Media Support

ADAM ZAGORIN and TIMOTHY J. BURGER – TIME Magazine. During difficulties of getting news media coverage of creditable stories of public interest amidst the rapidly approaching Bush-Gore election, Adam Zagorin and Timothy Burger published the first major story on my comments regarding my reservations that I wrote above my name, directly on the Restore Iraqi Oil (RIO) contract document. Under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), TIME Magazine had obtained the document and asked the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) if TIME could interview me. However, the Corps was extremely upset with the request because they felt my comments could be “taken out of context.”  That coverage launched a long NBC nightly news piece, followed by a New York TIMES story and an AP wire story, which ultimately prompted the FBI to contact my attorney that an investigation had been opened and I was being requested to testify. My story became the lead news story for half a day and lead talking point in several stump speeches coming up to the election. Evan though my attorney and I spent more than 12 hours in discussions with the FBI regarding the case, the FBI returned to tell my attorney after several months that they had been taken off the case because the Department of Defense had decided that the Corps of Engineers “was too small a fish to fry”.   Through the efforts of Adam Zagorin, Timothy J. Burger and TIME Magazine, my story began to gain the media coverage it deserved.

LISA MYERS – NBC NEWS – Lisa Myers had the first television exclusive interview with me where she focused on: “Did Pentagon bend rules for Halliburton?”  She stressed as one example, pointing to “the Pentagon’s decision, citing the emergency of the war, to award Halliburton a no-bid contract to repair the Iraqi oil industry – not just for one year, but for five years, for a contract cost of up to $7 billion.”  I was overruled in the one-year advisory, but it still panned out amid public controversy that a limited competition was conducted within the first year and part of the contract was shared between Parsons and KBR.  Ms. Myers’ interview made it clear that I “tried to fix the problems internally and is speaking out publicly as a last resort”.  I had no interest in anyway of influencing the ongoing Presidential Election at the time, since I have never been a political animal, but the timing of my speaking out seemed to have been a coincidence to my receiving a letter from the Corps of Engineers that I would be demoted for unsuccessful performance ratings.  Ms. Myers’ interview profiled me as a public servant dedicated to truth and the highest degree of professionalism in executing my job in accordance with the Oath of Office I had taken to conduct the business of contracting in the Corps: “impartially, beyond reproach, with the highest degree of integrity and with preferential treatment toward none.  That I did to the best of my ability, but with stellar skills not in sync with the long-standing good ole boys club contracting culture.  Ms. Myers portrayed me as a non-Partisan, authentic civil servant and patriot trying to be the best of what I could be for my country against people in high places, who probably had nefarious intents.

NEELY TUCKER – THE WASHINGTON POST – On 19 October 2005, in the Washinton Post “Style” section, Neely Tucker published a major feature article highlighting my life story as America’s most famous “Halliburton whistleblower.”  My attorney, Michael Kohn stated, “The Post story uniquely captures the spirit behind whistleblowers and documents the fortitude and courage needed by any employee who risks their career to service the public interest.  It is required reading.”  During that same week of the Post article, the Bush Administration was opposing Whistle blower Rights before the U.S. Supreme Court under the hearing of the Garcetti v. Ceballos’s case, which stated that “when government employees speak about corruption…by other government employees…their speech is inherently a matter of public concern” and is protected under the First Amendment.  Unfortunately, in a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court held, “that because the statements were made by a District Attorney pursuant to his position as a public employee, rather than as a private citizen, his speech had no First Amendment Protection.”  Government employees, as whistleblowers or whatever have no First Amendment free speech protections. To me this decision, nullified all constitutional laws protecting employees who blow the whistle concerning work-related corruption and as a result, the whistleblower could be fired without legal recourse. Neely’s article was replete with my achievements from High School Valedictorian and Class President; to magna cum laude of my undergraduate class, finishing in three years; to earning three Master’s Degrees; to returning to my hometown of Rayville, Louisiana to become the first black teacher at Rayville High School, teaching mathematics and physics, when integration of the High School first began in 1968.  He highlighted my life as being shaped with a “can-do” determination. He summed up that the origin of my unrelenting march toward success, to my roots when he stated: “Lost in the middle of cotton country in the Louisiana delta at the mid-century, Bunnatine Hayes and her siblings clung to such self-confidence like a life raft. Their parents, Chris, and Savannah Hayes, were uneducated and numbingly poor, stuck in a world run by richer, more powerful whites; but they raised their children with a ferocious, almost frightening drive.”  Neely pointed out what one of my Harvard University professors said about me: “She was aware she was taking considerable risk,” says Marty Linsky, author, and professor at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, who taught Greenhouse in a leadership seminar a few years ago. “She cared a lot about the values she believed in and was prepared to take risks that a lot of people would not have.”  One quote from me in the article I thought was most revealing of who I was and still am, was: “I learned very early that everything you did in life you did with every fiber of my being,” she says, her voice a mix of pride and fury. “Why would I sit here now and let them tell me that I’m something I’m not?  Why would I do that? I am Bunny Greenhouse first, then I am in a government position. I will not compromise who I am.” To me, that sums it up. “A Web of Truth” is a must read, by Neely Tucker, Washington Post Style Section, October 19, 2005.

