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October 06, 2007
Misleading Statements under Sworn Testimony?
Two months ago, a top US State Department official in charge of embassy construction gave misleading statements under sworn testimony about the new US embassy in Baghdad. He claimed that it would be completed on budget and on time. Now numerous news reports say that the project's completion will be delayed for months.
Sunday's Washington Post piled on with its own story:
The massive U.S. embassy under construction in Baghdad could cost $144 million more than projected and will open months behind schedule because of poor planning, shoddy workmanship, internal disputes and last-minute changes sought by State Department officials, according to U.S. officials and a department document provided to Congress.
This remarkable turn of events directly contradicts July 27 sworn testimony before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee by the State Department's Charles E. Williams, director of overseas buildings operations:
"We have received numerous accolades as to the extremely high quality of construction," Williams told the committee. "It is among the best.... We are slated to complete the project in September of this year and personnel can begin to move into offices and residences shortly thereafter."
Interestingly enough, Republicans sought to make political mileage in discounting sworn testimony by two witnesses, John Owens and Rory Mayberry during that same hearing about the embassy project. Both witnesses made allegations of faulty construction, worker smuggling and other abuses at the embassy project.
One Republican called Mayberry a professional "whistleblower." Another threatened to press charges against Owens for meandering on his answers about whether or not he had filed a fraud claim over shoddy construction at the embassy (Owens had just traveled 24 hours from Cambodia and he was not allowed to comment on the matter by his legal counsel).
Will Republicans now be equally hostile towards Williams? (Hey, didn't the Republican-controlled Congress impeach a president on a less consequential issue?)
More to come on this about "misleading" testimony by congressional witnesses and other statements by US State Department officials relating to the Baghdad project.
Posted by davidphinney at October 6, 2007 04:24 PM
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