The LA Times has a good story today on the human toll of defense contracting. Many contractors come home with the same problems as soldiers, but they aren't given the same recognition or care.

Unable to access local veterans' hospitals, some of the men took a class in post-traumatic stress in a small room beside the bar. Several had been diagnosed with the disorder but had been unable to get steady treatment.

Driver Robert Rowe, 46, of Ohio, was shot in the knee in August 2004 while hauling ice for KBR in a convoy near Baghdad. Army medics treated him, and he flew home with his knee oozing blood under thick bandages.

He is still battling KBR's insurer, American International Group Inc., to get workers' compensation. He lives out of his truck and friends' homes, unable to afford his old apartment.

AIG did not respond to a request for comment Sunday, but it has maintained that 90% of claims by Iraq contractors have been paid without dispute.

"I look at that flag now, and I say, 'What the hell does that represent anymore?' " said Rowe, who served in the military before going to Iraq for KBR.

GovExec.com reports:

"[Homeland Security] has been one of our persistent access challenges," Walker testified. "When you have more lawyers in a meeting than program people, you know you got a problem. Something needs to be done about this," Walker said. "There needs to be an understanding that if the general counsel's office is going to get involved, it's clearly got to be the exception rather than the rule," he added. "Right now the system is structured to delay, delay, delay ... We haven't had a situation where they refuse information but it might take months to get it."

Homeland Security Inspector General Richard Skinner confirmed Walker's testimony, saying it sometimes took his office weeks or months to get documents and responses to investigations. Let's hope Congress will be following up on these reports.

The New York Times had a good article summarizing the rise of federal contracting. It's definitely worth a read.

It surprises me every time I read an article about privatization that nobody makes the basic point that private companies should not be making a profit off of public services unless there's a very good reason for it. Contracting does have it's uses, and there should be a place for it. But it's not a default option, as the President seems to think. It's an option of last resort, because ideally public monies should be used to promote the public good. Public monies if possible should not be used to line the pockets of a few people at private companies.

OMB Watch has released a preliminary analysis of the President's FY 08 Budget request.

President's Budget Full of Cheap Rhetoric; Wrong Priorities
President Favors Tax Cuts for the Wealthy over Domestic Needs

Check back here for additional analyses and commentary on the budget as the week progresses.

As promised, an outside panel will decide how to enforce the new House rules. The group will make recommendations by May 1 on such matters as the proposed Office of Public Integrity. Speaker Pelosi and Minority Leader Boehner announced yesterday the bi-partisan eight member panel. Pelosi and Boehner each named four members and according to CQ ($) Representative Capuano (D-MA) will be chairing the panel.