T. CHRISTIAN MILLER – LOS ANGELES TIMES/PRO PUBLICATION– T. Miller authored the book, “Blood Money,” which not only captured my trials with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, but also gleaned my professionalism and character which was considered rare for civil servants in leadership positions. Following is an excerpt from “Blood Money” through the eyes of discovery of a brilliant investigative reporter: “During the winter, the Pentagon’s efforts to cut corners in awarding the oil contract to Halliburton hit a roadblock: Bunnatine Greenhouse. Greenhouse was a tall, broad-shouldered Black woman who had worked her way through a mostly white, mostly male hierarchy to become the most senior contracting official in the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers. She had an inspiring, by-the-bootstraps story.  She grew up poor in Rayville, Louisiana, a segregated cotton town. Her father, who never passed third grade, operated the town cotton press. Her mother made sure that all her children were educated, and proud. “Nothing was going to stop me at being the best at what I could be. I was not going to stand for the vision of Rayville, Louisiana. There had to be another life,” Greenhouse told me. Most of Greenhouse’s siblings went on to earn advanced degrees. Her brother, Elvin Hayes, became a Hall of Fame basketball player for the Houston Rockets. Her sister was one of the first Black professors at Louisiana State University, an expert in Chaucerian literature, and Greenhouse can today recite the opening stanzas of Canterbury Tales in Middle English. Greenhouse found a home in the world of government contracting. She thrived in a profession that rewarded mastery of and strict adherence to the Federal Acquisition Regulations, the 1,923-page rule book for government contracting. Greenhouse was tough, no-nonsense, and a stickler for rules. A deeply religious woman, she believed in right and wrong. The contracting regulations had been written to make sure every company—big and small, rich, and poor—got a fair shake from the government. She believed deeply in that vision. And she was troubled by what she saw as the Army Corps of Engineers’ overly close relationship with Halliburton. The Army Corps of Engineers wanted to hand the oil contract to KBR, a subsidiary of Halliburton. The whole idea made Greenhouse uneasy. She didn’t understand why the corps was being given the job of overseeing Iraq’s oil industry. The agency had no experience in the oil business. The Army Corps built dams, bridges, and waterways, not oil wells. Second, she was worried about the regulations that discouraged the government from awarding a job to the same company that drew up the blueprints for it. Why was KBR even being considered?  The Army Corps was suggesting that KBR be awarded a cost-plus contract—giving a guaranteed 2 percent profit, plus an additional 5 percent bonus fee.  Worst, the contract was being issued in secret, without competitive bidding, for a five-year period.  Greenhouse could understand the secrecy; it was a war. She could also see some justification for doing it without bidding, since time was running short. But she didn’t understand the reason for such a lengthy contract.  Why not make it for one year, and then extend it later if necessary?  The Corps’ top officials felt that given the late date, they (KBR) were the only company that had the ability to do the job.  “I’m saying, ‘Red Flag’” Greenhouse told me.  “If they developed the contingency plan, they shouldn’t be qualified to participate in it. That’s a conflict of interest…Nobody wanted to hear it.”  When the contract came to Greenhouse for approval, it reflected none of her suggestions. It was still for five years. Filed with misgivings, Greenhouse felt she had no choice but to sign off. In a final act of defiance, she decided to write her objections directly onto the contract. It was the only way that she felt she could ensure she was respecting her oath to protect taxpayers from the potential for waste, fraud, and abuse. “I caution that extending this sole source effort beyond a one-year period could convey an invalid perception that there is not strong intent for a limited competition,” she wrote in cramped handwriting beneath her signature.”  T. Christian Miller’s investigative summary of how my professionalism clashed with politics was most admirably done and I commend his truths. 

