Why There Won't Be More Information on Reconstruction Corruption

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It always pays to read the fine print. A clause buried in a military spending bill means that the Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction will be closed in 2007. This office, originally part of the Coalition Provisional Authority before its dissolution, has since March 2004 referred 25 criminal cases to the U.S. Department of Justice, of which four have resulted in convictions. Fifty-five auditors and inspectors work under Special Inspector General Stuart Bowen and are the only auditing body with an on the ground presence in Iraq. "Republican Senator Susan Collins told the New York Times she was mystified about how the termination clause had found its way into the bill. Senator John Warner, the Republican chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told the newspaper he would push for an extension of Mr. Bowen's charter."