs bring-down-the-house performance at the Democratic Convention in the summer of 1964. Johnson Halliburton charged the US Army $85.98 for each sheet of plywood it used in construction projects during Clintons war on Serbia and its aftermath. The brief meeting took place a few weeks after John, Jr. had completed basic training in the Army and a few weeks before his departure for Vietnam. Instead, Lt. General Strock steered the cost-plus contract into Halliburtons hands without the faintest whiff of competition. Of course, Cheney did deliver some morsels for the shareholders. Halliburton agreed to acquire Brown & Root for the bargain basement price of $36.7 million, far below the market value of the company. He also was able to increase his wealth through various business deals and investments. Lady Bird Johnson greets supporters during a westward trip while campaigning for her husband Lyndon B. Johnson's presidential bid, in 1964. This article appears in the May 2021 print edition with the headline The Power of the First Lady., You Wont Remember the Pandemic the Way You Think You Will, America Never Wanted the Tired, Poor, Huddled Masses. In the spring of 1949, only months after claiming his senate seat, LBJ, the former New Dealer, launched an assault on Leland Olds, the chairman of the Federal Power Commission. On August 19, 1953, the CIA launched its coup. That her thing about flowers was really a cover for a pretty radical environmentalism. Then more ballots mysteriously materialized, and ODaniel claimed victory by 1,311 votes. Lyndon and Lady Bird Johnson and their connections to In the stunned aftermath of the Kennedy assassination, she sought out Jackie: I tried to express something of how we felt. But what I am certain no one knows is that she was arguably the most influential member of the Johnson administration. In fact, the contract was secretly handed to Halliburton in May, but the Pentagon kept it underwraps for more than a month. Of course, the acquisition of Brown & Root had another great advantage for Halliburton. In a memo to Lyndon just five months into his presidency, Lady Bird predicts how the Vietnam war will derail his administration, and proposes a clear end-date for his time in office -- fully four years before he shocked the nation with his announcement in March of 1968 that he wouldn't run for reelection. The Johnson family grew accustomed to the patriarchs dedication to his country, and adapted to the ever-changing, politically-charged atmosphere of Washington. Ill never forgive Lyndons boys for turning my environmental agenda into a beautification project, she said. The company that had prospered through the Great Depression thanks to federal dam projects was poised to make a killing from World War II, with most of the deal coming courtesy of the US Navy and its congressional overlord LBJ and the powerful congressman from Houston, Albert Thomas. "Lady Bird" Johnson, the wife of former President Lyndon B. Johnson, the nation's 36th president, died Wednesday at the age of 94. They also followed a familiar contour: the contracts were awarded without competitive bidding and on a cost-plus basis with a guaranteed profit built-in. Negroponte followed up his threat by recruiting the Parsons Corporation, Halliburtons archrival, to execute some of the remaining work in the south. Parsons had previously been awarded the $800 million contract to repair and manage the oil fields around Kirkuk in northern Iraq. This episode includes one of the most consequential. Thats because nearly all of Halliburtons work in Iraq was farmed out to subcontractors. Lady Bird Johnson Net Worth 2022: Money, Salary, Bio It informed Halliburton that the company no longer had to submit a public record of the fuel purchases. LBJ, serving out In February 2005, the State Department finally weighed in with a damning report on Halliburtons work to rehabilitate the oil fields in southern Iraq. This time his opponent was Coke Stevenson, rancher, bigot and anti-communist. LBJ, serving out JFKs term, did not have a VP. There was an even uglier problem with the Dresser deal that somehow escaped Cheneys notice. First lady Lady Bird Johnson is at work seated at her desk in the White House in Washington, D.C., 1964. Another Cheney veteran worked along side Lopez to keep the government contracts flowing to Houston. The Brown & Root Company shared Halliburtons antipathy toward organized labor, but realized early on that there was a fortune to be made through outsourced government work. Did Lyndon Johnson escalate the Vietnam War for personal profit? Then in 1995, at the same time Cheney was taking over the reins at Halliburton, the Pentagon handed the company a $550 million contract to provide logistical support for US and NATOs IFOR forces in Bosnia, Croatia and Hungry. It is startling to realize that, for the 14 months from November 1963 to January 1965, Lady Bird Johnson effectively was the vice president. Often these bills exceeded the true costs of the projects by 300 or even 400 percentwith Halliburton snagging a built-in profit from the bribe-bloated contracts. Ep. By outsourcing most of the logistics work in Kosovo, the Pentagon was able to reduce its deployment by around 8,000 troops, helping Clinton and Albright to sell an unpopular war at home. Let me take the tough ones, she said, shouldering what was arguably the hardest, most thankless, and personally riskiest task of the campaign, Sweig writes, given the hate and outrage among many white southerners after the passage of the Civil Rights Act. Drawn from over 123 hours of the former first ladys mostly unheard daily audio diaries, the podcast presents a surprising and original portrait of Claudia Alta Lady Bird Johnson, told in her own words. On a trip to two New England colleges to give speeches supporting their new environmental studies programs, Lady Bird is confronted by outspoken dissent from both students and faculty who walk out of her speeches, picket her presence and circulate letters denouncing the war in Vietnam. In the immediate wake of the Dresser acquisition, Cheney fired 10,000 of the companys employees. But a review by Pentagon auditors found that the bill was inflated by nearly 200 percent, since the company never served more than 2,500 soldiers on any single day. If I asked, say, a few hundred people anywhere over 25 or 30 years old, its a good bet theyd know a few things. Erle changed the name of the company to Halliburton and raked in millions from his patent. A similar investigation by the Department of Justice was launched in 2004 into Halliburtons operations in the second-leg of the axis of evil, Iran. LBJ got the NYA position, at the age of 29, through the intervention of Alvin Wirtz, the lead attorney for Brown & Root and a noted fixer. Halliburton quickly moved to replace those revenues with an equally rich stream from Irans neighbor and blood enemy, the Baathist republic of Iraq, now under the grip of Saddam Hussein. When Cheney went to Halliburton he took along some of his old pals at the Pentagon with him, most notably Admiral Joe Lopez, a top Cheney aid during the Bush I regime. My marginalia included NR v Helene von Damm (Reagans secretary in California, who rose to become a diplomat and considered Nancy a schemer), NR v Betty Ford, NR v Barbara Bush, NR v Raisa Gorbachev (an instant loathing), NR v Barbara Sinatra. Then again, she didnt really like dealing with many men: NR v Ed Meese, NR v William Clark, NR v James Watt, NR v Al Haig, NR v Pat Buchanan. At varying times, she clashed with Ronnies children from his first marriageMichael and Maureenand with theirs, Patti and Ron.
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