MICHAEL BEAHAN SHNAYERSON – VANITY FAIR MAGAZINE –Michael Shnayerson profiled me and captured the essence of my sufferings and profound conflicts in a 12-page pictorial article in the Vanity Fair Magazine in April 2005. He uncovered the fact that I was a tireless worker whose mission to revolutionize contracting at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers hit a roadblock leading up to the Iraq War, “causing my long time top, level #1, performance ratings to plunge to the lowest, level #5, ratings, not caused by any decline in my performance, but was the heart of the strategy to derail me as the Corps’ Senior Contracting Executive.”  Mr. Shnayerson compared me to the likes of a top officer in a Fortune 500 Company being demoted and relegated to oblivion—banished totally from contracting where I oversaw complex financial purchases and had done my job exceedingly well for the past eight years, at the time of my derailment. He conducted enormous research outside of his discussions with me to find concrete evidence that my revelations to Congress were not simply a web of truth, but concrete facts. Such as: 1) The government had awarded upwards of $39 Billion to KBR for the Iraq Campaign with illegal preferential treatment; 2) In the build up to the Iraq War, I had to stand up to the most powerful men in the nation; 3) That even though raised in the Jim Crow South, I had a robust sense of authority and responsibility to law and truth, without fear of upholding them; 4) It was difficult as an honest broker to do my job since the good ole boys club was rowing back with vengeance after the Chief of Engineers who hired me had retired; 5) The contract type for the Restore Iraqi Oil (RIO) contract was cost plus fixed fee; 6) I was daily teetered in the balance of truth over impropriety; 7) Abuse got more personal and threatening when a tripwire was placed at the entrance to my cubicle causing me to fall; 8) While my case remained in limbo,  five years after my warnings regarding the preferential treatment to KBR in the RIO Contract and other improprieties, Congress legislated and curtailed most of the unethical practices in the 2008 Defense Authorization Act; 9) Showed convincing evidence of the shocking waste, corruption and abuse that were at the highest levels of government; and 10) Evidence that my story and the handwritten note above my signature on the Contract document, proved that one person can make a difference.  Mr. Shnayerson confirmed that I, as one person made a difference because I had the courage to stand alone in the Department of Defense to uphold the tenets of the Oath of Office that I took (which was Federal Procurement Law), and do the right things to protect the interest of the government, regardless of the consequences the Army and the Corps of Engineers bestowed on me.  I did in my mission what the Corps thought I could not do. I put the right checks and balances in place that curtailed, to a major extent, the good old boys’ culture and strategies and the millions of dollars of routine unauthorized procurements.

