Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/39490
8B Daily News – Wednesday, August 17, 2011 WORLD BRIEFING Task force estimates $360 M lost to Taliban WASHINGTON (AP) — After examining hun- dreds of combat support and reconstruction contracts in Afghanistan, the U.S mil- itary estimates $360 million in U.S. tax dollars has ended up in the hands of people the American-led coalition has spent nearly a decade battling: the Taliban, crimi- nals, and power brokers with ties to both. The losses underscore the challenges the U.S. and its international partners face in overcoming corrup- tion in Afghanistan. A cen- tral part of the Obama administration's strategy has been to award U.S.- financed contracts to Afghan businesses to help improve quality of life and stoke the country's econo- my. But until a special task force assembled by Gen. David Petraeus began its investigation last year, the coalition had little visibility into the connections many Afghan companies and their vast network of subcontrac- tors had with insurgents and criminals — groups mili- tary officials call ''malign actors.'' known as ''reverse money laundering,'' from the U.S. pass through In a murky process payments companies hired by the mil- itary for transportation, con- struction, power projects, fuel and other services to businesses and individuals with ties to the insurgency or criminal networks, according to interviews and task force documents obtained by the AP. ''Funds begin as clean monies,'' according to one document, then ''either through direct payments or through the flow of funds in the subcontractor network, the monies become taint- ed.'' 'Treasonous' to print • MEN • WOMEN • CHILDREN AFFORDABLE • CONVENIENT $1000 $1000 With coupon, Regularly $12 (Expires 8/31/11) FREE HELIUM BALLOONS 530-529-5766 855 So. Main St. (Walmart Shopping Center) money SAN ANTONIO (AP) — In the words of Gov. Rick Perry, secession was one scenario on the table for frustrated Texans. The BP oil spill? Might have been an act of God instead of cor- porate errors. And if the Federal Reserve puts more money in the U.S. system, as Perry told voters in Iowa this week, you could chalk it up as a treasonous act that would be treated ''pretty ugly'' back home. No, that wasn't on the same level as his famous interview signoff, ''Adios, mofo.'' But Perry's just warming up. Just four days after launching his GOP presi- Clinton used a rare joint interview to argue that the nation cannot afford to keep playing partisan chicken with its finances. Panetta expressed opti- mism about progress by American-led forces against the Taliban in Afghanistan and by NATO forces in support of anti- government rebels in Libya. He cited those con- flicts as examples of why severe cuts to spending on defense and diplomacy would be dangerous. Panetta said the Penta- gon is prepared to make $350 billion in cuts over the next 10 years, as agreed by Congress. But he warned of dangers to the national defense if bigger reductions are required. dential run, the man from Paint Creek, Texas, already is showing off a colorful tongue. The 61-year-old with maybe the most famous jogging-while- armed story ever — ''Don't attack my dog or you might get shot ... if you're a coy- ote'' — may emerge as the most quotable candidate in the Republican field. But will that hurt as well as help him? The governor's mouth may come across as amus- ing to some Texans who have grown accustomed to ''Perryisms'' over his decades in public office. Now, however, he's on a larger stage with a brighter spotlight. Will his quips be a C & C PROPERTIES plus — something for vot- ers to identify with — or a vulnerability for political opponents to exploit? Panetta says defense cuts would have 'devastating effects' WASHINGTON (AP) — Large new cuts in defense spending would ''terribly weaken'' U.S. national security, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Tuesday as he and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham 741 Main Street, Suite #2 Red Bluff, CA 96080 1-800-287-2187 (530) 527-2187 An Independently owned and operated Member of Coldwell Banker Residential Affiliates. FOR 24/7 PROPERTY INFO CALL 1-888-902-7253 AND ENTER THE PROPERTY CODE FROM THE AD. 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If the com- mittee cannot agree on a deficit-reduction plan by year's end or if Congress rejects its proposal, it would trigger some $500 billion in additional reductions in pro- jected national security spending. Merkel, Sarkozy want balanced budget laws PARIS (AP) — The leaders of France and Germany called Tues- day for greater econom- ic discipline and unity among European nations but declined to take the expensive financial measures seen by many investors as the only way to halt the continent's spiraling debt crisis. The Dow Jones industrial average fell, the euro slid against the dollar and key European markets edged down in off-hour trading after Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany and French President Nico- las Sarkozy announced the results of their emer- gency talks in Paris.