Bush administration spies on anti-Halliburton activists
WASHINGTON, Jan. 22 (HalliburtonWatch.org) -- The U.S. military spies on individuals protesting
Halliburton, Newsweek reports today.
In an article titled, "The Other Big Brother," investigative journalist Michael Issikopf reports
that a "harmless" anti-Halliburton protest in 2004 by 10 peace activitists outside the company's
Houston headquarters "was regarded as a potential threat to national security" by people inside
the Bush administration.
The purpose of the 2004 protest "was to call attention to allegations that the company was
overcharging on a food contract for troops in Iraq," Issikopf writes. The protest was organized
by anti-Halliburton activist Scott Parkin, who was deported by the government of Australia in
2005 for organizing peaceful teach-ins on Halliburton's war contracts.
Issikopf reports that the spying activity was conducted by the ultra-secret Counterintelligence
Field Activity (CIFA), created three years ago by the Defense Department to track threats and
terrorist plots against military installations and personnel inside the United States.
According to Issikopf, "In May 2003, Paul Wolfowitz, then deputy Defense secretary, authorized a
fact-gathering operation code-named TALON—short for Threat and Local Observation Notice—that
would collect 'raw information' about 'suspicious incidents.' The data would be fed to CIFA to
help the Pentagon's 'terrorism threat warning process,' according to an internal Pentagon memo."
But the article says the leaders of the domestic spying program admit "the outfit may have gone
too far."
Issikopf reports that "there are now questions about whether CIFA exceeded its authority and
conducted unauthorized spying on innocent people and organizations." A Pentagon memo obtained by
Issikopf reveals that the deputy Defense secretary "now acknowledges that some TALON reports may
have contained information on U.S. citizens and groups that never should have been retained."
The number of citizens named in the TALON reports "could be in the thousands," says a senior
Pentagon official quoted by Issikopf.
These revelations are the latest in several recent disclosures showing that the Bush
administration is spying on benign peace groups and individuals in the name of national
security.
Cheney called the spy program "vital" to the country's defense against al Qaeda. "Either we are
serious about fighting this war on terror or not," he said in a speech to the Manhattan
Institute, a conservative think tank. Issikopf said the new information about CIFA shows "the
scope of the U.S. government's spying on Americans may be far more extensive than the public
realizes," adding, "It isn't clear how many groups and individuals were snagged by CIFA's
dragnet."
Issikopf's article concludes: "A Pentagon spokesman declined to say why a private company like
Halliburton would be deserving of CIFA's protection." But since the military has worked closely
with contractors in the past, the Defense Department has included the protection of military
contractors in its spy program.
More Information: http://www.halliburtonwatch.org/news/CIFA.html
Halliburton, Newsweek reports today.
In an article titled, "The Other Big Brother," investigative journalist Michael Issikopf reports
that a "harmless" anti-Halliburton protest in 2004 by 10 peace activitists outside the company's
Houston headquarters "was regarded as a potential threat to national security" by people inside
the Bush administration.
The purpose of the 2004 protest "was to call attention to allegations that the company was
overcharging on a food contract for troops in Iraq," Issikopf writes. The protest was organized
by anti-Halliburton activist Scott Parkin, who was deported by the government of Australia in
2005 for organizing peaceful teach-ins on Halliburton's war contracts.
Issikopf reports that the spying activity was conducted by the ultra-secret Counterintelligence
Field Activity (CIFA), created three years ago by the Defense Department to track threats and
terrorist plots against military installations and personnel inside the United States.
According to Issikopf, "In May 2003, Paul Wolfowitz, then deputy Defense secretary, authorized a
fact-gathering operation code-named TALON—short for Threat and Local Observation Notice—that
would collect 'raw information' about 'suspicious incidents.' The data would be fed to CIFA to
help the Pentagon's 'terrorism threat warning process,' according to an internal Pentagon memo."
But the article says the leaders of the domestic spying program admit "the outfit may have gone
too far."
Issikopf reports that "there are now questions about whether CIFA exceeded its authority and
conducted unauthorized spying on innocent people and organizations." A Pentagon memo obtained by
Issikopf reveals that the deputy Defense secretary "now acknowledges that some TALON reports may
have contained information on U.S. citizens and groups that never should have been retained."
The number of citizens named in the TALON reports "could be in the thousands," says a senior
Pentagon official quoted by Issikopf.
These revelations are the latest in several recent disclosures showing that the Bush
administration is spying on benign peace groups and individuals in the name of national
security.
Cheney called the spy program "vital" to the country's defense against al Qaeda. "Either we are
serious about fighting this war on terror or not," he said in a speech to the Manhattan
Institute, a conservative think tank. Issikopf said the new information about CIFA shows "the
scope of the U.S. government's spying on Americans may be far more extensive than the public
realizes," adding, "It isn't clear how many groups and individuals were snagged by CIFA's
dragnet."
Issikopf's article concludes: "A Pentagon spokesman declined to say why a private company like
Halliburton would be deserving of CIFA's protection." But since the military has worked closely
with contractors in the past, the Defense Department has included the protection of military
contractors in its spy program.
More Information: http://www.halliburtonwatch.org/news/CIFA.html
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