ERIK ECKHOLM –The New York Times – Mr. Eckholm interviewed me in my home in Reston and wrote a most revealing article of my commitment to the orders given me at the time of my hiring at the US Army Corps of Engineers, “A Watchdog Follows the Money in Iraq.”  The article clearly explained how I, as a contracting official, being armed with Federal Laws and Rules, ignited numerous battles on the home front battlefields, especially at the start of the Iraq War. He explained how I suffered the woes of being branded as a troublemaker; a stickler for rules; and a whistleblower to be demoted and finally awarded $970,000.00 in 2011 as a settlement for the damages done against me for only doing the job I was hired to do. Some believe I did the job too well by not looking away from some of the improprieties in contracting I experienced. However, Mr. Eckholm stated that there was also another problem: “She was also an African American woman and a civilian, trying to shake up what one former Corps Commander has called a ‘good ole boys’ network of longtime officers and favored companies.”   Mr. Eckholm described my firm commitment to the job, even in adversity when I refused the first offer to correct my disobedience to the Corps’ desires: by offering me retirement without demotion from the SES and my Procurement Executive position; without taking my top secret clearance with SCI; without taking my general officer protocol; without setting up a booby trap for me to fall, which eventually led to my having a total left knee replacement.  But, instead, Mr. Eckholm related how I hired an Attorney and sent a 21-page letter to the Acting Secretary of the Army, which overturned the Corps’ initial attempt to demote me and remove me from my position as the Procurement Executive. I grew up feeling that there was nothing I could not do; even on the protracted journey of bringing Corps’ officials back to the harbor of truth; that Integrity in Government was not an Option, but an Obligation. I tried to help military officers understand that decisions in giving a company exceptional advantage was wrong and I related to Mr. Eckholm, “When they don’t understand that a decision doesn’t protect the public trust, then it is my job to make them understand.”  Mr. Eckholm’s article clearly painted how my following the money in Iraq and integrity of actions with contractors helped our country to pass legislation that would help to stop the profiteers and forcibly suppress the improper actions of military and civilian leaders. 

JOHN SICELOFF and JASON MALONEY with DAVID BRANCACCIO – All from NOW on PBS, wrote the book, “Your America – Democracy’s Local Heroes”, which featured me in Chapter 9 as “A Loud Whistle – Bunny Greenhouse”.  The NOW PRODUCER, TY WEST’S SNAPSHOT OF BUNNY GREENHOUSE clearly describes my moral and ethical compass that places accountability and public trust over my self-comfort:” We reached out to Bunnatine Greenhouse in the early days after Hurricane Katrina, when word came that Halliburton had just been awarded another lucrative no-bid contract. This time it wasn’t about Iraq, but about New Orleans—half underwater, half ruined. Bunny—you had to call her Bunny—was a natural choice for the interview; born and raised in Louisiana, long experience with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (the same folks who build Louisiana’s levees), and a key player in an increasingly public dispute over past Halliburton contracts.  The stereotypical Hollywood whistle-blower stays in the shadows and speaks in cryptic sound bites. We quickly discovered that Bunny Greenhouse is no stereotype. She does not speak from the shadows. Eye contact is a big thing with her. And she is anything but cryptic. Names, places, and dollar figures pour forth with a controlled precision that speaks to a no-nonsense professionalism and a clear moral outrage at what she perceives to be a betrayal not only of her own exacting standards, but of the American taxpayer. She is not a typical whistle-blower. She is both poised and confident, two traits that are rarely found in whistle-blowers, and for good reason. Taking on the system, placing your career in the crosshairs is not something to be done lightly or easily. Those who dare to speak truth to power set themselves on a hard course, where reputation and motivation are often the first victims of the slander and innuendo of faceless bureaucrats and politicians. Those who are not suspended or fired outright are often demoted, as Greenhouse was, to meaningless jobs in out-of-the-way corners of the federal bureaucracy. I’ve known some who have been issued travel orders on the eve of scheduled testimony, and others who have had their home addresses and phone numbers leaked on the Internet. They can become paranoid and suspicious of any contact, and when they do finally trust someone enough to begin to tell their tale, it often takes weeks of debriefings before they finally share enough information to make sense out of their stories. Bunny Greenhouse is by far the most self-assured and cogent whistle-blower I have ever come across in three decades of reporting. In her presence you immediately sense the moral compass that animates Bunny and sets her apart from all the others. Most whistle-blowers we cross paths with can stand up to the constant, unrelenting pressure only when focused on tangible goals: monetary reward or a desire for revenge. In bunny’s case, there’s something else going on. Bunny believes that good government requires a certain amount of transparency, and that corruption is best deterred by accountability. Her drive seems to flow from an ethical compass that places public trust over personal comfort. It is a seemingly unshakable personal resolve that guides and strengthens her convictions and sustains her in her efforts to shine a bright light into the dark corners of the government.” 

