Cha-Ching! Halliburton Cashes In Some More

Looks like the Army, which has been getting flagrantly ripped off by Halliburton, is granting the company a reprieve from withholding payment of its invoices in full. Normally, companies supplying the government can't receive more than 85 percent of their invoiced amounts until they fully account for their costs. But not Halliburton, our oh-so-special exception to the rule. They get (another) temporary reprieve.

I heard on CBS 880 AM this morning that Halliburton was charging $100 per 15-pound load of laundry. By way of comparison, I pay 99 cents a pound in pricey New York City. If I have 15 pounds of laundry, a guy will come by my apartment, pick it up, wash and dry and fold it and deliver it back to me in a tight, plastic-wrapped bundle for $15 plus tip.

Flagrant overcharging, missing millions, offshore subsidiaries doing business with Iran - what else is it going to take to convince our government that Halliburton shouldn't be getting government contracts at all?