WASHINGTON, Oct. 4 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --- Speaker Nancy Pelosi released the following statement today after the House overwhelmingly passed H.R. 2740, a bill sponsored by Congressman David Price of North Carolina to require accountability for private contractors such as Blackwater that the Bush Administration has retained to perform military functions in Iraq and elsewhere:
"For too long, the Bush Administration has looked the other way as Blackwater, Halliburton and other politically-connected contractors have received billions of dollars in no-bid contracts and operated under little or no scrutiny in Iraq .
"The New Direction Congress is determined to hold private security contractors -- and their supporters in the Bush Administration --- accountable. This vital legislation provides greater oversight, extends the rule of law, and requires investigations of potentially unlawful use of force.
"We must uphold American values of justice and accountability."
SOURCE Office of the Speaker of the House