DICK CAROZZA, Editor of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners’ FRAUD Magazine – Mr. Carozza featured me in an interview as a “Persistent Sentinel”.  I am proud of my loyalty to the truth, which was molded in me in my youth, regardless of consequences. I was equally proud when awarded the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) 2006 Cliff Robertson Sentinel Award. As the Cover Story on the ACFE July/August 2006 FRAUD Magazine states: “The ACFE’s Cliff Robertson Sentinel Award is presented to recognize annually the selfless act of coming forward for the sole purpose of righting a wrong. The award carries the inscription: “For Choosing Truth over self.”  That inscription alone captured the essence of my merely having the fortitude to do the job, with the highest degree of integrity, that I took my Oath of Office to do. When asked: “What are your thoughts about being chosen the 2006 recipient of the Cliff Robertson Award, I answered as follows: “I believe this award recognized the issues that I faced and honors my unwavering efforts to keep my focus on the ‘point of the spear’ of the job I committed to, regardless of the consequences.  In my job as principal assistant responsible for contracting, federal law says that government business must be conducted in a manner that is with the highest degree of integrity, is impartial, above reproach, and with preferential treatment toward none. I am a public servant, and I took that directive seriously.”  The foregoing is the response that I provided in 2006 of which I have never regretted and I am proud that my ten granddaughters (Nina, Mia, Zoi, Eden, Sage, Gizem, Gamze, Dylan, Maren and Riley) will have those thoughts to stand as a reflection and a beacon of their grandmother’s commitment to moral courage for our country in the face of standing alone in the Department of Defense leadership when the only choice should have been, to do the right thing for the right reasons. 

RACHEL MADDOW—MSNBC—At the time of my interview with Ms. Maddow, I did not know what a giant of a person and professional who was interviewing me. Now, I am quite an admirer of Rachel, as to how deeply and thoroughly she seeks for truth in her investigations. Rachel is an honest, critical thinker who brings clear rationale to her audience, barring emotions and sensationalism. Her professionalism is beyond reproach, and we can depend upon the accuracy of her research and analyses. Rachel infused the highpoints of her interview with me in an MSNBC Documentary in three parts: Hour One, Hour Two and Hour Three, entitled: Day of Destruction; Decade of War; and Peacock Productions. I was featured in Hour Two. Rachel, with the assistance of Richard Engel, paints a portrait of how America following 9/11 launched into a Decade of War which created moral shifts, down a path it had never gone before, and which was managed by more profiteering from Contractors than trained soldiers on the battlefield. Suitcases filled with millions of dollars in cash initially ruled the successes in Afghanistan and Iraq through the hiring of Indigenous support to prosecute the War on Terror and Terrorism. The 9/11 Day of Destruction created major physical changes in our infrastructure, our National Security strength and safety, or mental toughness, and caused many to question if the investment brought unnecessary costs of lives lost and money spent. Some questioned whether 9/11 caused America to become terrorized in launching a Global War on Fear, and invading a country that we were left to rebuild.  Contractors were making a killing handling the business of the Iraq War; numbers of Contractors exceeded the number of troops. Instead of troops, supply lines were big business, being controlled by privately-run multi-national companies. Security forces were being paid ten times the salaries of soldiers. There was no competition, and preference was given to well-connected firms. At this point, the Documentary highlighted the improprieties, I had to manage with Halliburton and KBR. Those improprieties were highlighted as big business since KBR was hired to draft the scope of work for the Campaign in a Contingency Plan for which they were paid almost $2M and was subsequently awarded a $7B sole-source contract to execute the work that was laid out in the Contingency Plan.  Ms. Maddow pointed out that as the Procurement Executive for the US Army Corps of Engineers, the Department of Defense, and the Army, expected me to look the other way and not highlight the blatant Conflicts of Interest in the many transactions that had been envisioned for Halliburton. She pointed out that I was to simply be asleep at the switch, but instead, I sent letters to HQDA on the improprieties against Federal Law and how KBR was writing their own check for the proposed work in Iraq, without competition. She pointed out that the proposed oil field fires never happened, so KBR unilaterally proposed converting their original scope of work to supporting generic logistics and transporting gasoline to the troops. However, my writing my reservations on the contract, forced after a year, a limited competition that divided work that the troops were not equipped to perform, between KBR and Parsons, Inc. Rachel described me as a “Thorn in the side” of the Corps of Engineers because I loved the business of making a difference and making sure that truth and honesty prevailed and integrity in government contracting would not be compromised.  She highlighted me and others for our contributions in trying to uphold the financial and moral issues, in protection of the Public Trust, notwithstanding the woes of war. 

SUSAN WHITE – Editor, The San Diego Union Tribune – Ms. White included my story in her journey to discover the great pulses that were shaking our heritage, in her article: Desperately Seeking America.  My story was one among twelve on her spotlight of America, which she described as “shaking the heart of our country on the need for change.”  She focused two characteristics of the people she interviewed: 1) “people willing to stand up for their convictions, whatever those convictions may be,” and 2) “to figure out what gave them their courage.”  To answer these foci for me, Susan highlighted the fact that I was acting as a steward for the public trust and that I approached my job with three goals drawing from the oath of office I took, which demanded that I ensure that the conduct in my agency would be beyond reproach; at the highest level of integrity; impartial; and with preferential treatment toward none.”  I expressed to Susan that I was committed to 1) make sure soldiers got the supplies they needed so they could be on the battlefield, fight, and win; 2) make sure all contractors were treated equally and that they understood the rules; and 3) make sure the public’s money was well spent under the $23 billion budget that I managed.  The most gratifying part of Susan’s article to me were the comments she included from two people from the early years in my life: Lalla Youngblood Wilson wrote: “Thanks for sharing my friend Bunny’s story to the nation. She’s a light in an institution that’s lost its compass for integrity.  We need more like her!”  Delores Brown Viner wrote: “Thank you so much for your article on Bunny Greenhouse. Bunny has been my best friend since the first day of college. I know her values, her integrity, and her faith in God. These three things will always ensure she does what is right, what is fair. I hope more people will be reached by articles as yours so they can know and appreciate what she has done and what she has sacrificed for America.”  To me, the foregoing comments authentically summed up my character from individuals who knew me from my youth. 

JOHN LOVASS – TV Host for Reston Impact on Integrity in Government, casting my story as The Reston Example, since my home is Reston, Virginia.  In the televised interview, Mr. Lovass did a remarkable job of profiling me as a hardworking, but abused patriot who was filled with innovativeness, courage, and integrity, and with no question of where character lies. He felt that it was important that the folks in Reston, know that in all of my challenges that they were reading about in the national newspapers, that I lived in Reston, Virginia; singing in the choir at the Catholic Church; managing a home with my husband, Al, and raising three children who had become successful adults; a daughter working with the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland; a son managing a Wall Street financial institution in Illinois; and a son being a General Manager of a Jeep Dealership in Texas; and at the time of the interview, I had seven granddaughters, no grandsons.  I was awaiting the last son who had gotten married three years before to add some grandsons to the group, but he and his wife, now have three daughters, no grandsons: making grandchildren totaling ten granddaughters. Mr. Lovaas covered the history of the questionable ethics of many other officials who had crossed the line to serve self-interest instead of the public interest; he also reminded his audience of the twelve-hundred-dollar toilet seats and the six-hundred-dollar hammers that had plagued the nation and forced Congress to write new laws to eliminate the fraud by some contractors and the abuse by senior leaders in government.  He covered my extensive record of achievements, to include my being responsible for developing 2500 procurement professionals stationed at 58 procurement offices around the world; and how I served in accordance with Federal Law with impartiality; with the highest degree of integrity; beyond reproach; and with preferential treatment toward none. But, regardless of my stellar service, it was hard for some military to garner swift trust for civilians in “responsible” positions. The military wanted subordination of civilians and no accountability for their inappropriate and sometimes fraudulent actions. Mr. Lovaas lauded my personal integrity and courage as a truth teller, who would not approve a compelling emergency non-competitive contract, without reservations, for five years for the potential of insurgents’ burning of oil wells in Iraq, — five years to Halliburton’s KBR that would never be revisited. I had opportunity and responsibility to make a difference; I was just an ordinary person who made extraordinary decisions for the best interest of the Public Trust. At the time of the interview, I was still in my cubicle on the job, but the interview was quite fulfilling, reflecting on who I had become in peril. 

ALEX FERRER, HOST; LINCOLN FARR, CBS NEWS Producer; and Staff – Aired on June 28, 2019, under the Whistleblower Series, a Documentary: Bunny’s War. CBS’ publicity release just prior to the airing of the Documentary stated the following: “Bunny’s War: The Case against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, portrays that in 1997, Bunnatine ‘Bunny’ Greenhouse was selected for the top civilian [contracting] post in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, responsible for approving all outside contracting [over $10 Million]. It was a far cry from her humble beginnings in rural Louisiana, but what should have been the pinnacle of her civil service career became something much darker.”  The Documentary highlighted my speaking out about a $7 billion contract called ‘Restore Iraqi Oil,’ (RIO), which was to help rebuild Iraq’s oil infrastructure in the wake of the U.S. invasion of that country. I felt that the contract, which was awarded to KBR, a subsidiary of the oil services company Halliburton, was noncompetitive and overly generous in budget and duration.  In addition, there was documented evidence suggesting that the Office of Vice President Dick Cheney – who had formerly served as the CEO of Halliburton, KBR’s owner – had exerted influence in assigning the contract. The Host, Alex Ferrer examined the case against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and throughout the documentary, he followed my journey and my roots in Rayville, Louisiana, a segregated southern town, where I was taught “a strong sense of morals, integrity and honor; no excuse for being less than the best,” which culminated in my becoming in 1968, the first African American teacher in the newly integrated Rayville High School.  The documentary summarized the major atrocities the Corps levied on me for standing up for right and upholding the Oath of Office I had taken to become their Procurement Executive. The documentary pointed out that as the highest ranked contracting civilian at the Army Corps, I was incredibly good at my job and because the top brass couldn’t fire me, which was a perk of having a high station in the government, they demoted me. When that happened, I was stripped of my [Top-Secret, SCI] security clearance and sent off to a remote cubicle, where I was basically condemned to oblivion. Even though the documentary clearly defined what made me “Me” and the fact that speaking truth to power destroyed my career and caused me great personal hardship, most importantly, it showed my duty was clear to me and I firmly believed that regardless of any personal risk, a Patriotic American must stand up for what is right. 

HOANG NGUYEN, NOVA Public Affairs at Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA), where Bunny Greenhouse has taught mathematics since 2013, introduced a video to the NOVA Community on how one of its adjunct faculty members would be featured on the CBS Whistleblower Program, highlighting my history exposing fraud in the Federal Government. She wrote: “The season finale of the CBS show ‘WHISTLEBLOWER’ will air on Friday, June 28, 2019, at 8 PM EST, and will feature NOVA adjunct faculty member, Bunny Greenhouse. Greenhouse, a former Chief Contracting Officer for the United States Army Corps of Engineers testified before Congress in 2005 about irregularities in contracts between Halliburton and the federal government. She became a whistleblower standing up to some of Washington’s most powerful men on what she believed was massive fraud. Greenhouse stated that it was “the most blatant and improper contract abuse I have witnessed in the course of my professional career.”  She will be talking about her experience regarding various attempts to silence her, ranging from demotions to threats, to eventually being awarded financial restitution in the amount of $970,000 in 2011 by the U.S. District Court in Washington, DC.  Greenhouse is currently teaching mathematics at NOVA.”  This was the kind of acceptance and appreciation of my patriotic duties I experienced when I retired from the Federal Government and moved from the perils of political suppression to the first love of my life, teaching students that mathematics can be fun.